ICE Licensing // Senior DSP Audit & Assurance Manager (London)

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Free Trade Agency // Office Co-Ordinator (London)

Today's music business news

TOP STORY

Latest payment delays at Utopia lead to new SourceAudio lawsuit

Utopia Music has been sued for a second time by an LA-based company that it had originally planned to acquire.

In its new lawsuit, rights management and licensing platform SourceAudio claims that Utopia settled its previous lawsuit but then failed to make good on the commitments in that settlement.

So much so, SourceAudio is now alleging that the settlement was, in fact, a "ruse" to buy Utopia time and get the legal dispute out of the public forum. The firm's lawyers state in their new legal filing: "Utopia’s gameplaying must come to an end".

In its original lawsuit, filed with the courts in Delaware earlier this year, SourceAudio said that Utopia agreed a deal to buy the company in March 2022. The two companies signed a ‘membership interest purchase agreement’ - essentially a deal for Utopia to purchase SourceAudio’s shares to acquire the business - on 14 Mar 2022.

Utopia was set to pay a total of $26.5 million for the rights management platform, paying a $3 million deposit on signing the deal with the aim of completing the transaction in May last year. However, the deadline for completion - and paying the bulk of the purchase price - then kept getting pushed back. It was as a result of this that SourceAudio filed their original lawsuit against the company.

CMU has since obtained documents that show that Utopia has now paid $6,830,000 to SourceAudio. We’ve further established that a settlement agreement was reached between the two companies in “mid-September”, which was formally accepted by SourceAudio earlier this month.

As part of this settlement agreement, SourceAudio withdrew its lawsuit and Utopia agreed to pay another $400,000. The day the agreement was signed - believed to be 16 Oct - an immediate payment of $50,000 was made by Utopia. The next day - 17 Oct - Utopia was meant to pay $200,000 and a final $150,000 is due to be paid today, 27 Oct.

Sources close to that deal have told CMU that the company was unable to pay the $200,000 due the day after the settlement agreement was fully signed “due to funds that had been earmarked for this purpose being delayed”. Sources have also indicated that today’s deadline for the payment of $150,000 will be missed.

Hence the new lawsuit. According to Billboard, that new legal filing states: "Desperate to get the Delaware litigation out of the public eye, Utopia negotiated an agreement … in exchange for a full release and dismissal of the lawsuit. But as with the underlying contract, Utopia has refused to pay what it owes".

Indeed, the lawsuit goes on, Utopia failed to fulfil its commitments under the settlement within days. “It now appears that the settlement was simply a ruse by Utopia to buy time and avoid paying its debts”, the lawsuit states.

It then concludes: “SourceAudio brings this action to collect what it is owed [or] to rescind the fraudulently procured settlement agreement. Utopia’s gameplaying must come to an end".

Responding to questions about the new litigation, Utopia’s Chairman of the Board Mattias Hjelmstedt told CMU: “The payment delay is not in any way some sort of ‘gameplaying’”.

“We have paid all but $350,000 of our agreed debt to SourceAudio but have unfortunately experienced delays in several incoming payments which has led to an unfortunate chain reaction and delayed the last two payments that were due 17 and 27 Oct - these represent approximately 5% of the total amount we settled on”.

He concluded: “We are working on resolving this as fast as possible”.

Utopia recently appointed a new CEO charged with the task of moving the company beyond what has been a very challenging year.

ONE LINERS

Zara Larsson, David Guetta, UK Music Video Awards + more

DEALS

HarbourView has acquired the share of Fleetwood Mac recording royalties that is controlled by the estate of Christine McVie. It has also acquired a share of Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo’s publishing and recording assets. “We are fortunate and blessed that the estate of Christine McVie and the iconic Pat and Neil chose to partner with our firm”, says HabourView founder Sherrese Clarke Soares. “We look forward to welcoming more and diverse repertoire into our catalogue. We take a long-term view on these assets and look to be the forever owner, partnering with the artists and estates to cement their legacy”.

RELEASES

Zara Larsson has announced that she will release new album ‘Venus’ on 9 Feb. Alongside the news, she’s put out new David Guetta-produced track ‘On My Love’.

Speaking of David Guetta, he has released new single ‘Big FU’ featuring Ayra Starr and Lil Durk.

