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Indie Trade Bodies Condemn TikTok for Walking Away from Merlin Negotiations

TikTok is being criticized by indie music organizations for its Merlin licensing talks boycott. Read reactions from IMPALA, AIM and A2IM.

Executives and trade bodies from across the independent music sector have also called into question TikTok’s reasoning for not renewing its deal with Merlin, while also slamming its attempts to boycott collective licensing with the company. Referencing TikTok’s cited concerns around streaming manipulation, IMPALA’s executive chair Helen Smith questioned how seeking direct deals with Merlin members would better address the issue than renewing a collective license. “Many smaller labels and artists will be locked out of any direct licensing, which will sour relations as well as set back many years of work by Merlin, AIM and others in improving equitable access to the market and diversity of music available to consumers.

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