{"id":221147,"date":"2025-01-21T09:57:57","date_gmt":"2025-01-21T09:57:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/?p=221147"},"modified":"2025-01-21T10:34:52","modified_gmt":"2025-01-21T10:34:52","slug":"500m-valued-suno-hit-with-new-copyright-lawsuit-from-germanys-gema","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/500m-valued-suno-hit-with-new-copyright-lawsuit-from-germanys-gema\/","title":{"rendered":"$500m-valued Suno hit with new copyright lawsuit from Germany&#8217;s GEMA"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>AI music generator Suno continues to be one of the most controversial entities in the music business today.<\/p>\n<p>In June, the\u00a0<a class=\"link-external\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theinformation.com\/articles\/music-generator-suno-raises-capital-at-500-million-valuation-altman-went-behind-her-back\" rel=\"noopener\">$500 million company<\/a>\u00a0was\u00a0<a class=\"link-internal\" href=\"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/major-record-companies-sue-ai-music-generators-suno-udio-for-mass-infringement-of-copyright\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">sued by the major record companies<\/a>, along with fellow AI firm\u00a0<strong>Udio,<\/strong>\u00a0for allegedly training their systems using the majors\u2019 recordings without permission \u2013 an accusation they\u00a0<a class=\"link-internal\" href=\"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/as-suno-and-udio-admit-training-ai-with-unlicensed-music-record-industry-says-theres-nothing-fair-about-stealing-an-artists-lifes-work\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">pretty much admitted<\/a>\u00a0to in court filings in August.<\/p>\n<p>Now Suno is also being sued for copyright infringement by German collection society and licensing body, <strong>GEMA.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>GEMA represents the copyrights of around\u00a0<strong>95,000<\/strong>\u00a0members in Germany (composers, lyricists, music publishers) as well as over\u00a0<strong>two million<\/strong> rightsholders worldwide.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">      <div class=\"mb-advert__incontent\">      <div class=\"mb-advert mb-advert__tweeny hidden-xs hidden-ms hidden-sm\" data-loaded=\"no\" data-sizes=\"992 1200 1440\" data-name=\"628x90 Sponsor banner #5 (992+1200+1440)\" data-params=\"dfp_sponsor5_628\" id=\"dfp_sponsor5_628\"><\/div>      <div class=\"mb-advert mb-advert__banner mb-advert__banner--inline hidden-xs hidden-sm hidden-md hidden-lg\" data-loaded=\"no\" data-sizes=\"480\" data-name=\"468x60 Sponsor banner #5 (480)\" data-params=\"dfp_sponsor5_468\" id=\"dfp_sponsor5_468\"><\/div>      <div class=\"mb-advert mb-advert__mobile mb-advert__mobile--inline hidden-ms hidden-md hidden-lg\" data-loaded=\"no\" data-sizes=\"320 768\" data-name=\"300x50 Sponsor banner #5 (320+768)\" data-params=\"dfp_sponsor5_300\" id=\"dfp_sponsor5_300\"><\/div>      <\/div>      <\/p>\n<p>GEMA accuses the AI company of &#8220;processing protected recordings of world-famous songs&#8221; without permission or remuneration.<\/p>\n<p>According to GEMA, the AI tool generates audio content &#8220;that is confusingly similar to the original songs&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>GEMA alleges that Suno is ripping off songs by Alphaville (<em>Forever Young<\/em>), Kristina Bach (<em>Atemlos<\/em>), Lou Bega (<em>Mambo No. 5)<\/em>, Frank Farian (<em>Daddy Cool<\/em>),\u00a0and Modern Talking (<em>Cheri Cheri Lady<\/em>).<\/p>\n<p style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The collection society has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gema.de\/en\/news\/ai-and-music\/ai-lawsuit?utm_source=presse&amp;utm_medium=shortlink-en&amp;utm_campaign=ki-klage-suno\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">published<\/a> audio samples of the songs generated by Suno and a video explainer from musicologist Julia Blum demonstrating the similarities between the original version of Boney M.&#8217;s <em>Daddy Cool\u00a0<\/em>and Suno&#8217;s &#8220;AI plagiarism.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>GEMA filed the lawsuit against Suno with the Munich Regional Court today (January 21).<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">      <div class=\"mb-advert__incontent\">      <div class=\"mb-advert mb-advert__spu\" data-loaded=\"no\" data-name=\"300x250 Sponsor MPU #1\" data-params=\"dfp_spu1\" id=\"dfp_spu1\"><\/div>      <\/div>      <\/p>\n<p>GEMA noted that Suno&#8217;s AI music tool &#8220;makes it possible to generate playable audio content using simple prompts&#8221;. The collection society added, however, that it\u00a0 &#8220;was able to document that the [Suno] system outputs content that obviously infringes copyrights&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p>Added GEMA: &#8220;In terms of melody, harmony and rhythm, this content largely corresponds to world-famous works whose authors GEMA represents.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The results clearly show that Suno Inc. has systematically used GEMA&#8217;s repertoire for the training of its music tool and is now exploiting it commercially without giving the authors of the works a financial share.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">      <div class=\"mb-advert__incontent\">      <div class=\"mb-advert mb-advert__spu\" data-loaded=\"no\" data-name=\"300x250 Sponsor MPU #2\" data-params=\"dfp_spu2\" id=\"dfp_spu2\"><\/div>      <\/div>      <\/p>\n<p>GEMA&#8217;s lawsuit against Suno arrives just two months after the org took legal action against OpenAI, the <a class=\"link-external\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2024-10-02\/openai-has-closed-new-funding-round-raising-over-6-5-billion\" rel=\"noopener\">$157 billion-valued\u00a0<\/a>US-based AI giant behind ChatGPT.