The Kid Laroi has released new single ‘What Just Happened’. The track is taken from new album ‘The First Time’, which is out on 10 Nov.

Madness have released new single ‘Baby Burglar’. “The story behind ‘Baby Burglar’ is actually quite a funny one”, say the band. “It's about [saxophonist] Lee [Thomson] finding a midnight meddler loose in his house and how it reminded him of his younger self and all the shenanigans we used to get up to when we were whippersnappers”.

Everything Everything have announced that they will release new album ‘Mountainhead’ on 1 Mar. Out now is new single ‘Cold Reactor’, which frontman Jonathan Higgs says is “about striving for an advanced future and exponential growth at the cost of our own personal worlds and mental wellbeing. Lives lived through screens and isolation, leading to disconnected and emotionless reactions in the form of symbols”.

Mxmtoon has released new single ‘The Idea of You (Revisited)’ from upcoming new EP ‘Plum Blossom (Revisited)’, which is out on 10 Nov.

Spector have released new single ‘Driving Home For Halloween’. The title “isn’t just a terrible Chris Rea pun”, insists frontman Fred Macpherson. “It’s a song about life, death and love in the time of Find My Friends. If ‘Goosebumps’ books were romance novels this might be what they sound like. It’s for everyone whose life feels static even with the world turning on its axis at a thousand miles an hour”.

LULU. has released new single ‘Yesterdays’, featuring The Joy.

GIGS & TOURS

Chase & Status will play a gig at a secret London location on 9 Nov to mark the release of video game ‘Modern Warfare III’. To win tickets, you'll need to complete three missions. More info here.

AWARDS

The UK Music Video Awards took place last night, with Mette the big winner - her debut video for ‘Mama’s Eyes’ took three prizes, including Video Of The Year. See the full list of winners here.

The nominees for this year’s LIVE Awards have been announced and can be viewed in full here. “The strength of this year’s nominations is testament to the excellence delivered by individuals and companies, venues, festivals and events across the UK live music sector”, says LIVE CEO Jon Collins. “It is also an indicator of how quickly the LIVE Awards have established themselves as a must-win, must-attend event”. The ceremony takes place at London’s Troxy on 12 Dec.

DIGITAL

Industry pressure mounts on 3tone

Yesterday CMU reported on detailed allegations of significant mismanagement at Bristol-based digital music distributor 3tone, run by Dean Roberts and Christoffer Borud. After our article was shared widely on social media - and was picked up by other media - yet more artists have approached CMU to share their complaints about broken promises and missing royalties.

As pressure on the company builds, key stakeholder organisations across the industry have been contacted by members affected by all this, with a primary concern expressed by artists, managers and labels being what happens to music that has been delivered to the streaming services via 3tone.

CMU has reached out to key suppliers and partners of 3tone from the digital supply chain who have assured us that any music currently online will remain there for the immediate future.

However, CMU also understands that, from an operational point of view, 3tone’s ability to deliver new releases may be significantly impacted, meaning that artists and managers with new tracks that are not yet live should urgently contact 3tone and, based on the response they get, investigate whether another distributor may be better placed to deliver any immediate releases.

Key stakeholders from across the industry have contacted CMU as a result of our coverage, expressing deep concern about the situation at 3tone and highlighting members who have already been in contact worried about what the uncertain future of 3tone means for their music.

David Martin, CEO of the Featured Artists Coalition, which represents over 4000 artist members says:

“CMU has done the music business a great service by bringing these issues to light. The allegations against 3tone Music appear to be credible and serious, and, along with the staff, our first concern is obviously with all the artists affected. It is essential that everyone who believes they are owed money can get access to what’s rightfully theirs, and I would urge any concerned FAC members to send us a confidential email at [email protected]”.

“Beyond that, we need to have a serious discussion within the industry about the protection of artist revenues. It must be standard practice for all royalty income to be held in escrow, and then paid through as agreed in contract - in a transparent and timely manner”.

Annabella Coldrick, CEO of the Music Managers Forum, which represents more than 1500 artist manager members, says:

These are extremely worrying allegations about 3tone Music. While it remains unclear how many artists and managers are potentially impacted, it is imperative all are provided with access to any money they are owed as a matter of urgency”.

