TikToks Go Silent as Major Record Label Pulls All Its Music

It’s official: major music label Universal Music Group has yanked its catalogs from TikTok, including the works of some of the biggest names in pop music, such as Taylor Swift, Drake, and Olivia Rodrigo. Earlier this week, the label announced in a statement that it had chosen to “call time out on TikTok” to pressure the social network for better rules surrounding the use of artificial intelligence, online safety, and compensation for artists. The label’s contract with TikTok also expired over Wednesday night. “Today, as an indication of how little TikTok compensates artists and songwriters, despite its massive and growing user base, rapidly rising advertising revenue and increasing reliance on music-based content, TikTok accounts for only about one percent of our total revenue,” the statement reads. It also notably called out AI on the platform, saying TikTok hadn’t done enough to protect “human artists from the harmful effects of AI, and online safety for TikTok’s users.” A search on the platform shows that Taylor Swift’s official account no longer lists any of her songs. The music tab has simply been replaced by a message that reads: “This music is currently unavailable.” As The Verge points out, any existing TikToks that use UMG music will be muted. Needless to say, that’s a huge number of user-submitted videos. It’s a notable flap, considering the UMG’s considerable influence in the industry, which will likely dial up a huge amount of pressure on TikTok’s owner ByteDance. It’s also a significant new chapter in the…TikToks Go Silent as Major Record Label Pulls All Its Music

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