TikTok and Universal Music Group have started throwing accusations against each other following a disagreement on the studio's music licensing on the video-sharing platform.
UMG, the studio that licenses music from Taylor Swift and Olivia Rodrigo, took the first strike in an open letter accusing the surge of AI-generated music on TikTok are hurting its artists.
TikTok dismissed UMG's accusations as "false narrative and rhetoric," claiming that the studio chose to walk away from the "powerful support" of the platform.
The video-sharing site cited its "artist-first" policy and accused UMG of "self-serving" and working "not in the best interests" of artists, songwriters, and fans.
The current licensing agreement between TikTok and UMG is set to expire this Jan. 31, Wednesday.
Tens of millions of videos using music tracks from artists under UMG will be muted starting Thursday.
AI TikToks on the Rise
TikTok has been reported before of hosting more and more AI-generated songs in the past month as the platform started exploring the technology.
Users have been using the technology to replicate the voices of popular artists to generate a song, most of which were made without consent from the artist or the record label.
While the generated songs are in no way near actual artists' performances, posts using the music have been growing fast and threatens to outnumber licensed music the UMG provided TikTok.
Many of these posts remain online and have not been copyright struck by TikTok.
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TikTok Vs UMG is a Corporate Dispute Over Licensing Fee
Universal Music was not the first studio that threatened to pull its music on a streaming platform as the two companies fought over licensing agreements.
In 2008, Warner Music Group pulled a similar stunt by removing its music from YouTube after a failed payment negotiation between the companies.
Big brands have widely used the strategy to force another major company back into negotiations. Sony did the same on Marvel during their licensing dispute on MCU Spider-Man.
It is worth noting that UMG sits as the largest record label in the industry with names like Billie Eilish, The Weeknd, SZA, and Harry Styles.
Conversely, TikTok has recorded billions of monthly active users and is the highest-earning non-gaming app from customer spending.
There is no confirmation yet whether TikTok and UMG have restarted negotiations.