“It is absolutely vital that artists and their managers can have confidence in their distribution partners, and that any royalties accrued are properly ring-fenced and protected. Following the collapse of Pledge Music we hoped that lessons might have been learned, but it must be standard practice for distributors to keep their client's revenue in escrow. If any MMF members are concerned about the findings of CMU's investigation we are asking them to contact us in confidence at [email protected]”.

Gee Davy, Chief Operating Officer for the Association of Independent Music, which represents over 1000 member businesses, says:

“CMU paints a very worrying picture of 3tone’s situation and a distressing one for any staff, clients and suppliers affected. I hope that 3tone are in a better position than reported and urge them to communicate with all involved and make any payments necessary without delay”.

“AIM is already speaking with members and our wider independent music community as well as collaborating with other trade bodies to gain accurate insights so that we can provide any appropriate guidance and, if needed, practical steps. Any independent music rightsholder who is directly connected with the issues outlined in this report should get in touch through [email protected] where our team can support them accordingly”.

“Digital distribution is a critical part of the business of releasing music in 2023. All labels and artists need to know they can place their trust in their distribution partners to operate with best practice and, in the main, that trust is justified. AIM will also work alongside our Distribution Action Group to build on best practice work started with the Digital Distribution Switch Code to help support a safe and responsible digital environment for all rightsholders”.

AWARDS

Young Fathers win SAY Award

Young Fathers’ ‘Heavy Heavy’ has won the 2023 Scottish Album of The Year Award, beating artists including Paolo Nutini, Hamish Hawk and Joesef to take the £20,000 prize.

Accepting the prize, Young Fathers’ Alloysious Massaquoi said: “Thank you to the judges, and all the nominees and everybody that’s turned up tonight - it's a bit radge!”

“The album is called ‘Heavy Heavy’ for a reason, it’s the trials and tribulations of everybody”, he went on. “It’s one of those things where we sort of had to start from scratch, it had been four or five years since we put something out since [previous album] ‘Cocoa Sugar’. For us to get back together and get excited again with each other, all the ideas that everybody else brings - it's great and this is topping off a great year”.

As well as the main prize, the SAY Awards show also saw Paolo Nutini’s debut album ‘These Streets’ presented with the Modern Scottish Classic Award, while No Windows was named The Sound Of Young Scotland, winning £10,000 of funding to create their debut album.

“All I can say is thank you so much to those who the music means something and for listening to the songs”, said Nutini - who was unable to attend in person as he is in America. “I really appreciate it and I’m proud to be a part of it all. I’m sorry I couldn’t be there on the night to say thanks in person but please know that it means a lot. Thank you”.

Accepting their prize, No Windows said: “Thanks so much to The SAY Award for this award. If you couldn’t tell, we didn’t write [a speech] - it’s such an honour to just be here. We were just happy for the day out. Thank you to everyone here. Scotland right now is such an exciting time and place for music and it feels like a complete honour to be a part of that and be part of such an incredible group of musicians”.

LEGAL

Tim Westwood interviews by police for a fourth time over sexual misconduct allegations

Former BBC Radio 1 DJ Tim Westwood has been interviewed under caution for a fourth time by London's Metropolitan Police.

Officers confirmed in a statement yesterday that they had "interviewed a 66-year-old man under caution" in relation to incidents that allegedly occurred between 1982 and 2016.

The police force has been investigating formal allegations that were made against the DJ in the wake of a media exposé last year in which a number of women accused Westwood of sexual misconduct.

Some of the women who spoke to journalists as part of that exposé said that, after they agreed to meet with the DJ to discuss their careers in music, he had pressured them into sex. Others claimed that he had groped them as they posed for photographs at events.

Many of the alleged incidents took place between 1994 and 2013 when Westwood worked for the BBC. That prompted the broadcaster to launch an independent review into the alleged incidents, what BBC management did or did not know about the allegations at the time, and how they dealt with them.

Westwood has previously denied all the allegations made against him and has never been arrested for any crime. However, he has now been interviewed under caution four times this year.

When asked about the allegations in a social media video last week, he said: "It's all false allegations. It's all false allegations. I've never done that, period, they're all false allegations. I will prove that as soon as I get my opportunity and trust me, I am ready".

