TikTok is putting steep restrictions on how brands can use music in their videos to preserve the 'authenticity' of the platform

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TikTok is putting steep restrictions on how brands can use music in their videos to preserve the 'authenticity' of the platform
Brands on TikTok have new limitations on the music they can use in their videos.TikTok
  • TikTok has been rolling out a change to some brands on its platform that limits their access to music and soundtracks they can use in videos.
  • Now, "verified businesses or organizations" will only be able to access royalty-free music from a new Commercial Music Library, TikTok told Business Insider.
  • Dave Jorgenson, who runs the TikTok account for the Washington Post, wrote on Twitter he felt "moderately betrayed" for the change occurring "without any warning." TikTok, however, says it has communicated the change to partners.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
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TikTok has enacted strict limits on the music and soundtracks that brands can access when producing content on the platform.

Brands will only have access to a collection of royalty-free music — that is, TikTok soundtracks that are licensed for commercial use. A TikTok spokesperson told Business Insider that it started to roll out this change at the start of May, giving brands access to a new Commercial Music Library they can use when creating videos.

What this means is that the brands affected — which TikTok denotes as "verified businesses and organizations" — will no longer be able to use mainstream music and popular songs that are frequently used for dance challenges and viral trends on the platform. If brands want to use this music, they'll have to obtain the appropriate license granting them commercial use, policies that users on YouTube have long had to adhere to in order to keep their videos from being taken down.

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TikTok told Business Insider that it's been communicating the change to affected brands. However, the transition to strictly royalty-free music caught attention this week after Dave Jorgenson, the face of the Washington Post's popular TikTok account, posted about it on Twitter. Jorgenson said he only found out about the change after a video he created was never published on TikTok.

"This is a hiccup for the @washingtonpost TikTok account but ultimately a new challenge. I only use popular music about 30% of the time, so now it's time to double-down and get even more creative," Jorgenson wrote Monday on Twitter. "That said, feeling moderately betrayed for this massive change without any warning."

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In a statement to Business Insider, TikTok said the change was implemented to help brands "further embrace the creativity and authenticity" of the platform and its community.

"We are always exploring opportunities to create value for our community and our partners," a TikTok spokesperson said. "The Commercial Music Library enables verified businesses or organizations on TikTok to access a pool of royalty-free music for promotional content, and provides the tools and resources to help them further embrace the creativity and authenticity of the TikTok community."

TikTok did not provide further explanation about why it was making the change, but it likely has to do with complaints from music companies who say the platform hasn't obtained the proper rights and licenses to use the music from the artists they represent.

Universal Music and other companies have recently threatened to sue TikTok for copyright infringement as licensing negotiations with the platform remain at a standstill. In a recent story from the Financial Times, a source compared TikTok's use of music to that of Napster, and the music file-sharing platform that was forced to shut down in 2001 after multiple lawsuits related to copyright infringement.

The new Commercial Music Library appears to be full of minute-long "stock" tracks, according to a Twitter post from Oliver Trenchard, who runs the TikTok account for World Rugby through content agency Engage Digital Partners.

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"It has a huge impact for us as it means we can't jump on any of the trending songs, which of course was one of the methods used by brands to get more views/likes on their videos," Trenchard told Business Insider.

Beyond the royalty-free music library, brands can still use soundtracks from other videos on TikTok. However, brands are unable to participate in sponsored hashtags and trends started by other businesses.

Read the original article on Business Insider
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