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LONDON — Following the controversial ticket sale for Oasis’ reunion dates in the U.K. and Ireland this coming summer, the CMA (Competition and Markets Authority) has said that Ticketmaster may have “misled” fans over pricing for the shows.
In August 2024, the Gallagher brothers announced their reformation for 19 stadium shows, their first since their split in 2009. The tour will begin on July 4 at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium, before heading to North America, Asia, Latin America and Australia in the ensuing months
The ticket sale process drew huge demand, but some fans complained of unclear pricing for tickets after long waits for the opportunity to purchase passes. An update to the CMA’s ongoing investigation highlights that Ticketmaster UK may have breached consumer protection law, by “Labelling certain seated tickets as ‘platinum’ and selling them for near 2.5 times the price of equivalent standard tickets, without sufficiently explaining that they did not offer additional benefits and were often located in the same area of the stadium.”
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The update adds that demand meant that cheaper tickets sold out first, but that the release of more expensive tickets for similar places in the stadiums meant that “many fans waited in a lengthy queue without understanding what they would be paying and then having to decide whether to pay a higher price than they expected.”
More than 900,000 tickets were sold for Oasis’ long-awaited reunion tour, but the pricing strategy proved controversial when standard standing tickets advertised at £135 plus fees ($174) were re-labelled “in demand” and changed on Ticketmaster to £355 plus fees ($458).
Following the furore, Oasis issued a statement saying they had no “awareness that dynamic pricing was going to be used” in the sale of tickets for the initial dates. The CMA launched an investigation in September to examine whether Ticketmaster had used “unfair commercial practices” to pressure fans into paying higher prices for tickets.
Ticketmaster denied the use of the so-called ‘dynamic pricing’ method, with the company’s U.K. director Andrew Parsons telling MPs in February, “We don’t change prices in any automated or algorithmic way.” He added that all prices are determined by artist teams and promoters SJM Concerts, MCD Promotions and DF Concerts, all of which have links to Live Nation, Ticketmaster’s owners.
The report acknowledges that since the opening of the investigation, “Ticketmaster has made changes to some aspects of its ticket sales process,” but that the CMA “does not currently consider these changes are sufficient to address its concerns.” The report does not directly comment on the alleged ‘dynamic pricing’ model, but cites other concerns around clearer sale practises.
The CMA says that, “Following a formal investigation, the CMA is now consulting with the ticketing platform on changes to ensure fans receive the right information, at the right time.”
In a statement to Billboard U.K., Ticketmaster U.K. said, “We strive to provide the best ticketing platform through a simple, transparent and consumer-friendly experience. We welcome the CMA’s input in helping make the industry even better for fans.”
Downing Street responded to the report (via the BBC) by repeating a quote given by culture, media and sport secretary Lisa Nandy following the news that the government announced plans to cap the value of resold tickets for live events like music. “The chance to see your favourite musicians or sports teams live is something that all of us enjoy… But for too long fans have had to endure the misery of touts hoovering up tickets for resale at vastly inflated prices.
“We’ve also seen cases where a lack of transparency has meant customers have been caught unawares by last minute price rises for high demand events.”
On Friday (March 21), secondary ticketing marketplace StubHub filed for an initial public offering (IPO) with the SEC that the company hopes will value it at $16.5 billion.
A pioneer in online ticket re-selling, StubHub had “gross merchandise sales” (GMS) — or the total price customers paid for the transaction and fulfillment — of $8.7 billion in 2024, a 27% increase from 2023. For the year, it sold more than 40 million tickets from more than 1 million unique sellers across 200 countries and territories.
Revenue reached $1.77 billion in 2024, up 29.4% from 2023, while net loss was $2.8 million. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), which strips out non-cash expenses, was $298.7 million, down nearly 16% from $353.9 million in 2023. Long-term debt stands at $2.33 billion — nearly eight times last year’s adjusted EBITDA.
