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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
Entertainment
Sian Cain

Universal Music Group threatens to pull song catalog from TikTok in furious open letter

TikTok logo
Universal Music Group’s agreement with TikTok is set to expire, but negotiations on a new deal have failed. Photograph: Mike Blake/Reuters

Universal Music Group’s agreement with TikTok is set to expire in the next 24 hours after the companies failed to agree on issues including artist compensation and AI, meaning some of the world’s most popular music – including Taylor Swift, Harry Styles and newly viral hit Murder on the Dancefloor – will be removed from TikTok’s library.

In a blistering open letter titled “Why we must call Time Out on TikTok” published on Tuesday, UMG, the biggest music company in the world, accused TikTok of attempting to “bully” and “intimidate” them into “accepting a deal worth less than the previous deal, far less than fair market value and not reflective of their exponential growth”.

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