This week, Warner Music Group posted calendar Q1 revenues of $1.73 billion, up 12.1% YoY at fixed foreign money, with subscription streaming revenues rising 12.7% YoY.
In the meantime, Sony‘s mixed revenues from recorded music and music publishing topped $3 billion for a second consecutive quarter in calendar Q1 (January–March), producing an estimated $3.03 billion within the interval.
Elsewhere, YouTube rolled out a brand new instrument letting creators substitute copyrighted audio with AI-generated instrumentals, permitting them to resolve Content material ID claims with out pulling movies.
Additionally this week, Bloomberg reported that Sony Music Group is in superior talks to purchase Blackstone’s Recognition Music Group for as much as $4 billion.
Plus, Tencent Music Leisure stated in its ESG report that it took down greater than 250,000 policy-violating songs and reviewed over 600,000 instances involving “high-risk copyright content material” throughout its platforms in 2025.
Listed below are a few of the largest headlines from the previous few days…
1. WARNER MUSIC GROUP GENERATED $1.73B IN CALENDAR Q1 2026; SUBSCRIPTION STREAMING REVENUES ROSE 12.7% YOY
Warner Music Group has issued its monetary outcomes for the three months ended March 31, 2026 (calendar Q1 – the corporate’s fiscal Q2).
In line with the corporate’s fiscal Q2 (calendar Q1) outcomes, revealed on Thursday (Might 7), WMG noticed its quarterly world company-wide revenues attain USD $1.732 billion (throughout recorded music, music publishing, and different actions).
Whole income was up 12.1% YoY at fixed foreign money.
Different highlights from the quarter embody recorded music revenues up 12.7% YoY at fixed foreign money to $1.38 billion, and recorded music subscription streaming revenues up 12.7% YoY at fixed foreign money to $734 million.
“Our Q2 outcomes show the highly effective mixture of inventive and operational success, in addition to monetary self-discipline, offering clear proof that our strategic transformation is working,” stated Warner Music Group CEO Robert Kyncl in a word to buyers on Thursday (Might 7)… (MBW)
2. SONY GENERATED $3.03BN FROM RECORDED MUSIC AND PUBLISHING IN CALENDAR Q1 2026, UP 19.5% YOY
Sony‘s mixed revenues from recorded music and music publishing topped USD $3 billion for a second consecutive quarter in calendar Q1 2026 (January–March), producing an estimated $3.03 billion within the interval.
That’s in response to MBW‘s calculations based mostly on Sony Group Corp‘s calendar Q1 2026 (fiscal This autumn, FY2025) outcomes, as introduced by the Japanese conglomerate on Friday (Might 8).
The calendar Q1 2026 quarter additionally marks the tip of Sony‘s fiscal yr (which runs April 2025 to March 2026), that means full-year figures are additionally accessible for the primary time.
The $3.03 billion quarterly mixed whole was up 19.5% YoY at US dollar-converted constant foreign money, in comparison with $2.54 billion in calendar Q1 2025.
Meaning Sony‘s recorded music and publishing operations generated roughly $495 million extra in calendar Q1 2026 than within the prior-year quarter… (MBW)
3. YOUTUBE CREATORS HIT BY MUSIC COPYRIGHT CLAIMS CAN NOW REPLACE TRACKS WITH AI – AT THE TOUCH OF A BUTTON
YouTube is now letting creators generate AI-produced instrumental tracks to interchange copyrighted audio of their movies — positioning the instrument as a option to resolve Content material ID claims with out eradicating content material from the platform.
The replace, introduced through YouTube‘s Creator Insider channel on Friday (Might 1), provides a brand new “Create” button to the prevailing “Change Music” instrument in YouTube Studio on desktop.
Rene Ritchie, presenting the replace on YouTube’s Creator Insider channel, stated: “The Change Music instrument in YouTube Studio Desktop will now embody a brand new Create button. Hit it and YouTube will generate 4 royalty-free instrumental tracks that you should utilize to interchange copyrighted audio in your movies and launch Content material ID claims.”
The characteristic is at present restricted to US desktop customers of YouTube Studio.
A worldwide launch and rollout to Studio cellular are deliberate for later this yr, in response to Ritchie… (MBW)
4. TENCENT MUSIC TOOK DOWN OVER 250,000 SONGS AND REVIEWED 600,000+ ‘HIGH-RISK’ COPYRIGHT CASES IN 2025 AMID ‘EMERGING AI RISKS’
Tencent Music Leisure, China’s largest music streaming service supplier, says it took down greater than 250,000 policy-violating songs and reviewed over 600,000 instances involving “high-risk copyright content material” throughout its platforms in 2025.
The figures come as TME stated it bolstered compliance and threat administration throughout key areas in 2025, together with copyright licensing, rising AI dangers, and its abroad enterprise enlargement.
The figures had been disclosed in TME‘s 2025 Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Report, revealed in April.
The 250,000-plus songs faraway from platforms together with QQ Music had been recognized by means of a mixture of AI-powered detection instruments and guide inspection as posing “reputational dangers” or violating platform content material insurance policies.
Individually, TME stated it took down over 27,000 songs particularly concerned in what it categorizes as “tune theft,” “tune laundering,” and “pattern hijacking” — three distinct types of so-called “gray-market” manipulation that the corporate says are “turning into more and more covert and complicated.”… (MBW)
5. SONY IN ADVANCED TALKS TO BUY BLACKSTONE’S RECOGNITION MUSIC FOR UP TO $4B, REPORTS BLOOMBERG
Sony Music Group is closing in on a deal to purchase Blackstone‘s Recognition Music Group, whose catalog is residence to songs from Justin Bieber, Neil Younger, and others.
That’s in response to Bloomberg, which reported on Wednesday (Might 6) that Sony is in unique negotiations with the non-public fairness big in what it described as “one of many largest such offers in music historical past”.
The acquisition could be made by means of Sony‘s music rights-buying three way partnership with Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC, which might pay between $3.5 billion and $4 billion, the information outlet reported, citing individuals conversant in the matter.
Bloomberg‘s report follows a Billboard story from Might 1 that reported Sony was negotiating a deal for Recognition‘s belongings.
Sony and Blackstone are pushing to finalize the settlement inside the subsequent seven days, the report stated, although Bloomberg cautioned that the talks might but collapse… (MBW)
Accomplice message: MBW’s Weekly Spherical-up is supported by BMI, the world chief in performing rights administration, devoted to supporting songwriters, composers and publishers and championing the worth of music. Discover out extra about BMI right here. Music Enterprise Worldwide