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Proceeds from the IPO will primarily go toward StubHub’s debt, with the remainder going toward general corporate purposes such as working capital, operating expenses and capital expenses. StubHub said it may use a portion of the proceeds for acquisitions or investments in products or technologies.
StubHub believes it is the leader in secondary ticketing, according to its S-1 filing on Friday. The company has also made a foray into primary ticketing, which generated more than $100 million in GMS in 2024. “We believe our value proposition, providing broadened distribution and superior pricing intelligence through an open distribution model, is well-positioned to attract more content rights holders to use our direct issuance solution,” the company stated in the filing.
StubHub does more business than most of its competitors. Vivid Seats had gross transaction value (GTV) of $3.9 billion in 2024 while Eventbrite, a primary ticketing platform, had GTV of $3.2 billion last year. Ticketmaster, which does not break out its primary and secondary ticketing, had GTV of $34.7 billion.
Launched in 2000 by Erik Baker, StubHub was acquired by eBay in 2007. Baker then launched a competing secondary ticketing platform in Europe, Viagogo, which purchased StubHub in 2020. Ahead of the IPO, Baker owns approximately 5% of Class A shares and 100% of Class B shares, leaving him with more than 90% of the voting rights. Other major holders of Class A shares include Madrone Partners (27.1%), WestCap Management (11.0%), Bessemer Venture Partners (9.6%), PointState Capital (5.6%) and Declaration Partners (5.3%).
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Ticketmaster is celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with a rare discount offer to some of the biggest concerts of the year.
For a limited time, music fans can take advantage of Ticketmaster’s 2-for-1 deal to get two tickets for the price of one at participating shows. The promotion includes tickets to artists like Kim Gordon, Halsey, AWOLNATION, Tobe Nwigwe, Lucius, Tennis (with special guest Alice Phoebe Lou) and more. We spotted tickets starting from just $20 with the discount.
It’s not just concerts either — the Ticketmaster St. Patrick’s Day deal includes a buy one, get one free offer for Ricky Gervais’ “Mortality” comedy tour, the “Club Chris Tour” with Chris Olsen and Ryan Trainor, and RuPaul’s Drag Race winner Alyssa Edwards’ “Crowned Tour.”
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The best deal is for the upcoming “Outlaw Festival,” featuring Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, Billy Strings and others. Taking place May 16 at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, this is the 10th annual Outlaw Music Festival Tour, which showcases a rotating lineup of artists spanning country, alt-country, Americana, bluegrass, folk and rock. The 2025 Outlaw Festival tickets start from just $59 with the 2-for-1 sale.
There’s no promo code needed to claim the discount but you will need to use this link. The new Ticketmaster offer runs until Wednesday, March 19 at 10 p.m.
Ticketmaster rarely holds sales so this is a promotion you’ll want to take advantage off while it’s still live. Tickets are moving quickly so we recommend adding your preferred seats to your cart before the shows sell out. Live Nation has held a summer concert offer the last two years for $25 all-in tickets, but the company has yet to announce if it’s bringing the promotion back for 2025.
For more ticket deals, check out ShopBillboard’s roundup of best cheap ticketing sites online.
Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher is as sick of the ongoing fiasco relating to tickets to the band’s reunion shows as anyone else.
Since Oasis announced their long-awaited return back in August, high demand has translated into ticket trouble, with a dynamic pricing model and long delays resulting in a litany of frustrated fans attempting to obtain tickets to the band’s shows in the U.K. and Ireland.
In October, it was announced that Ticketmaster would be investigating the matter further, going so far as to cancel roughly 50,000 resale tickets that were deemed to have been purchased using techniques that have been forbidden for the Oasis tour. These included methods often used by scalpers and bots, including purchasing more than four tickets per household, per show, and using multiple identities to buy up tickets.
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On Monday (Feb. 10), Billboard reported that fans had indeed begun to see their tickets being cancelled, with Ticketmaster getting in touch with some ticket holders to inform them that their tickets have been refunded. Ticketmaster’s message to these ticket holders claimed that “it has been identified that bots were used to make this purchase,” meaning they “violate the tour’s terms and conditions.”
