licensing

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Some of Your Favorite Music May Vanish From TikTok
TikTok May
Lose Some
Very Big Songs
Jan 31, 2024 11:55 AM CST

TikTok May Lose Some Very Big Songs

Yes, it's over a licensing deal, and it affects Taylor Swift, Drake, Adele, and more

(Newser) - Universal Music Group—which represents artists including Taylor Swift, Drake, Adele, Bad Bunny, and Billie Eilish—says that it will no longer allow its music on TikTok after a licensing deal between the two expired on Wednesday. UMG said that it had not agreed to terms of a new deal...

Sports Illustrated Just Laid Off Most of Its Staff

Magazine's future is unclear

(Newser) - Since 2019, the Arena Group has paid a licensing fee to have the rights to publish Sports Illustrated, owned by Authentic Brands Group. Earlier this month, red flags started popping up that indicated Arena had missed a $3.75 million quarterly payment on the first of the year, with a...

He Drew a Smiley Face, Got $45. It's Now Worth Way, Way More
He Drew a Smiley Face, Got $45.
It's Now Worth Way, Way More
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Jun 16, 2019 7:33 AM CDT

He Drew a Smiley Face, Got $45. It's Now Worth Way, Way More

Inside the $500M-a-year business

(Newser) - There is such a thing as the Smiley Company, and as Zachary Crockett explains in a piece for the Hustle , it is just as yellow and icon-filled as you'd expect: "Smiley paintings line the walls. Smiley pillows adorn the couches. There are smiley backpacks, smiley t-shirts, smiley exercise...

Happy Ending for Grumpy Cat: $710K Awarded in Suit

Beverage company owners had countersued feline's team over licensing deal tied to coffee

(Newser) - Taking on Starbucks and its mermaid logo: an iced coffee drink featuring Grumpy Cat. That was the plan, anyway, per the owners of a beverage company who say they teamed up with the famous feline's owners to start the brand, then say they were let down by the Grumpy...

Coming Soon: Real Dunder Mifflin Paper

The Office firm to put 'quabity first' in Staples deal

(Newser) - Fans of the Office will soon be able to buy paper made by their favorite company—though instead of purchasing it from Dwight Schrute, they’ll have to get their reams through Staples. The office-supply giant’s Quill.com has reached a licensing deal with NBCUniversal to sell Dunder Mifflin...

Get Ready for Grateful Dead Skateboards

Wine, snowboards also among new merchandising deals

(Newser) - The Dead are looking for new ways to live on, and they’ve settled on skateboards. In a new business deal, remaining members of the Grateful Dead have agreed to put their logos on a range of new items, including Wines That Rock, Dregs skateboards, and Burton snowboards. But they’...

Bunny Logo Multiplies, Collectors Disgusted

Push for licensing bucks annoys hard-core fans

(Newser) - Playboy bunny logos have been multiplying like rabbits, appearing on everything from tanning spray and lighters to drinks promising to boost the libido. But longtime bunny collectors-- people like Ken Ritchie of Memphis, whose collection of Playboy paraphernalia fills a wing of his house--are not impressed. "How many guys...

Black Eyed Peas: Sellouts in Post-Sellout World

(Newser) - It is still possible for a musician to “sell out” in this hyper-commercialized world, says Seth Stevenson, who hangs on to the concept partly because of the pain he feels when a favorite song is co-opted—it’s like finding out a smart, cute girl “spends her weekends...

8 Stories