TikTok and CapCut have a new official partner providing music data, licensing, and royalty management services: Rumblefish.
US-based Rumblefish is part of the Harry Fox Agency (HFA), which in turn is owned by SESAC Music Group’s Music Services division.
According to Rumblefish, the new agreement will enable music publishers to directly license both ByteDance platforms.
This arrangement, MBW has confirmed, will enable publishers to ink multi-territory licensing deals with ByteDance, dependent on the geographical scope of each pubco’s rights.
A press release issued today (June 26) explains: “To support the use of music in ByteDance’s products, HFA’s Rumblefish will utilize its full suite of rights management services, offering publishers the opportunity for direct licensing, linking sound recording-to-composition data, processing usage data, and providing royalty calculation, distribution, copyright research, and publisher support.”
Lauren Apolito, EVP of Strategy and Business Development of HFA’s Rumblefish, said: “We are thrilled to offer the music publishing community the opportunity to license both TikTok and CapCut.
“With our unparalleled reach to the publishing market and our robust and scalable infrastructure, HFA’s Rumblefish is uniquely positioned to handle the massive scale of ByteDance’s licensing and data processing needs across two of its key product offerings on a global basis.”
John Josephson, Chairman & CEO of SESAC Music Group, added: “At SESAC Music Group, we’re working to leverage our global tech and data platform to assist innovative hyperscalers like ByteDance to utilize music by obtaining authorization directly from songwriters and music publishers.
“With our best-in-class licensing, data, and royalty administration capabilities, we help drive new sources of revenue for songwriters and music publishers by enabling platforms like TikTok and CapCut to create meaningful user experiences.”
Jordan Lowy, Global Head of Music Publishing Licensing and Partnerships at ByteDance, said: “ByteDance is committed to making it simple for users to discover, create, and share content powered by music.
“We are looking forward to working with HFA’s Rumblefish to help streamline global music rights administration, and to ensure seamless and timely remuneration for rightsholders on the platform.”
Rumblefish’s clients include AR/VR/AI companies, apps, background music services, investment funds, jukebox operators, karaoke platforms, lyrics and tablature services, music management companies, record labels, social media and online video companies, streaming and download services, synchronization services, and more.
According to its website, Rumblefish’s clients include TouchTunes, LyricFind, Smule, and Warner Music.
Rumblefish was acquired by SESAC in 2014.
Since that acquisition, Rumblefish has formed part of SESAC’s ‘Music Services’ division alongside operations such as AudioSalad, Audiam, HAAWK, HFA, Mint, and SESAC Digital Licensing.Music Business Worldwide
