Universal Music Group Sues Believe and TuneCore Over Copyright Violations

Legal Action Against Believe and TuneCore

Universal Music Group (UMG), along with ABKCO and Concord Music Group, has initiated legal action against Believe and its distribution subsidiary TuneCore, alleging significant and ongoing copyright violations concerning their sound recordings. This includes works by prominent artists such as Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande, Rihanna, ABBA, Kendrick Lamar, Lady Gaga, DJ Snake, Aqua, and others. The plaintiffs are pursuing damages amounting to no less than $500 million.

The lawsuit, submitted on the evening of November 4 in the federal court of Manhattan by attorneys Andrew Bart and Gianni Servodidio from Jenner & Block, claims that Believe is inundated with counterfeit "artists" and illegitimate record labels, which are purportedly distributing unauthorized copies of these recordings across various streaming platforms and social media networks.

Allegations of Fraudulent Activity

Attorneys representing the plaintiffs assert that "Believe makes minimal attempts to conceal its unlawful activities" and that the recordings in question are "frequently slight variations of the names of... renowned recording artists and the titles of their most popular songs." The complaint alleges that the purported fraudsters try to evade detection of these infringing recordings—some of which they assert are "accelerated" or "remixed" versions of well-known tracks—by employing misspellings of prominent artist names, such as "Kendrik Laamar," "Arriana Gramde," "Jutin Biber," and "Llady Gaga."

Related: The Music Industry’s Biggest Copyright Battles

The lawsuit contends that "Believe is fully cognizant that its business model thrives on widespread piracy" in its "quest for rapid expansion," further claiming that the company has "ignored" the infringing material that circulates on social media and streaming platforms via its service. Moreover, attorneys for UMG and the other plaintiffs contend that "Believe has exploited the content management claiming system" on YouTube "to misdirect" and "prolong... the payment of royalties" owed to the record labels.

They note that it is "significant" that after YouTube resolves disputes concerning the rightful ownership of these sound recordings, "Believe continues to distribute the identical track to other digital music service providers and seeks royalties for the use of that track from those providers."

Believe's Response and Industry Context

A spokesperson for Believe informed Billboard, "Believe and TuneCore do not comment on pending litigation. As organizations that collaborate with artists and labels globally, we take copyright respect very seriously. We categorically deny these allegations and the assertions made by Universal Music Group, and we are prepared to contest them.

We have established comprehensive tools and processes to address this widespread industry issue, working in partnership with our peers and collaborators, and we will persist in these efforts. For nearly two decades, we have been leaders in the digital music landscape, fostering the growth of independent artists and labels, and we have achieved Tier 1 status while being included in the Preferred Partner Program across all music platforms."

This is not the first instance of individuals being accused of exploiting YouTube’s content management system to claim royalties improperly. In 2022, two individuals from Phoenix, Arizona, pleaded guilty to fraudulently claiming $23 million in YouTube royalties from unsuspecting Latin artists such as Julio Iglesias, Anuel AA, and Daddy Yankee, despite lacking any legitimate connection to these musicians.

To facilitate their fraudulent claims, the two operated under the name MediaMuv, utilizing AdRev, a rights management firm owned by Downtown. In a statement, a spokesperson for UMG remarked, "Believe is a company founded on large-scale copyright infringement. Their unlawful activities extend beyond deceiving major label artists to include independent label artists as well, including those affiliated with the very trade organizations of which Believe is a member.

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It is unsurprising that Believe has been vocal against the streaming reform principles advocated by numerous major and independent labels. The reason is clear: such reforms would threaten and reveal their strategy of expanding scale and market presence by distributing music without rights and unlawfully collecting royalties for their own benefit and that of their accomplices."

The complaint explicitly accuses Believe of various forms of copyright infringement, including direct copyright infringement, contributory copyright infringement, vicarious copyright infringement, direct infringement of pre-1972 sound recordings, contributory infringement of pre-1972 sound recordings, and vicarious infringement of pre-1972 sound recordings. Representatives from Believe and TuneCore have not yet responded to Billboard's inquiries for comment.

This year has been particularly eventful for Believe, the parent company of TuneCore. On March 1, the French music conglomerate, which is listed on the Euronext Paris stock exchange, announced that its board of directors had sanctioned a plan to transition the company to private ownership, indicating that there was an "interested party" seeking to acquire it. However, the prospective bidder requested due diligence information and financial data prior to making a formal offer.

Later that month, it was disclosed that Warner Music Group (WMG) had formally expressed interest in acquiring Believe, which also manages the publishing administrator Sentric and owns labels such as Naïve, Nuclear Blast, and Groove Attack. In early April, WMG decided to withdraw its plans to make a formal offer. The label did not provide further details regarding its decision, stating only that it was made "after careful consideration."

On April 19, Believe's board of directors announced its endorsement of an offer to privatize the company at a price of 15 euros ($15.98) per share, proposed by a consortium of funds managed by TCV, EQT X, and Believe's chairman/CEO Denis Ladegaillerie. The board's three independent members unanimously agreed that the bid was in the best interest of minority shareholders.

Fraud and copyright infringement have emerged as significant concerns within the music industry, particularly as the sector becomes increasingly democratized, enabling individuals to release music within hours or even minutes with just a click. In response to these challenges, TuneCore, alongside competitors such as CD Baby and Distrokid, established the coalition "Music Fights Fraud," aimed at preventing individuals from exploiting multiple services to distribute songs for which they do not hold the rights. Various initiatives, including Credits Due, have been introduced to address metadata issues that can expose artists to royalty theft and fraud, especially on platforms like YouTube.

Nevertheless, despite these initiatives, TuneCore and other do-it-yourself distributors have faced criticism for permitting malicious actors to upload infringing or fraudulent material on their platforms. In August 2020, Round Hill Music's publishing division filed a lawsuit against TuneCore for the "willful and unauthorized use" of 219 of their sound recordings. Furthermore, in 2022, Billboard reported that some music executives alleged that Create Music Group manipulates the system on YouTube to claim royalties, with one label representative asserting that the company was doing so "egregiously."

Recently, TikTok raised concerns regarding fraudulent content when it withdrew from licensing discussions with Merlin, a coalition of independent labels and distributors, in an effort to prevent users from uploading works for which they lack ownership rights on the platform. TikTok announced its intention to pursue individual licensing agreements with labels and distributors deemed to be reliable.