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“These terms were specifically established to limit resale of tickets on unauthorised ticketing platforms for profit,” Ticketmaster’s message said. “Fans have been strongly advised by all parties not to purchase tickets from unauthorised resale sites, to protect them from fraud or refunding.”
At least one fan has now attempted to bring the matter to the attention of the band’s outspoken vocalist, Liam Gallagher. With some fans venting their anger on social media, one X user named Karen Kelly reached out to Gallagher, asking “Liam what do you think of the ticket situation? Thinking fans are bots and getting their money returned?”
A punctuation-averse Gallagher responded only six minutes later, writing “I don’t make the rules were trying to do the right thing it is what it is I’m the singer get of my case”.
Kelly soon clarified the question by claiming that no one was getting on Gallagher’s case, but that she was instead wanting to know “if [he’d] seen it”. Gallagher responded by noting, “I see everything I work out”.
In December, Liam’s brother Noel touched on the upcoming gigs, assuring fans that their reunion shows will be less volatile than their history might suggest, while indicating the ticketing hassles may be worth it in the long run.
“No, it won’t be as raucous as back in the day, because we’re on the wrong side of 50 now, so we’re too old,” he claimed. “We’re too old to give a s**t now, so there won’t be any fallouts, there won’t be any fighting. It’s a lap of honour for the band.”
Concert promoter Live Nation turned its busiest summer concert season ever into an all-time financial haul. With the number of shows up 13% and fan attendance up 3%, adjusted operating income (AOI) reached a record $909.8 million, up 4% from the prior-year period, the company announced Monday (Nov. 11).
The third quarter benefitted from a heavy schedule in Live Nation’s owned and operated amphitheaters, which can generate ancillary income from food, beverage and parking. As a result, AOI increased even though revenue of $7.7 billion was 6% short of the $8.15 billion generated in the third quarter of 2023. Net income fell 13.4% to $451.8 million.
“We wrapped up our most active summer concert season ever, our show pipeline has never been bigger, and brand sponsorships are accelerating,” said CEO Michael Rapino in a statement.
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The concerts division had a record AOI of $474.1 million, up 39% year-over-year, on revenue of $6.58 billion, down 6%. Venue Nation, the venue operation division, saw a double-digit increase in on-site spending per fan at major festivals and a 9% increase in per-fan spending at amphitheaters. Live Nation hosted 112 million fans globally in the quarter, up 3%, which more than compensated for a 30% decline in stadium attendance.
The change in venue mix — fewer high-priced stadium tickets, more lower-priced amphitheater seats — caused Ticketmaster revenue to drop 17% to $693.7 million and AOI to fall 33% to $235.7 million. Sponsorship and advertising AOI grew 10% to $275 million on revenue of $390 million, up 6%. That revenue growth came mainly from a 20% increase in the number of strategic partners that generated more than $1 million of sponsorship and advertising revenue. The division added such brands as American Apparel, Wrangler, Ultra Beauty and American Eagle in Mexico to global festivals.
“As we look toward an even bigger 2025, we have a larger lineup of stadium, arena and amphitheater shows for fans to enjoy,” said Rapino. “Momentum continues to build, as we expand the industry’s infrastructure with music-focused venues to support artists and reach untapped fan demand across the globe.”
Ticket sales in September and October were up 20% year over year, and Live Nation has already sold more than 20 million tickets for concerts in 2025, a double-digit increase. Recent stadium ticket on-sales — including Coldplay, Rüfüs Du Sol and Shakira — saw double-digit growth in gross sales compared to past tours.
Venue Nation expects to host about 60 million fans in 2024, up 8% from 2023; it will benefit from VIP enhancements at Northwell at Jones Beach amphitheater in New York, Estadio GNP in Mexico City and others. At Northwell at Jones Beach, for example, season seat and box suite sales are up 50%, VIP club sales are up 50%, and per-fan food and beverage spending is up double-digits.
