Photo Credit: Possessed Photography
After inking licensing pacts with Universal Music and Warner Music, Udio has finalized a “landmark partnership” with Merlin.
The AI music generator and the indie giant confirmed their high-profile agreement this morning. As many know, recent months have delivered a flurry of artificial intelligence dealmaking but not an abundance of hard details about precisely what the tie-ups will look like in practice.
And the Merlin-Udio collaboration isn’t an exception; the involved parties opted against shedding light on their payment particulars and forthcoming offerings. But at the top level, they did spell out that “Udio will develop new AI models trained on licensed music from participating Merlin members.”
Those participating members remain to be seen, but according to the companies, the deal features “protections built in to safeguard artists’ rights” as well as separate “protections designed to maintain the value of human artistry.”
In other words, time should reveal specifics concerning the royalty framework and various limits (pertaining to content, volume, and distribution) on the relevant soundalike outputs.
Meanwhile, another element of the release raises more questions than it answers: Merlin and Udio are said to be “collaborating to unlock new first-of-a-kind forms of creative expression that were previously unimaginable.”
For now, these heretofore unencountered forms of creative expression are anyone’s best guess. Worth noting, though, is that Udio is hiring a head of artist partnerships; in keeping with the title, the professional will work towards “building and scaling participation on the Udio Artist Platform by establishing trusted, long-term partnerships with creators and their representatives.”
In a statement, Merlin CEO Charlie Lexton touched on the all-important consent and compensation components of AI agreements.
“As AI develops,” Lexton said, “it is critical to Merlin that we work with partners who respect artists, their work, and the requirement to license music. For some time, Merlin and Udio have been engaged in conversations focussed on a foundation of consent and fair remuneration. We are excited by Udio’s vision and how they clearly respect and value our members and their artists.”
And in remarks of his own, Udio co-founder and CEO Andrew Sanchez appeared to highlight AI’s commercial potential on the superfan side.
“Independent artists are the driving force of this partnership,” Sanchez said. “By teaming up with Merlin, we’re ensuring they maintain control over their work and are compensated for their creativity.
“Together, we’re building a platform that gives fans and creators unmatched tools, real power and a deeper connection to the music they love. We’re not just imagining the future of music creation — we’re making sure independent artists are helping us lead it,” he finished.
All told, Udio’s partnered with Universal Music, Warner Music, and, of course, Merlin – but not Sony Music, which is continuing to litigate against the platform. Additionally, only Warner Music has settled with Suno, which, along with Udio, is still fending off indie infringement complaints.
In the bigger AI picture, as licensing deals pour in and ramp up, how many machine-powered music features can the market support? And how will all the options affect Spotify’s own AI products – especially as they relate to the long-awaited superfan tier?
