The music industry news cycle has been particularly busy lately, spanning legal disputes, the rise of generative AI, and evolving social media marketing strategies. Here’s a roundup of the stories shaking up the sector.

Suno hit with class action lawsuit following security breach

AI music generation platform Suno is facing a class action lawsuit in the United States after a security breach exposed the personal data of 55.3 million users. The lawsuit accuses the Massachusetts-based company of negligence and claims it waited nine months before notifying affected users.

For its part, Suno acknowledges a security incident linked to outdated code, but denies that any sensitive information was compromised. The company says it is committed to strengthening its security measures to prevent this type of incident from happening again.

Live Nation-DoJ: the battle for transparency continues

Judge Arun Subramanian must decide a sensitive question: is the settlement agreement between Live Nation and the U.S. Department of Justice actually in the public interest? The question carries added weight given that 33 U.S. states are simultaneously pursuing antitrust lawsuits against the company.

Live Nation argues that the judge already has all the information needed to rule on the matter. But 21 states disagree: they’re calling for greater transparency, requesting additional documents and testimony, and arguing that the current agreement is insufficient to restore real competition in the market.

AFM vs. the majors: AI at the heart of the conflict

The American Federation of Musicians (AFM) has filed an amended complaint against Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group. The union accuses both companies of violating their collective bargaining agreement by failing to pay musicians whose recordings were licensed to AI companies Suno and Udio, in violation of the agreement’s “new use” clause.

According to the AFM, the two majors allowed their members’ recordings to be used to train generative AI models without compensation, despite prior settlements and public commitments to respect artists. Universal and Warner are seeking to have the complaint dismissed, as part of an ongoing legal dispute.

Generative AI: persistent distrust among consumers

A study by Luminate highlights a generational divide in the acceptance of AI-generated content. Overall, American consumers are more wary than willing when it comes to engaging with generative AI entertainment content.

Opposition is particularly strong among people over 55, while teenagers show a notably more favorable attitude. Another finding: not all content types are treated equally. Video games featuring AI elements face less resistance, while content such as AI-generated news articles meets strong pushback.

Instagram: Reels and carousels boost artist visibility

Instagram has seen a 27% increase in views this year, partly due to a change in how views are measured. But beyond that figure, Reels and carousel posts are proving especially effective at boosting artists’ visibility and engagement on the platform.

The winning strategy now rests on several pillars: using SEO keywords in captions, engaging the community through clear calls to action, and posting at key times of day. Traditional hashtags, on the other hand, are becoming noticeably less effective.

Deezer grapples with the explosion of AI-generated music

At Deezer, AI-generated music now accounts for more than half of all new tracks uploaded to the platform, with around 90,000 AI-generated tracks added every day. In response, the platform announced it will systematically remove AI tracks used for streaming fraud, as well as those that haven’t been streamed in six months.

While fighting fraud and working to protect artists’ rights, Deezer is calling for industry-wide standardization to better manage the rise of AI music. It’s a challenge shared by other platforms: Tidal, for example, accepts AI music on its catalog but currently refuses to monetize it

.Image by Thorsten Frenzel from Pixabay