RELEASES

The Beatles to release “last song” next week

The Beatles have announced that they will release their “last song” next week. Titled ‘Now And Then’, the song is taken from the same John Lennon demo tape as ‘Free As A Bird’ and ‘Real Love’, which were released in the 1990s. However, it has been keep under wraps until now because the quality of the original recording was “rubbish”.

The three songs appeared on a demo tape recorded by John Lennon after the Beatles’ split in 1970, which was labelled ‘For Paul’. It was then given to Paul McCartney by Yoko Ono following Lennon’s death in 1980. The surviving Beatles created finished recordings of ‘Free As A Bird’ and ‘Real Love’, which were released in 1995 and 1996. However, while they also worked on ‘Now And Then’, it was ultimately abandoned due to the sound quality of Lennon’s recording.

Now, using AI technology, McCartney and Ringo Starr have completed the song, using Lennon’s vocals, guitar parts recorded by George Harrison in the 90s, and new musical contributions.

The idea came from Peter Jackson’s work on the ‘Get Back’ documentary, which saw him use new technology to ‘de-mix’ the mono soundtrack of original footage shot in the late 1960s and uncover previously unheard conversations between band members. McCartney wondered if the same technology could be applied to Lennon’s old demo. Long story short, it could.

McCartney first talked about the project earlier this year. Now it’s completed, he says of the process: “There it was, John’s voice, crystal clear. It’s quite emotional. And we all play on it, it’s a genuine Beatles recording. In 2023 to still be working on Beatles music, and about to release a new song the public haven’t heard, I think it’s an exciting thing”.

Starr adds: “It was the closest we’ll ever come to having him back in the room, so it was very emotional for all of us. It was like John was there, you know. It’s far out”.

The song is set to be premiered on 2 Nov, and will appear on a repackaged version of the band’s ‘1967-1970’ compilation (aka ‘The Blue Album’). That compilation - alongside an updated version of ‘1962-1966’ (or ‘The Red Album’) - is out on 10 Nov.

A short film to accompany the release of ‘Now And Then’ will be released on 1 Nov. Watch a trailer for that here.

LIVE

Banks confirm social media ticketing scams are back on the rise

Five UK banks have revealed to the BBC that they have seen a two-and-half times increase this year in the number of people being scammed by fraudulent ticket sellers online. A revelation which confirms that - as the live sector has got fully back to business following the COVID lockdowns - so have the scammers.

Many of the fraudulent sales happen on social media, the BBC report notes, with fans thinking that they are buying tickets from other genuine fans unable to attend a show. A sale can begin in comments added to an artist's official Facebook or Twitter posts or in fan groups on social platforms.

Fans eager to buy tickets then connect with the scammers through a messaging app, what appears to be a fan-to-fan conversation occurs, and the buyer ultimately makes a bank transfer to the scammer. They are usually then sent what looks like a digital ticket, but is not.

Earlier this week, Boing Boing reported that scammers are increasingly using Twitter to con people, as brands turn away from the social media site. With the brands themselves less responsive on the platform than before, scammers are posing as customer service agents in their place.

The banks are closely monitoring the fraud because, the BBC explains, they "are signed up to the Contingent Reimbursement Model Code, which aims to reimburse people if they fall victim to an Authorised Push Payment scam 'and have acted appropriately'. An APP scam is when a person is tricked into transferring money into an account operated by a fraudster".

Emily Seymour from consumer group Which? confirms ticket sale scams on social media are commonplace, telling the BBC: "When it comes to ticket sales, particularly, we know that fraudsters and scammers are always looking for anything that they can hook in victims with. Because they know that you really want tickets, you're willing to spend a lot of money on them and you're maybe likely to try and find them".

Secondary ticketing sites like Viagogo and StubHub like to use the prevalence of ticketing scams on social media to justify their existence, arguing that they have measures in place to stop the fraudsters, or - at the very least - they will refund a purchase if it turns out a seller does not have legitimate tickets for a show.

Although, of course, many in the music industry would argue that - while that is true - the touted tickets on the secondary platforms could still be cancelled by the promoter, and therefore fans should only buy tickets from primary ticketing platforms or the usually face-value resale sites approved by a show's promoter.