Following the announcement, which came after the markets closed on Monday, Live Nation shares rose 5% to $130.00 in after-hours trading.
This is The Legal Beat, a weekly newsletter about music law from Billboard Pro, offering you a one-stop cheat sheet of big new cases, important rulings and all the fun stuff in between.
This week: Young Thug ends his years-long YSL RICO case with a guilty plea that results in no prison time; UMG accuses distributor TuneCore of “industrial-scale copyright infringement”; Ed Sheeran wins a case over “Let’s Get It On,”; Metro Boomin faces a sexual assault lawsuit; and much more.
THE BIG STORY: Young Thug Heads Home
And just like that, it was all over for Young Thug. More than two years after the Grammy-winning rapper was arrested as part of a sweeping Atlanta gang case, he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to serve just 15 years probation with no prison time — a stunning end to a legal saga that rocked the music industry.
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Pitting prosecutors in America’s rap capital against one of hip-hop’s biggest stars, the case against Thug and his alleged “YSL” gang raised big questions — about the fairness of the criminal justice system; about violent personas in modern hip-hop; and about prosecutors using rap lyrics as evidence.
Thug, a chart-topping rapper and producer who helped shape the sound of hip-hop in the 2010s, was accused of being the kingpin of a violent gang that had wrought “havoc” on the Atlanta area for nearly a decade. But the case was a mess from the start, featuring endless witness lists, procedural missteps, a jailhouse stabbing and a bizarre episode that saw a judge removed from the case.
How did Young Thug go from that mess — the trial had no end in sight and was set to run well into 2025 — to walking away a free man? Go read my deep dive on the YSL endgame to find out.
Other top stories this week…
“RAMPANT PIRACY” – Universal Music Group filed a lawsuit against TuneCore and parent company Believe over allegations of “massive” copyright infringement, accusing the digital distributor of serving as a “hub” for the widespread dissemination of illegal copies of songs on streaming platforms and social media services, including those by Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande, Rihanna, Kendrick Lamar, Lady Gaga and many others. Seeking a whopping $500 million in damages, UMG claims TuneCore pursued “rapid growth” of its DIY distribution services by turning a blind eye to “rampant piracy” among its users: “Believe is a company built on industrial-scale copyright infringement,” said the lawsuit. In a statement, Believe and TuneCore said they “strongly refute these claims” and would “fight them” in court.
“MUSICAL BUILDING BLOCKS” – Ed Sheeran won a ruling at a federal appeals court confirming that his “Thinking Out Loud” did not infringe the copyright to Marvin Gaye‘s “Let’s Get It On,” effectively ending one of several cases over the sonic similarities between the two hits. The lawsuit argued that Sheeran copied a chord progression and rhythm from Gaye’s iconic track, but the appeals court said the two songs share only “fundamental musical building blocks” that are “ubiquitous in pop music” — and that granting a “monopoly” on them to any single songwriter would “threaten to stifle creativity.”
METRO ALLEGATIONS – Superstar producer Metro Boomin was hit with a civil lawsuit over allegations that he raped and impregnated a woman named Vanessa LeMaistre during a drug-and-booze-fueled incident at a recording studio in 2016. The lawsuit claimed that the alleged assault was referenced in a song he produced — a surprising accusation, given that Metro does not write lyrics or rap himself and the lyrics in question were by 21 Savage and Offset.
TEKASHI ARRESTED – Tekashi 6ix9ine (Daniel Hernandez) was arrested and charged over allegations that he violated a plea agreement struck with prosecutors when he infamously agreed to testify against his former Brooklyn gangmates back in 2018. The provocative rapper had just six months left on the five years of supervised release he secured under that deal, but prosecutors accused him of traveling to Las Vegas without permission and failing a drug test for meth. Tekashi denied the charges at an arraignment hearing, but the judge — the same one who signed off on the plea deal — cited a “full spectrum disregard for the law” and ordered him held until his next court date later this month.
