BMG reported first-half 2026 revenue of €444 million ($518 million), up 4.9% year-over-year. Stripping out acquisitions, disposals and currency effects, organic revenue growth came in stronger at 8.1%, according to interim figures released by the company.
BMG also confirmed that its previously announced merger with Concord is now expected to close in the third quarter, a timeline shift from earlier guidance.
Read the full story at Music Business Worldwide.
Music Business Worldwide’s latest weekly round-up highlights two major developments in the music-AI space. Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group and Sony Music have reportedly taken a combined $76 million equity stake in Stability AI, the generative AI company, as part of a broader settlement or licensing arrangement.
Separately, Universal and Sony are said to have raised a stream-ripping claim against AI music startup Suno, alleging the company improperly extracted audio from streaming services to train its models. The round-up compiles these and other top stories from the past week in the recorded music and publishing business.
Read the full story at Music Business Worldwide.
Spotify has promoted Joe Hadley to VP of Global Music Content, Partnerships, while J.J. Italiano moves into the newly created role of Head of Editorial. The moves are part of a restructuring the streamer says will bring its editorial and content functions closer together.
Spotify says the new setup is designed to keep the Editorial team’s independent voice and expertise intact while fostering tighter coordination across its broader Music division.
Read the full story at Music Business Worldwide.
Sony Music Publishing and Warner Chappell have filed suit against Anthropic, joining Universal Music Publishing Group in litigation against the AI company behind Claude. The complaint accuses Anthropic of unauthorized use of copyrighted song lyrics to train its models, with the publishers describing the alleged infringement as among the largest copyright thefts on record.
With all three major music publishers now involved, the case escalates industry pressure on AI developers over the use of protected lyrics and compositions in training data. The lawsuit seeks billions of dollars in damages, adding to a growing list of legal actions from music rights holders against generative AI firms.
Read the full story at Music Business Worldwide.
Australian singer-songwriter Jem Cassar-Daley has released her debut studio album, “Tattoos Used To Come Off In The Pool.” The project is now streaming.
Cassar-Daley told Billboard she was involved in every decision behind the record, calling it the first body of work she feels fully connected to. The album marks a career milestone for the rising artist as she establishes her own identity in the industry.
Read the full story at Billboard.
The Warner Music/Blavatnik Social Justice Fund has named 17 organizations to its first grant docket of 2026, allocating close to $6 million in funding. Eight of the recipients are music-focused groups, and four are receiving support from the fund for the first time.
The fund, a joint initiative between Warner Music Group and Access Industries chairman Len Blavatnik, was established to back organizations advancing racial and social justice, with a particular focus on the music community. The latest round continues that mandate while expanding the roster of grantees beyond previous cycles.
Read the full story at Music Business Worldwide.
Sony Music Publishing has been named Publisher of the Year at BMI’s 2026 R&B/Hip-Hop Awards. The honor recognizes the company’s representation of 27 of the most-performed R&B and hip-hop songs in BMI’s catalog over the past awards year.
The award underscores Sony Music Publishing’s continued strength in Black music genres, an area where publishers compete closely for songwriter and catalog signings tied to radio and streaming performance data tracked by BMI.
Read the full story at Music Business Worldwide.
Authentic Brands Group has acquired a majority stake in the intellectual property behind Drake’s OVO brand. The deal brings the streetwear and lifestyle label, which grew out of Drake’s October’s Very Own imprint, into ABG’s portfolio of licensed brands.
As part of the transaction, ABG network partner Vince Holding Corp. has taken over OVO’s operating business, including design, product development, merchandising and retail store operations. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Read the full story at Music Business Worldwide.
A federal judge has granted Universal Music Group and Sony Music permission to amend their lawsuit against AI music startup Suno, allowing the labels to accuse the company of using stream-ripping techniques to pull audio from YouTube for training its AI models.
The same ruling denied a separate request from the labels to expand the case by adding 61,026 additional recordings to the litigation, leaving the suit centered on the 560 works already named. The case is part of the broader legal fight between major labels and AI music generators over unlicensed use of copyrighted recordings.
Read the full story at Music Business Worldwide.
Reservoir’s PopIndia division has acquired the catalog of Vincey Productions, which spans more than three decades of South Indian music with an emphasis on Tamil and Telugu Christian and devotional recordings. The deal includes YouTube channels with a combined 10 million subscribers.
PopIndia has also signed Kashmiri producer 30KEY, adding to its roster as the company builds out its presence in the South Indian music market.
Read the full story at Music Business Worldwide.