Sony Pull Music From SoundCloud Over Payment Dispute

Original music by a number of Sony Music artists, including Adele, Passion Pit, Hozier and MS MR, have been removed from SoundCloud after a reported breakdown in negotiations over revenue.

According to Billboard, the major label went ahead and pulled tracks by some of their major artists from the streaming platform during ongoing negotiations because of the SoundCloud’s “lack of monetisation opportunities”.

Other affected artists include Miguel, Kelly Clarkson and Leon Bridges – who Billboard point out was actually discovered and ultimately signed by the major label thanks in part to his use of SoundCloud as a platform to share his music.

It’s unclear at this stage if the removal of the music is permanent or just a negotiation strategy. SoundCloud actually introduced a monetised, ad-supported version of the platform last year called On SoundCloud and in November announced that Warner Music Group was the first major label to sign a formal licensing agreement with the service.

SoundCloud claims to have already paid out over $2 million to its partners through On SoundCloud.

SoundCloud have issued a statement saying, “We are in ongoing conversations with major and independent labels and will continue to add partners to the [On SoundCloud] program.”

“We’ve always put control in the hands of creators and anyone who makes music and audio can decide when and how they want to share it with fans, allowing artists to essentially broadcast out to the world the availability of new content.”

Gallery: MS MR @ Metro Theatre, Sydney, 26/07/13 / Photos by Liam Cameron

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