In the midst of a court battle, YouTube has restricted songs by artists like Adele and Bob Dylan in the United States.
The platform does not presently allow users to view songs by well-known artists, such as Kendrick Lamar, Mariah Carey, Green Day, R.E.M., and many others.
The action is the result of a contract dispute between representatives of YouTube and organizers at the Society of European Stage Authors and Composers (SESAC), a performing rights organization in the United States.
When you try to play music from these artists, a brief notification shows.
“SESAC provided content for this video. It says, “It is not available in your country.”
A YouTube representative in response to the reports insisted that talks are still in progress.
“We have engaged in sincere discussions to extend our current agreement with SESAC. Regretfully, we failed to come to a fair arrangement prior to its expiration, even with our best efforts,” they said. Because we take copyright extremely seriously, SESAC-represented content is no longer accessible on YouTube in the United States. We are aiming to come to a new agreement as soon as feasible and are now in active talks with SESAC.”
Representatives from YouTube also answered questions via X during the weekend.
READ MORE: Why Aren’t YouTube And TikTok Creators Going All In On AI-Generated Videos?
“Despite our best efforts, our music license agreement with SESAC has expired without an agreement on renewal conditions,” they responded in response to irate users. “For this reason, we have blocked content on YouTube in the US known to be associated with SESAC – as in line with copyright law.”
Managers of SESAC have not yet responded to the dispute.
The organization, on behalf of its artists, licenses over 1.5 million songs for public performance with the primary goals of safeguarding copyright and collecting royalties.
Radiant TV, offering to elevate your entertainment game! Movies, TV series, exclusive interviews, music, and more—download now on various devices, including iPhones, Androids, smart TVs, Apple TV, Fire Stick, and more.