MEGAN THEE PLAINTIFF – Megan Thee Stallion sued a YouTuber and social media personality named Milagro Gramz (Milagro Elizabeth Cooper), accusing her of “churning out falsehoods” about the criminal case stemming from the 2020 incident in which Tory Lanez shot Megan in the foot. Calling Gramz a “mouthpiece and puppet” for Lanez, the superstar seemed intent on using the case as a warning shot to other bloggers who allegedly share false information about the high-profile case: “Enough is enough.”
“OPAQUE AND UNFAIR” – A federal appeals court ruled that Live Nation and Ticketmaster must face a class action claiming they abuse their dominance to charge “extraordinarily high” prices to hundreds of thousands of ticket buyers. In doing so, the court rejected Live Nation’s argument that fans had signed agreements that required them to resolve disputes via private arbitration. The court not only called those agreements “unconscionable and unenforceable” but also “opaque and unfair”; “poorly drafted and riddled with typos”; and “so dense, convoluted and internally contradictory to be borderline unintelligible.”
CASSIE VIDEO CLASH – Prosecutors in the case against Sean “Diddy” Combs told a federal judge that they had not been behind the leaking of the infamous 2016 surveillance video showing the rapper assaulting his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura, arguing that such accusations were merely gamesmanship by Diddy’s defense team with the goal of trying to “suppress a damning piece of evidence.”
DIDDY ACCUSER UNMASKED – A federal judge in one of the many civil cases against Combs ruled that one of his accusers cannot use a “Jane Doe” pseudonym, saying her right to avoid “public scrutiny” and “embarrassment” does not trump Diddy’s right to defend himself against such “heinous” allegations. The ruling is not binding on other judges, but it could influence how they handle the issue of numerous other cases that have been filed against Combs by Doe plaintiffs.
MADLIB v. EGON – Hip-hop producer Madlib filed a lawsuit against his former manager Eothen “Egon” Alapatt over allegations of “rank self-dealing,” claiming the exec abused his role to claim undue profits from Madlib’s music and commit other alleged misdeeds. The case claims that Egon believes he can “keep profiting from Madlib work and goodwill because there is nothing Madlib can do about it” and is demanding that the artist “buy him out” if he wants to end the relationship.
A federal appeals court says Live Nation and Ticketmaster must face a class action claiming they charged “extraordinarily high” prices to thousands of ticket buyers, ruling that the concert giants cannot enforce “opaque and unfair” user agreements to scuttle the lawsuit.
Live Nation claimed fans had waived their right to sue in court when they bought their tickets, arguing they had signed agreements promising to litigate any legal disputes via private arbitration — a common requirement when purchasing event tickets and other services from many companies.
But in a ruling Monday (Oct. 28), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that Live Nation’s agreements were “unconscionable and unenforceable” since they would make it “impossible” for fans to fairly pursue claims against the company.
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“Forced to accept terms that can be changed without notice, a plaintiff then must arbitrate under … opaque and unfair rules,” the appeals court wrote. “The rules and the terms are so overly harsh or one-sided as to unequivocally represent a systematic effort to impose arbitration as an inferior forum.”
The ruling described Live Nation’s agreements in scathing terms, calling them “so dense, convoluted and internally contradictory to be borderline unintelligible” and “poorly drafted and riddled with typos.” The terms were so confusing, the court said, that Live Nation’s own attorneys “struggled to explain the rules” during a court hearing.
A spokesperson for Live Nation did not immediately return a request for comment on Thursday (Oct. 31).
The ruling came as Live Nation is facing a sweeping antitrust lawsuit from the U.S. Department of Justice, seeking to break up the company over allegations that it illegally maintained a monopoly in the live entertainment industry. That separate action, which could take years to resolve, remains pending.
