Welcome to our Weekly Headline Roundup!
This week we’re looking at AI transparency, ISWCs, need for better metadata in AI, indie label revenue sharing, Bad Bunny, and the 10th Anniversary of Music Business Worldwide.
ECSA calls for transparency over the major’s AI deals – and confirmation songs and recordings will have parity
ECSA, representing songwriters and composers across Europe, has called for more transparency about the big AI deals now being announced by the majors. Writers need to know various things about those deals, but especially how income will be split between the recording rights and the song rights
– Chris Cooke, Complete Music Update
‘Metadata is the industry’s weak spot; in the age of AI, the cost of half-measures is far higher.’
Not a day goes by without me having several conversations about AI in music.
– Sammy Andrews for Music Business Worldwide
I recently travelled to the (most excellent) Bogotá Music Market in Colombia and was fascinated to hear in person the global conversations, whilst being acutely aware of the, at times, hyperlocal potential legislation.
You can be sure that no matter where you are in the world, managers, labels, DSPs, publishers, artists, songwriters, marketers, finance teams and societies all have views, but increasingly they are rarely aligned in an impactful way.
CISAC launches new service ISWC IPI Context Search to identify creator’s Interested Party Information numbers
The International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers (CISAC) has launched ISWC IPI Context Search, a new API service designed to help music publishers quickly and accurately identify creator Interested Party Information (IPI) numbers.
– Emmanuel Legrand, Creative Industries News
IPI’s are the globally unique identification of a natural person or legal entity with an interest in an artistic work across all categories of works, including composers, arrangers, and publishers.
Indie Labels Return 77% of Profits Back to Their Artists, Study Claims
Independent music labels return a third of revenue to artists, according to a new report from global advocacy group ORCA.
– Ashley King, Digital Music News
Global think tank and advocacy group ORCA (Organization for Recorded Culture and Arts) has released a first-of-its-kind report revealing how independent labels generate tangible value and income for artists through long-term partnerships and investment.
Bad Bunny is Spotify’s most-streamed artist globally for 2025 with over 19.8bn streams
Bad Bunny is Spotify‘s most-streamed artist globally in 2025, generating more than 19.8 billion streams on the platform throughout the year. The achievement sees him reclaim the position back from Taylor Swift, who held the title for two consecutive years in 2023 and 2024.
– Mandy Dalugdug, Music Business Worldwide
MBW10: A Decade of Headlines That Shaped the Modern Music Industry
When Music Business Worldwide launched in 2015, streaming was still fighting to prove itself. Spotify had yet to turn a profit, Apple Music didn’t exist, and the recorded music industry was still nursing wounds from a decade of decline.
– Music Business Worldwide
A lot has changed.
Today, MBW celebrates a milestone: ten years covering one of the most dynamic sectors of global entertainment.
We do so via MBW10: 2015-2025: a specially curated retrospective magazine that chronicles the seismic shifts, landmark deals, and defining moments that have shaped the music business across the past decade.