<\/p>\n<p>GEMA <a href=\"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/openai-sued-by-gema-in-germany-for-unlicensed-use-of-song-lyrics\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">alleged<\/a> that OpenAI, via its ChatGPT chatbot, \u201creproduce[es] protected song lyrics by German authors without having acquired licenses or paid the authors in question\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>The OpenAI lawsuit arrived just over a month after GEMA <a class=\"link-internal\" href=\"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/gema-proposes-licensing-model-for-ai-generated-music\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">proposed<\/a> a generative AI licensing model. In November, GEMA <a class=\"link-internal\" href=\"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/germanys-gema-launches-ai-charter-laying-out-legal-and-ethical-principles-for-artificial-intelligence-in-music\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">launched<\/a> an \u2018AI Charter\u2019 calling for a responsible approach to generative AI.<\/p>\n<blockquote><figure class=\"mbw-articlepic mbw-articlepic--right\"><a class=\"link-internal\" href=\"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/files\/2024\/04\/Screenshot-2024-04-08-at-17.59.42-e1712595602552.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/files\/2024\/04\/Screenshot-2024-04-08-at-17.59.42-e1712595602552.jpg\" data-lightbox=\"image-set\" data-title=\"\"><img  class=\"lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/files\/2024\/04\/Screenshot-2024-04-08-at-17.59.42-e1712595602552-80x45.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/files\/2024\/04\/Screenshot-2024-04-08-at-17.59.42-e1712595602552-80x45.jpg 80w, https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/files\/2024\/04\/Screenshot-2024-04-08-at-17.59.42-e1712595602552-160x90.jpg 160w, https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/files\/2024\/04\/Screenshot-2024-04-08-at-17.59.42-e1712595602552-320x180.jpg 320w, https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/files\/2024\/04\/Screenshot-2024-04-08-at-17.59.42-e1712595602552-418x235.jpg 418w, https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/files\/2024\/04\/Screenshot-2024-04-08-at-17.59.42-e1712595602552-648x365.jpg 648w, https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/files\/2024\/04\/Screenshot-2024-04-08-at-17.59.42-e1712595602552-836x471.jpg 836w, https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/files\/2024\/04\/Screenshot-2024-04-08-at-17.59.42-e1712595602552-1296x730.jpg 1296w\" data-sizes=\"auto\"><i class=\"fas fa-search-plus magnifying-glass-icon\"><\/i><\/a><\/figure><p>&#8220;AI providers such as Suno Inc. use our members&#8217; works without their consent and profit financially from them.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Dr Tobias Holzm\u00fcller, GEMA<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Commenting on the legal action against Suno, Dr Tobias Holzm\u00fcller, CEO of GEMA, said: &#8220;Human creativity is the basis of all generative AI. But this market has so far lacked basic principles such as transparency, fairness and respect.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;AI providers such as Suno Inc. use our members&#8217; works without their consent and profit financially from them. At the same time, the output generated in this way competes with the works created by humans and deprives them of their economic basis. GEMA is endeavoring to find solutions in partnership with AI companies. But this will not work without adhering to the necessary basic rules of fair cooperation and, above all, it will not work without the acquisition of licenses.&#8221;<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;Generative AI tools such as the music tool from Suno Inc. make uninhibited use of compositions and texts that do not belong to them.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Dr. Ralf Weigand, GEMA<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Dr Ralf Weigand, Chairman of GEMA&#8217;s Supervisory Board, added: &#8220;Generative AI tools such as the music tool from Suno Inc. make uninhibited use of compositions and texts that do not belong to them.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;If we don&#8217;t want to do without man-made music in the future, we urgently need a legal framework that guarantees authors an appropriate share of the value created by AI providers. Otherwise, we will very quickly reach the point where no one will be able to make a living from their creative work &#8211; a \u2018brave new world\u2019 after all human creativity in music has ended!&#8221;<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;Providers of generative AI must respect copyright law and remunerate authors for their creative work.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #000000;\">Dr. Kai Welp, GEMA<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Dr Kai Welp, General Counsel of GEMA, said: &#8220;Providers of generative AI must respect copyright law and remunerate authors for their creative work. Unfortunately, many AI providers have deliberately ignored this matter of course in the past. This must change.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The lawsuit against Suno Inc. is part of an overall concept of measures taken by GEMA, at the end of which there will be fair treatment of authors and their remuneration.&#8221;<\/p>\n<div class=\"mb-advert__incontent\">\n<div id=\"dfp_sponsor5_628\" class=\"mb-advert mb-advert__tweeny hidden-xs hidden-ms hidden-sm\" data-loaded=\"yes\" data-sizes=\"992 1200 1440\" data-name=\"628x90 Sponsor banner #5 (992+1200+1440)\" data-params=\"dfp_sponsor5_628\" data-google-query-id=\"CIfjkqDChosDFUCCUAYdua0DaA\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>GEMA represents the copyrights of around\u00a095,000\u00a0members in Germany (composers, lyricists, music publishers) as well as over\u00a0two million rightsholders worldwide.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":221149,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[193],"class_list":["post-221147","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-gema"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/221147","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=221147"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/221147\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/221149"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=221147"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=221147"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=221147"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}