The class action against Live Nation, filed in 2022, accuses the company of violating antitrust laws by monopolizing the market for concert tickets and engaging in “predatory” behavior. Filed on behalf of “hundreds of thousands if not millions” of ticket buyers, the case claims Live Nation and Ticketmaster abused their dominance to charge “extraordinarily high” prices to consumers.
The lawsuit was something of a sequel to an earlier class action, in which the same legal team (from the law firm Quinn Emanuel) made highly-similar claims against Live Nation. That earlier case was dismissed after a federal judge ruled that such accusations must be handled via private litigation because of agreements that the plaintiffs had signed when they purchased their tickets.
In Monday’s ruling, the Ninth Circuit said that earlier victory had been both a gift and a curse for Live Nation. Though it had allowed the company to avoid a class-action lawsuit, the ruling raised the troubling prospect of facing thousands of individual arbitration cases all at once.
“Defendants foresaw that if their motion to compel [arbitration] in that case were granted, they would be faced with a large number of parallel individual claims by ticket purchasers,” the appeals court wrote. “In anticipation of such claims, defendants sought to gain in arbitration some of the advantages of class-wide litigation while suffering few of its disadvantages.”
According to the ruling, doing so involved amending its terms of use to require fans to submit to “novel and unusual” procedures for “mass arbitration” offered by a new arbitration company called New Era ADR.
It was this new arbitration agreement that the appeals court declared unenforceable in Monday’s ruling. The court roundly criticized the rules, saying they had placed unfair terms on any consumers who wanted to litigate a dispute with Live Nation. And, citing the company’s market share, the court said fans had almost no choice but to sign the agreement.
“Because Ticketmaster is the exclusive ticket seller for almost all live concerts in large venues, prospective ticket buyers in most instances are faced with a choice,” the court wrote. “They can either use Ticketmaster’s website and accept its terms, or refuse to use the website and be entirely foreclosed from purchasing tickets on the primary market.”
Ticketmaster plans to cancel roughly 50,000 resale tickets to Oasis’ U.K. reunion concerts over violations of the company’s terms and services, Billboard has confirmed. According to Ticketmaster, the canceled tickets were purchased using techniques that have been forbidden for the Oasis tour. Those include a prohibition on purchasing more than four tickets per household, per […]
In recent years, The Cure’s Robert Smith has been vocal about the shifting touring and ticket market. In 2023, the singer convinced Ticketmaster to give partial refunds to fans who had purchased tickets to their Songs Of A Lost World tour, hitting back at “unduly high” fees. For their U.S. run of dates, the band had kept the prices purposefully low to stay affordable, with some priced at $20, but the fees occasionally outstripped the value of the ticket.
In a new, lengthy interview, first published in the The Times, Smith has commented further on Ticketmaster’s practices and specifically their dynamic pricing model.
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“I was shocked by how much profit is made [by ticketing],” Smith said. “I thought, ‘We don’t need to make all this money.’ My fights with the label have all been about how we can price things lower. The only reason you’d charge more for a gig is if you were worried that it was the last time you would be able to sell a T-shirt.”
He continued: “But if you had the self-belief that you’re still going to be here in a year’s time, you’d want the show to be great so people come back. You don’t want to charge as much as the market will let you. If people save on the tickets, they buy beer or merch. There is goodwill, they will come back next time. It is a self-fulfilling good vibe and I don’t understand why more people don’t do it.”
“It was easy to set ticket prices, but you need to be pig-headed. We didn’t allow dynamic pricing because it’s a scam that would disappear if every artist said, ‘I don’t want that!’ But most artists hide behind management. “Oh, we didn’t know,” they say. They all know. If they say they do not, they’re either f–king stupid or lying. It’s just driven by greed.”
You can watch the full interview with Smith at The Cure’s website.
The Cure are releasing their first album in 16 years, Songs Of A Lost World, on Nov. 1 and the LP will be accompanied by a string of shows in London on release week. The band have shared two songs from the record so far, brooding opener “Alone” and “A Fragile Thing.”
