3 Count: Burying the Hatchet

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1: Universal Music, Triller Bury the Hatchet With Worldwide Licensing Deals

First off today, Todd Spangler at Variety reports that Triller and Universal Music Group (UMG) have reached a deal that will grant Triller a worldwide license to use UMG-owned music on its platform.

The two sides had a very public dispute over music licensing back in February when UMG pulled its catalog following what it said was missed payments and lack of proper reporting. It reached a peak when Triller made the bizarre claim that, since it was partly owned by the same parent company as UMG, licensing wasn’t required at all.

However, now it seems that the two sides have made peace as Triller has signed deals both with UMG and its publishing arm. This comes a few months after Triller reached a separate licensing agreement with the National Music Publishers’ Association, which represents the majority of U.S. music publishers. As such, Triller now has the licenses it needs to feature UMG music on its platform and is making great strides to fully license all its music content.

2: Germany Passes Controversial EU Copyright Reforms, Sparking Ire

Next up today, Richard Smirke at Billboard reports that Germany’s parliament has approved a new set of copyright laws that were originally approved by the European Parliament back in 2019.

The new rules include requirements for platforms that host user-generated content to remove unlicensed content and block its reupload as well as require such platforms to negotiate in good faith with rightsholders. Germany is the fourth country in the EU to pass the law, which has a June 7 deadline for implementation.

However, the German implementation is different in that includes provisions many in the music industry fear will make it difficult to negotiate deals with sites like TikTok. Industry executives in the country worry that it could have “devastating consequences” for their field.

3: Apple Co-Founder Steve Wozniak Faces Copyright Infringement Lawsuit Over Branded Tech School

Finally today, Alyse Stanley at Gizmodo reports that Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak is facing a lawsuit over his “Woz U” tech school and the accusations include copyright infringement of a website for an earlier attempt to create such a branded school.

The lawsuit was filed by Professor Ralph Reilly, who claims that he and Wozniak reached an agreement to create a tech school back in 2011. However, the partnership never really went anywhere and, in 2017, Wozniak partnered with the firm Code Camps to create a virtual tech school under the name Woz U.

Though the lawsuit covers a lot of legal ground, the copyright issue stems from a 2013 site that Reilly launched as a mock up for the school. Wozniak’s manager demanded it be taken down, but Reilly had registered the copyright in the site and alleges that Wozniak infringed it when creating his new site. Wozniak, for his part, says he does not recall signing any agreement with Reilly and denies that his current project is an infringement.

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