![]() ![]() “There are clearly players in this space who are treating the use of music in these videos as a garden variety social media post, when really they should be treating it more like a traditional commercial,” said Joseph Fishman, a music law professor at Vanderbilt University School of Lawīang argued that TikTok allowed the company to use the general music library, but the judge was unconvinced. But that library doesn’t contain the most sought-after songs owned by the record labels, and many brands have complained that it prevents their videos from catching onto the latest TikTok trends. The commercial library, which TikTok rolled out in May 2020, contains more than half a million pre-cleared songs that brands can use freely. Its general music library contains songs from catalogs of the largest record labels, but is reserved only for ordinary users. The cases have been paused after Bang filed for bankruptcy.Ĭourt filings show that TikTok operates two different music libraries. Warner filed a lawsuit against the drink maker that same month. Dimitrouleas ruled that Bang was liable for infringing dozens of songs in the UMG catalog, and in September he ruled in favor of Sony Music in its nearly identical case against Bang. Bang used songs from artists like Ariana Grande, Billie Eilish, and Drake to promote its products without obtaining a license from the copyright holders. In the eyes of the law, parts of the copyright suits against Bang were cut and dry. “I think there’s confusion in the market about what you can and can’t do with music and what the potential consequences are,” he said. When Freund tells his clients about the licensing issues, or when he posts about it on his own social media, he said he’s found that many people aren’t reading the fine print. The broader music library, according to TikTok’s terms of service, is restricted to “personal, non-commercial use.” TikTok has inked licensing deals with the three major record labels, Warner Music Group Corp., UMG Recordings Inc., and Sony Music Entertainment, that allow ordinary creators to access a vast audio library.īut when an account belongs to a verified brand, or if an influencer is using TikTok to promote a product, the legal dynamic changes. Most creators can include those songs in their videos without fearing a lawsuit. TikTok, which has more than a billion monthly active users, first rose to popularity for its “hashtag” challenges and viral dance trends synchronized to the top music hits of the day. “There’s an assumption that just because music is available on a social media platform through one of its music libraries, that availability means it must be permissible to be used in any capacity,” said Robert Freund, an attorney specializing in advertising and social media marketing. for copyright infringement based on TikTok and Instagram posts. recently sued UK-based makeup and skincare company Iconic London Ltd. Labels and publishers under Warner Music Group Corp. Other social media-driven brands are facing similar liability. A federal judge this year ruled in favor of the labels in two of those cases. The upstart energy drink maker Bang achieved enormous marketing success through its aggressive and flashy social media strategy that used popular influencers to advertise its drinks on TikTok and Instagram Reels.īut the company didn’t obtain a license to use the music in more than 100 of its videos, and it was hit with copyright lawsuits from all three of the major US record labels. ![]() and other short-form video sharing platforms. The music industry’s legal crackdown on brand owners that use unlicensed songs in social media posts sends a warning for companies looking to capitalize on the explosive growth of TikTok Inc. ![]()
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