Smith’s comments arrive not long after the controversial ticket sale for Oasis’ reunion tour in 2025. Dynamic pricing was used in the process for the band’s 19 stadium dates in the U.K. and Ireland, causing ticket prices to rise and fans forced to make quick decisions on prices that were higher than initially advertised.
The fallout and anger from fans prompted the U.K.’s Competition and Market Authority to investigate the use of the sale tactic. Oasis, who will be playing a run of shows next summer across the globe, distanced themselves from the dynamic pricing model and opted against using the method for their North American dates, which went on sale earlier this month.
Ticketmaster introduced the dynamic pricing scale in 2022 in a bid to help combat touts and the secondary ticket market. The company insists that bands and promoters set the ticket prices and that dynamic pricing is only used with approval by the artist’s team.
Reactional Music, which enables music to be personalized within video games in real-time, signed a licensing agreement with Beggars Group, home to indie labels including 4AD, Matador Records, Rough Trade, XL Recordings and Young. “Reactional Music is doing something really interesting in the gaming space,” said Beggars Group director of global commercial strategy Simon Wheeler in a statement. “It compliments our existing licensing team’s work and extends our reach with games developers and over three billion gamers across the world. We know that gamers are music consumers that over-index in their consumption of music and we’re excited to see what this new partnership will bring.” Reactional previously struck partnerships with music companies including Defected Records, Hopeless Records and Hipgnosis Song Management.
The Circuit Group, the recently launched company that aims to maximize the value of intellectual property for electronic artists, struck an exclusive distribution partnership with LabelWorx, the leading independent digital distributor for indie electronic music labels. Under the deal, Labelworx will manage all digital distribution for The Circuit Group’s roster of artists and labels, including Catch & Release and diviine. “We are thrilled to enter into this exclusive partnership with LabelWorx,” said James Sutcliffe, CEO/president of The Circuit Group UK, in a statement. “Their forward-thinking approach to distribution and their shared commitment to enhancing the value of artists’ IP aligns perfectly with our vision for the future. We are excited to provide our artists and labels with the tools they need to thrive in a fast-evolving industry.”
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Leading African streaming platform Audiomack partnered with Africa-based consumer payments provider Carry1st in a deal that will allow Audiomack’s customers in Africa to purchase subscriptions using local payment methods via Carry1st’s Pay1st payment solution. Audiomack subscriptions will now be available for purchase via the Carry1st shop in local currencies in Nigeria, Egypt, Ghana, South Africa, Kenya, Morocco, Tanzania, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Rwanda, Uganda, and Senegal. “Audiomack is incredibly excited to partner with Carry1st to expand our presence across Africa and make it easier for music fans across the continent to access premium features,” said Audiomack vp of marketing Charlotte Bwana in a statement. “Carry1st has been impactful in growing Africa’s gaming industry for creators and users, and we are confident we can replicate this approach in the music space.”
U.K.-based streaming service Mixcloud acquired European online music marketplace Encore, which helps artists connect with customers looking for live acts to book at their events. Encore will continue operating as an independent brand as Mixcloud helps steer the company’s future. Mixcloud co-founder Nikhil Shah will join Encore as its new chairman; Shah has been an angel investor in the company since 2019.
Australian music company Vinyl Group acquired the assets of London-based Web3 company Serenade in exchange for $800,000 in shares. Vinyl Group will additionally purchase Serenade’s U.K. subsidiary on a debt-free, cash-free basis, “for the purposes of expediting the expansion of the Vinyl.com business into the UK and European markets,” according to a press release. As part of the deal, several key Serenade employees have joined Vinyl Group, including CEO Max Shand, who will continue to lead Serenade while helping expand the Vinyl.com business. According to the release, sales of Serenade’s NFC-enabled “Smart Formats” have grown 56% month-over-month since launching in January, with a total of 12,000 units sold in the first half of the year. It adds that Serenade has commercial partnerships with more than 100 record labels including Warner Music Group, Beggars Group, Concord, Glassnote, FUGA and PIAS.
