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1: Team Trump Trolls Taylor Swift With Song Use Before Copyright Claim Brings Silence
First off today, Greg Evans at Deadline reports that Taylor Swift has filed a copyright takedown against US President Donald Trump for using one of her songs in a social media post on TikTok.
The post featured a photo of the President and the First Lady with a caption that read, “Mood because it’s August and Donald Trump is your president.” The post further trolled Swift saying “I’m sure @Taylor Swift is going to be super excited we used her song!” However, the audio was short-lived as Swift’s team filed a copyright takedown request against the post, getting the audio removed.
The saga is the latest in a long-running feud between the two. The two sides have repeatedly exchanged barbs on social media and in the press. However, the past few months had been relatively, with President Trump even wishing the Swift and her new husband, Travis Kelce, good luck.
2: Universal and Sony Sue Rogue Music App Musi
Next up today, Chris Cooke at Complete Music Update reports that Universal Music and Sony Music have filed a copyright infringement lawsuit in Canada targeting the “rogue” music app Musi.
Musi is a music streaming app akin to Spotify or Apple Music. However, rather than licensing the music directly, it pulls music from YouTube and places its own ads and subscriptions on top of it. Services like Musi have long been criticized not just for playing unlicensed music, but also for violating YouTube’s terms of service.
Apple removed Musi from its App Store in September 2024. However, users who had downloaded the app prior to that date can still use it. Musi had previously sued Apple for removing the app, but the court ruled in favor of Apple, saying its terms of service allowed it to remove any app at any time.
3: Judge Tosses Shoe Retailer DSW’s Preemptive Copyright Suit Against Sony Music
Finally today, Mandy Dalugdug at Music Business Worldwide reports that a judge has dismissed a portion of a lawsuit filed by retailer Designer Shoe Warehouse (DSW), finding that the claim against Sony was an “anticipatory filing” that was an attempt to get ahead of a potential copyright infringement claim.
DSW filed the lawsuit against Sony and the other major record labels seeking a declaratory judgment that the company’s use of music as part of its social media posts was not infringing. It was the latest company to face litigation over its use of music in social media posts, in particular on Instagram and TikTok.
The dismissal only impacts Sony, as it alone filed the motion. It has a similar case pending against DSW in California. That lawsuit alleges that DSW or its influencers infringed on at least 122 of their songs in more than 170 videos.
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