Major labels are cracking down on an illegal streaming app in Canada.
Sony Music Group and Universal Music Group will begin legal proceedings in Canada against the developers of Musi, a streaming app that sources music from YouTube without the authorization of artists. The app, which has been deemed “parasitic” by the majors, features the same content as YouTube and YouTube Music, but with fewer or no advertisements.
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Although it was pulled from Apple’s App Store in 2024 following a slew of copyright claims and infringements, users who previously installed the app can still access it, and the majors are now stepping in to crack down on its activity.
The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) has teamed up with Music Canada, its local national group representing the three majors in Canada, to represent both labels in the action. They claim that Musi is illegally making copyrighted material available to the public and deliberately circumventing technical protections that would normally protect such content on YouTube from theft.
“We are serving notice on parasitic apps, which are designed specifically to exploit artists and their music, and undermine legitimate music services,” says IFPI CEO Victoria Oakley. “Musi and similar illegal services have no place in today’s music ecosystem which is built on the premise of empowering innovation through licensing. This legal action is an important step, and we hope it will be further supported by effective, direct action from the mobile app stores and the music services being directly exploited by these apps.”
The platform has charged users for subscriptions and advertising models, making a profit by circumventing legitimate competition, they argue, and simultaneously depriving artists of certain royalties and income.
“This litigation sends a clear message that services designed to circumvent platform protections and exploit music without authorisation are not legitimate businesses,” says Music Canada CEO Patrick Rogers. “The industry will continue taking coordinated action to protect artists and fans from unlawful exploitation. Our goal is simple: ensure artists are paid when their music is played — and shutting down parasitic apps is one way to achieve that.”
Copyright has been a top priority for the Canadian music business, with major labels and music companies taking action. Earlier this year, Music Canada secured a first-of-its-kind court order from the Federal Court of Canada to block popular YouTube stream-ripping sites like Y2Mate, YTMP3 and Savefrom, which count over 1.7 million monthly users and are known for facilitating illegal music downloads. “I believe artists should be paid when their music is played. To create the best possible environment for that to happen, we have to shut down sites that promote stealing music,” said Rogers of the groundbreaking victory.
Canadians have also tightened the knot on copyright protection in the face of AI, which has been the catalyst for new concerns and cases of infringement, specifically with unlicensed music borrowing from copyrighted music. Music Publishers Canada recently made a landmark intervention in a federal case regarding generative AI and copyright laws, putting forward the idea that only a human can be the author of copyright, and CEO Margaret McGuffin calling it “imperative” that Canadian copyright laws respect creators and encourage human expression in the face of AI.
This story was originally published by Billboard Canada.