Music Venue Trust (MVT), a U.K. charity that represents hundreds of independent music venues in the country, acquired the 235-capacity Swansea, Wales indie venue The Bunkhouse under its Music Venue Properties’ #ownourvenues scheme with support from Swansea Council and Figurative, formerly part of Nesta. Under the deal, The Bunkhouse will be placed into permanent protected status. Launched in 2022, the crowd-funded #ownourvenues initiative has so far raised more than 2.6 million pounds from more than 1,250 individual investors and funding. MVT previously purchased The Snug in Atherton, Greater Manchester in October 2023 and The Ferret in Preston in May 2024, with additional venues identified for acquisition. Music Venue Properties has offered The Bunkhouse a rent reduction and a contribution to building repairs and insurance while committing to working with The Bunkhouse director Jordan McGuire to develop currently-unused parts of the building. “We can finally focus on continuing to develop the next generation of talent, knowing that The Bunkhouse is secure and will remain a cornerstone of Swansea’s music scene long after I’m gone,” said McGuire in a statement.
Killphonic Rights, a music rights management company specializing in publishing, distribution, neighboring rights and creative synch licensing, received a $3 million investment from Stilwell Creative Capital for a proportional stake of equity in Killphonic. The money will be used to expand services for Stilwell’s roster of artists, songwriters, labels and publishers. Stilwell will tap into Killphonic’s knowledge base and staff to increase collections and licensing opportunities for the catalog of rights it has acquired. The partnership was orchestrated by Amanda Schupf of MAX Music Management and Consulting, who will join the advisory boards of both Killphonic and Stilwell following the deal.
Believe completed its full acquisition of leading Turkish indie label Doğan Music Company (DMC) following the approval of the competition regulator. The Paris-based company previously acquired a 60% majority stake in DMC in 2020 before exercising the call option to acquire the remainder for a total of 38.3 million euros ($41.84 million).
Connyct, a new social network designed exclusively for college students, struck a licensing deal with Warner Music Group (WMG), allowing WMG music to be used in Connyct’s video-creation hub Events Center. “We created Connyct to spark joy and excitement around real-life experiences, a digital reflection of your favorite times,” said Connyct CEO/co-founder Matthew Berman in a statemetn. “We’re all about connection and discovery, meant to help users find people who share the same passions and want to publicize events to enjoy them with their friends. Our partnership with WMG takes this vision to the next level, allowing students to soundtrack their college experiences with an incredible array of music.” Connyct will be available for download on the iOS App Store in the coming weeks at select universities.
Ticketmaster and Tickets For Good unveiled a new partnership that will make it easier for live event organizers to donate tickets to nonprofit workers, healthcare providers and teachers. Via Ticketmaster’s Distributed Commerce API, any artist, sports team or other event organizer using Ticketmaster can allocate a portion of their tickets to Tickets For Good, which provides access to select live events for people who serve their community, for a booking fee of less than five pounds in the U.K. and less than $5 in the U.S.
Symphonic Distribution partnered with Twitch to give Symphonic artists the ability to include their music in the Twitch DJ Program. Once they opt-in, Symphonic artists can have their music used by any DJ on Twitch in their sets and earn royalties in the process.
L.A.-based artist management company Hills Artists struck a joint venture partnership with Firebird, a music company that provides career and brand guidance to more than 1,000 artists globally by leveraging data along with its team of experts. “By leveraging cutting-edge data science, increasing access to vital information, and mobilizing substantial financial power, we are uniquely positioned to build careers and transformative businesses,” said Hills Artists CEO Rupert Lincoln in a statement. “Firebird has cultivated something truly exceptional, and we are excited to take the next steps in our journey with them.” Hills’ roster includes Sasha Alex Sloan, Grandson, Aidan Bissett and LANY.