Music Business Worldwide

The latest music news from Music Business Worldwide, News, jobs and analysis for the global music industry and on artists new releases and where to get new mp3 songs.

1. TikTok’s ‘Add to Music App’ feature has fuelled ‘billions’ of streams. Now it’s linked up with YouTube Music.

   YouTube Music joins Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Deezer, Melon, Anghami and SoundCloud in TikTok's music-saving feature

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2. South Korean tax authorities open probe into HYBE amid stock manipulation claims against Chairman Bang Si-hyuk

   The tax probe comes amid a broader crackdown targeting 27 companies and individuals suspected of tax evasion totaling about 1 trillion South Korean won.

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3. Creative industries slam EU AI Act implementation as ‘betrayal’

   The group, which includes CISAC, ICMP, IFPI and IMPALA, said the result of the published GPAI Code of Practice, is "not a balanced compromise"

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4. Live Nation strikes $646 million deal to increase stake in Mexico’s OCESA

   The deal is expected to close by the end of August, following approval at the upcoming CIE shareholder vote

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5. Learnings from Spotify’s Q2 2025 earnings call… including what the company (didn’t) say about that long-awaited ‘Music Pro’ tier

   MBW's key takeaways from the green giant's latest grilling from investment analysts

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6. Spotify sees $16 billion wiped off market cap; stock sinks 11.5% as ‘Social Charges’ drag down profit outlook

   Spotify's stock price plunged 11.5% on Tuesday (July 29) largely as a result of missing profit guidance

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7. Spotify subscriber base grew by 8m to 276m in Q2; company posted $460m operating profit

   'Social Charges' take toll on operating income, but subscribers and MAUs both ahead of guidance in quarter

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8. Derek Cournoyer promoted to SVP, Global Digital Business at Kobalt

   Cournoyer will be playing a key role in striking partnerships with platforms like Meta, TikTok and YouTube

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9. TikTok partners with iHeartRadio on live music competition for artists with at least 50K followers

   Contestants will advance based on a combination of likes, views and comments, and judges' scores.

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10. Stability AI is developing a legit ‘opt in’ artist marketplace… amid lawsuits over unauthorized scraping

    CEO Prem Akkaraju told the Financial Times that the company now has "zero debt."

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