{"id":4540,"date":"2025-03-06T21:14:24","date_gmt":"2025-03-06T21:14:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usatrustedlawyers.com\/blog\/song-lyrics-provider-lyricfind-sues-rival-musixmatch-over-warner-deal\/"},"modified":"2025-03-06T21:14:24","modified_gmt":"2025-03-06T21:14:24","slug":"song-lyrics-provider-lyricfind-sues-rival-musixmatch-over-warner-deal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usatrustedlawyers.com\/blog\/song-lyrics-provider-lyricfind-sues-rival-musixmatch-over-warner-deal\/","title":{"rendered":"Song Lyrics Provider LyricFind Sues Rival Musixmatch Over Warner Deal"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n\tL<\/span>yricFind is suing Musixmatch over allegations that its rival struck an exclusive licensing deal with Warner Music Group (WMG) that\u2019s \u201cunprecedented in the music industry\u201d and is aimed at securing an illegal monopoly for providing lyrics to streamers like Spotify.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn a complaint filed Wednesday (March 6) in San Francisco federal court, LyricFind accuses Musixmatch and private equity owner TPG Global of violating federal antitrust laws by signing the deal with Warner Chappell Music (WCM), the publishing division of WMG, claiming it was designed to crush competition.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cTPG\u2019s and Musixmatch\u2019s goal was simple: make sure that Spotify, and other [streamers], have no choice but to obtain [lyrics] from Musixmatch despite its higher fees \u2014 a plainly anticompetitive result,\u201d the company\u2019s attorneys write. \u201cLyricFind brings this lawsuit to stop defendants\u2019 unlawful conduct, which has eliminated competition and raised prices.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe three major music companies have typically licensed their vast catalogs of lyrics to companies like Musixmatch on a non-exclusive basis, LyricFind says, allowing rival companies to compete to offer the best lyric services to streamers. But Musixmatch\u2019s new deal with Warner allegedly shuts out competitors from offering the music giant\u2019s lyrics \u2014 an \u201cunprecedented\u201d approach.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cTo compete effectively, LyricFind and Musixmatch must be able to provide Lyric Data Services for all major publishers\u2019 song titles,\u201d the company\u2019s attorneys write. \u201cDefendants\u2019 scheme had the intended effect [and] the only remaining practical choice for [digital services providers] is to contract with Musixmatch, at whatever price Musixmatch demands.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tIn a statement to Billboard<\/em>, a spokesman for Musixmatch said: \u201cIt\u2019s our policy not to discuss legal matters publicly. We believe these are meritless accusations and choose to concentrate on what matters most: our customers & partners.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tA spokesman for WMG, which was not named in the lawsuit nor accused of any wrongdoing, did not immediately return a request for comment.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn early 2024, LyricFind says it was \u201cvery far along in negotiations\u201d to replace Musixmatch as the lyrics provider for Spotify, the world\u2019s largest music streamer and \u201cMusixmatch\u2019s largest customer.\u201d When TPG and Musixmatch learned of the talks, they allegedly became \u201cdesperate\u201d and struck the licensing agreement with Warner in an effort to kill the deal.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe move worked, LyricFind\u2019s attorneys say: After the Warner agreement was in place, Spotify said it \u201chad no choice\u201d but to break off the negotiations with the lyrics provider. Instead, the streamer re-upped its previous agreement with Musixmatch despite \u201chaving already negotiated a significantly better price and service with LyricFind.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cLyricFind was robbed of an opportunity to partner with Spotify on a contract worth tens of millions of dollars to LyricFind, and that would have strengthened LyricFind\u2019s competitive position in the rest of the market,\u201d the company\u2019s attorneys write in the lawsuit.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe Musixmatch-Warner deal is also scuttling other business for LyricFind, the lawsuit says, including prompting iHeartRadio to break off renewal talks \u201cwhen it learned that LyricFind would no longer be able to service WCM\u2019s catalog.\u201d Instead, the radio giant signed with Musixmatch \u201cat a price over five times higher.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cOther DSPs that have already invested great sums to integrate LyricFind\u2019s system will also be forced to switch to Musixmatch, and nobody else, at a significant cost, while paying Musixmatch\u2019s monopoly fees,\u201d the suit says. \u201cLyricFind\u2019s viability as a business is now in jeopardy, as it can no longer compete for DSPs\u2019 business.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tIn a statement announcing the case, LyricFind CEO Darryl Ballantyne<\/strong> said the company was \u201ctaking action now to protect every music streaming service\u2019s right to partner with the lyric provider of their choice.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cMusixmatch is now effectively the gatekeeper to any DSP that wants to have a complete lyric offering,\u201d Ballantyne said. \u201cThere is simply no way around having to work with Musixmatch.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tRead the entire complaint here:<\/strong><\/p>\n