Oh TikTok, how you confound us right now!

It’s whiplash time for agencies that have integrated TikTok into their toolkit of recommendations for clients who want to grow brands or achieve other specific business results online.

Let’s walk through some recent legal developments that are affecting TikTok campaigns and creative choices for marketers on the platform today, and that may have a long term impact on how agencies integrate TikTok into their recommended client strategies.

TikTok and Music – Where We Are Now

Earlier this year, Universal Music Group (“UMG”) and TikTok made headlines when UMG required TikTok to remove all UMG songs from the TikTok library. Not only did this include all songs from huge UMG artists such as Taylor Swift, Harry Styles, and Olivia Rodrigo, but also songs from smaller, brand-new artists who were represented by UMG subsidiaries. Not only has this impacted the music scene at large (and the way many artists market their music), but it has substantially reduced the library of “viral sounds” that are frequently used by creators on the app.

As an agency owner, you may be receiving questions from your brands, influencers, and staff about what to do now that such a large expanse of music has been made inaccessible. This article is intended to answer your top questions and provide you some background on music law (especially because you probably shouldn’t have been using UMG music in the first place!)

Why did this happen? Can’t the artists stop it?

The primary reason for the removal of the UMG music is because TikTok and UMG couldn’t reach a licensing deal that UMG was happy with. UMG decided to walk away and pulled all licenses for UMG music from TikTok. There was some involvement of Artificial Intelligence related issues, but the information available suggests money was the primary concern.

Individual artists generally do not have the power to stop this from happening or to except themselves from the arrangement. UMG manages the rights and licenses for all of its artists’ music, and unless an artist got a really great deal on the front end, UMG is not going to permit an artist to “go rogue” to keep their music on TikTok.

Will it be resolved?

There is substantial speculation that TikTok will eventually cave and accept the deal offered by UMG, but there are no guarantees. At this time, other platforms such as YouTube and Instagram with active UMG license deals are very likely increasing their efforts to draw users to their platforms. This could impact the public draw to each of the platforms in general, and it may force TikTok to accept what it can get from UMG.

Can we use remixes of UMG songs instead?

You have probably seen remixes and covers of UMG songs that still exist on the TikTok library. These will likely increase while UMG music continues to be pulled. The question is, though, if your brand asks you to use a remix or a cover, will UMG pull the sound?

While it depends on the remixing or covering process, in most cases, UMG has the right to remove the sound from your video. To avoid this issue, the best practice is to use the sounds in the sound library available for commercial use for business accounts.

What about AI-generated songs that sound like UMG artists?

We strongly recommend staying away from AI-generated songs due to the unstable nature of IP ownership laws surrounding AI. This is especially the case since AI-generated recordings of popular artists have the strong potential of infringing upon the artists’ “publicity rights” (i.e., the rights to their own name and voice). Use of this type of music, especially if you are the one generating it, could cause substantial legal issues for your agency and your clients.

We don’t use business accounts, and neither do our influencers. Can we use any music available on TikTok?

In most cases, if you are promoting a brand’s services or products, you are required to use whatever is available in the business account library only. Otherwise, you are breaching the contract that the brand agreed to whenever they first made their TikTok account. This agreement specifically restricts the library of music that can be used for promotional purposes. Why? Because the original licenses obtained from musicians and labels do not permit their music to be used for advertising or marketing without their express permission.

You may be wondering if you can utilize an influencer to get around these rules, but unfortunately due to the brand’s involvement, you may receive a violation on both the influencer’s account and your own.

For more information on this point, please visit our article “The Agency’s Legal Guide for TikTok Sounds”.

What sort of music is safe to use?

The business account library is generally a great place to start. It contains music pre-licensed for promotional purposes. The options are more limited than the standard library, but at least you won’t receive any account violations or copyright infringement notices!

You might also consider utilizing works in the “public domain” which tend to be older but are growing in popularity. These are works for which the copyright expired or were otherwise not protected by copyright law. These songs can be further remixed with each other to create new sounds, and they are a great source of unique inspiration and creativity that your team can utilize for your campaigns.

Otherwise, because TikTok’s copyright check system is so technology-dependent, it’s difficult to use any other music without potentially compromising your content. Even if you hire an individual to license their music exclusively to you or your brand, TikTok may still automatically remove the sound unless it is uploaded and properly licensed by the artist. This is an important issue to discuss both with your artist and your legal team.

How will this change impact the field of social media?

Popular artists may turn more frequently to platforms such as YouTube or Instagram to promote their music, brands, and products. This will in turn lead to greater traffic and more revenue to these alternate platforms, which may see an increase in popularity overall. While TikTok is not likely going anywhere, if UMG and TikTok are unable to reach a deal in the near future, we could see a substantial change in the social media landscape over the next year.

What about the U.S. government’s attempt to ban TikTok – is it related to the music issue?

As we were putting the final touches on this summary of the UMG-TikTok situation, federal legislation concerning TikTok’s legal status in the US was brought forward.

There’s no direct evidence that UMG’s decision to pull their music from TikTok is related to the current proposed ban, but it’s an interesting factor to consider in the overall analysis of the ban. In summary, the proposed legislation states that TikTok must divest its shares or sell to a United States-owned company. If it does not do so, the United States will require the removal of the app from all app stores after a period of several months.

Arguably, without a current deal with UMG licensing UMG music, TikTok’s value may decrease substantially prior to any sort of purchase by a United States company, making it easier to acquire. If the acquisition were to take place, existing relationships between an acquiring company and UMG may also lead to a finalized deal with UMG that further benefits both parties. While this is speculation, it appears unlikely that UMG’s departure would have zero effect on an acquisition.

Alternatively, should TikTok refuse to sell to a U.S. company and the app is banned for U.S. users, the music landscape of TikTok would likely change significantly to target and accommodate non-English speakers and their own non-U.S. musical charts.

What should agencies do now?

A few recommendations:

• Expand your consideration set of potential music, as we’ve suggested above
• Consider diversifying your recommended platforms to clients for social and influence campaigns
• Reach out to your legal advisor for case-by-case specific questions about your next campaign