LEGAL

US Supreme Court asked to consider the complicated KC And The Sunshine Band termination rights dispute

Former KC And The Sunshine Band member Richard Finch wants the US Supreme Court to intervene in a slightly complicated termination rights dispute also involving his former bandmate Harry Wayne Casey.

America's top court is being asked to rule on how the termination right in US copyright law interacts with the statute of limitations for copyright claims, in this case disputed claims regarding authorship.

Finch and Casey co-wrote many songs for their band in the 1970s and set up a joint venture publishing company to manage the rights in those works.

Under US copyright law, there is a termination right which says that, when a creator assigns their copyrights to another party, they have an opportunity to terminate that assignment and reclaim their rights after 35 years.

Finch has been trying to exercise that termination right for a decade now, originally hoping that the old agreement would terminate in 2018. However, it transpires, in the midst of all that Casey disputed that Finch was ever a co-writer on the songs.

This would mean that - although Finch may have received royalties from those songs back in the day - he was never actually a co-owner of the copyrights, which means there was never an assignment of rights to terminate.

Finch originally sent a notice of termination to Casey in 2012. However, that paperwork was not filed with the US Copyright Office as required. But Casey did respond, three years later in 2015, making his claim that Finch was not a co-writer on the songs. Finch then sent another notice of termination in 2019, subsequently going legal on the matter in 2021.

There is a statute of limitations for copyright disputes, and Casey has argued that - if Finch wanted to formally dispute his claim to sole authorship of the songs - he should have done so by 2018. Earlier this year both a district court and the Eleventh Circuit Appeals Court agreed that Finch did indeed have a 2018 deadline to dispute Casey's authorship claim. Successfully defeating that claim is necessary to terminate the 1983 agreement.

So, it's all a bit complicated. But, Finch reckons, both courts got it wrong. With that in mind, he is now petitioning the US Supreme Court asking it to consider "whether a time-barred assertion of sole authorship status by one co-author may, under the discovery accrual rule, form the basis for a statute of limitations affirmative defence against the other co-author's action for declaratory relief under [the termination right in copyright law]".

AND FINALLY

Eurovision 2023 delivered £55 million economic boost to Liverpool

The BBC has published a report detailing various stats from this year’s Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool, including that it delivered a £55 million economic boost to the city.

The competition was held in the UK this year due to 2022 winner Ukraine being unable to host as a result of its ongoing war with Russia. The UK got hosting rights because it was in second place in 2022. Liverpool was chosen as the location for the event over other long-listed cities Newcastle, Manchester, Leeds, Glasgow, Sheffield and Birmingham.

“Liverpool delivered an exceptional event that surpassed all expectations and left an indelible mark on the Eurovision Song Contest”, says Chair of City Selection Phil Harrold in the report. “The city’s flawless execution, warm hospitality, and unwavering passion for music will be remembered for years to come. I can’t tell you how proud I am to have worked alongside such a brilliant, professional, passionate and dedicated team; Liverpool you are outstanding”.

As well as the final and semi-finals in the Liverpool Arena, an outdoor ‘Eurovision Village’ was set up, which saw 250,000 attend and collectively watch 95 hours of live performances. 557 visual artists were also commissioned to create work as part of the event. In total, 200 of the artists and performers involved were Ukrainian.

More widely, 473,000 people attended Eurovision events in the city, with 306,000 of those being additional visitors over what would normally be expected. This helped to deliver a £54.8 million economic boost to the city.

“We were also excited to ensure that Eurovision was about much more than the live shows themselves”, says Martin Green, Managing Director of Eurovision 2023. “From Liverpool’s extraordinary cultural, educational and community festivals to the wide range of additional content across the BBC, to EuroClub and, of course, the wonderful Eurovision Village, Eurovision 2023 has again proved that we can be united by music. In extraordinary circumstances, creativity and collaboration can thrive”.

“Eurovision is unique in terms of its ongoing appeal as an ‘appointment to view’ broadcast but also its phenomenal reach on social media”, he adds. “Consequently, its appeal to and engagement by young people is significant and continues to grow. There is no better way to demonstrate the values of a city and its people than to host Eurovision”.

You can read the full report here.