Universal Music Group (UMG), alongside ABKCO Music & Records and Concord Music Group, has filed a sweeping lawsuit against music distribution giants Believe and its subsidiary TuneCore. The lawsuit, filed on November 4 in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, accuses the companies of large-scale copyright infringement, seeking a whopping $500 million in damages.
UMG claims that Believe has built its success by allegedly distributing unauthorized copies of popular songs on major streaming platforms, including TikTok, YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Music. The lawsuit argues that Believe’s business model hinges on distributing "manipulated" versions of original recordings without proper licensing, including sped-up and remixed versions of hits by artists like Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber, and Kendrick Lamar. These variations often skirt copyright protections, with intentional misspellings like “Jutin Biber” or “Kendrik Laamar” being used to pass off infringed content as legitimate.
The lawsuit claims that Believe has been ignoring copyright protections to profit from pirated content, allowing infringing versions of popular songs to remain online across various streaming platforms even after takedown requests. This practice, UMG argues, diverts substantial royalties from rightful owners to Believe and TuneCore. According to the complaint, this scheme has even allegedly led to a catalog larger than that of major legitimate labels.
UMG contends that Believe has avoided implementing adequate measures to curb copyright violations, manipulating systems like YouTube’s Content ID to improperly claim and monetize copyrighted material. The timing of this lawsuit follows UMG’s recent clash with ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, over similar issues of unauthorized "modified" tracks flooding social media.
This case highlights mounting industry frustration over copyright protection in the streaming era, with UMG taking a stand against what it sees as unchecked infringement damaging both major and independent artists alike.
