Merlin, the digital licensing partner for the independent music sector, announced that it has renewed its licenses with Meta on Wednesday (12 June). This means that the music of Merlin members – releases from companies such as Domino, Secretly, Ninja Tune, Warp Records and more – can continue to be discovered on Facebook and Instagram.
“This renewal is about more than just licensing music – it's about the power of building long-term relationships, finding innovative ways to deliver music to fans and those discovering our artists for the first time, and the value of dynamic nature of independent music. ” Jeremy Sirota, CEO of Merlin, said in a statement. “Merlin, on behalf of its members and their artists, is leading the way in building an ethical, sustainable and indie-centric world.”
“Meta is thrilled to renew our partnership with Merlin, one of independent music's leading champions,” he added. Tamara Hrivnak, vice president of music & content business development at Meta. “Our continued collaboration will foster further innovation in musical discovery and creative expression. We are excited for what the future holds.”
Merlin's global subscription represents around 15% of the recorded music market and Merlin negotiates deals not only with Meta but with Apple, Spotify, TikTok, YouTube and more than 40 other platforms.
“In an industry that has always been in flux, Merlin is the steady hand,” Sirota explained earlier this year. “Merlin has no investors looking for an exit. There is no parent company with different motivations. We are a mission-driven, non-profit organization funded entirely by our members.”
As short-form video platforms become increasingly important in driving music discovery, artists are eager to make their songs available through platforms like Reels. And Reels took on even more importance earlier this year when Universal Music Group's licensing negotiations with TikTok collapsed.
Historically, no short-form video platform has been able to match TikTok when it comes to causing an unknown song to explode into the public consciousness overnight. When the wider music industry realized that it would eventually have to live without TikTok as a marketing tool, many marketers redoubled their efforts to reach an audience through Reels and YouTube Shorts.
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/pro/merlin-renews-licensing-agreement-meta/
