Meta and Universal Music Group have announced an expanded global, multi-year agreement.
According to a statement, the new deal will “further evolve the creative and commercial opportunities for UMG artists and Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) songwritersacross Meta’s global network of platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, Horizon, Threads and, for the first time, WhatsApp”.
The new agreement, according to the announcement, reflects a “shared commitment to protecting human creators and artistry, including ensuring that artists and songwriters are compensated fairly”.
As part of their multifaceted partnership, Meta and UMG will continue working together to address unauthorised AI-generated content that could affect artists and songwriters.
It follows the news that Meta recently renewed its partnership with the independent sector via Merlin.
The new agreement builds upon the strategic framework established with their 2017 partnership, which launched a new era of collaboration between the music industry and the company then known as Facebook. Under that deal, UMG became the first major music company to license its recorded music and music publishing catalogues across Facebook’s platforms. In turn, Facebook became the first fully licensed partner for music among the major social media platforms.
Since 2017, UMG and Meta have worked closely together to explore new emergent channels and creative opportunities for licensed music within the entire Meta ecosystem, including Facebook, Instagram, virtual reality experiences across Meta Quest and Horizon, User Generated Content (UGC), live streaming and other Meta products.
We are delighted that Meta shares our artist-centric vision for respecting human creativity and compensating artists and songwriters fairly
Michael Nash
The new agreement expands monetisation opportunities for UMG, its artists and songwriters even further with short form video, building on Meta and UMG’s joint track record of innovation and collaboration. In addition, UMG has partnered with Meta to license music for WhatsApp, unlocking new value for UMG artists and songwriters in the future.
Meta won the Music Consumer Innovation category at the Music Week Awards 2024.
Tamara Hrivnak, VP music and content business development at Meta, said: “We are thrilled to announce our renewal with Universal Music Group, and Universal Music Publishing Group, both of whom are innovators for music on social media, especially with regard to Meta’s family of apps. This partnership builds on the recognition that music can help connect us and bring fans, artists, and songwriters closer together, not only on established platforms such as Instagram and Facebook, but also in new ways on WhatsApp, and more. We’re extremely grateful to the Universal team, and look forward to growing our partnership in the future.”
Michael Nash, chief digital officer & EVP, Universal Music Group, said: “Since our landmark 2017 agreement, Meta has consistently demonstrated its commitment to artists and songwriters by helping to amplify the importance music holds across its global network of engaged communities and platforms, creating new opportunities and applications where music amplifies and leads engagement and conversations. We are delighted that Meta shares our artist-centric vision for respecting human creativity and compensating artists and songwriters fairly. We look forward to continuing to work together to address unauthorised AI-generated content that could affect artists and songwriters, so that UMG can continue to protect their rights both now and in the future.”
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