Guidance: The government’s work on music streaming

Summary:

The UK government has been working on addressing key issues in the music streaming industry, as identified by the DCMS Select Committee's Inquiry into the Economics of Music Streaming. The government's response, led by the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) and DCMS, was published in September 2021 and outlined a comprehensive programme of work to address these issues, including workstreams led by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and IPO.

Recent milestones include the CMA's market study, which concluded that concerns raised by artists are not driven by the level of concentration of the recording market, and the IPO's work on copyright issues, including a new UK industry agreement on music streaming metadata published in May 2023. The government has also commissioned independent research on the impacts of potential legislative interventions on creator remuneration.

The government's programme of work is ongoing, with upcoming milestones including the publication of the transparency product and the equitable remuneration research, both scheduled for Autumn 2023.

(Source: Department for Culture, Media and Sport and Intellectual Property Office, updated 29 September 2023)