Communications Director Willy Martinsen.
– What does it mean for Norwegian songwriters?
The world's three largest record labels have recently signed agreements with a number of music AI services. This could be the beginning of a better regulated market, but only if it is the first step on the way. A broad, collective licensing system is better suited to taking care of the breadth of rights holders.
/ 11/12/2025 / Kristian DugstadThis is a comment from TONO's communications director Willy Martinsen. An abbreviated version was printed in Klassekampen on December 11th.
Warner, Sony, and Universal have recently announced deals with AI music companies like Udio, Stability AI, KLAY, and Suno.
Warner Music CEO Robert Kyncl says in a recent blog post that Warner Music Group will collaborate with actors who use licensed material, that the financial terms should reflect the value of the music, and that there should be a requirement for artists and songwriters to decide for themselves whether their voice, name and expression should be allowed to be used in AI-generated works. The AI service KLAY says that they train their models exclusively on licensed music, and that they have developed a framework together with the industry. In this way, they have chosen a different approach than Suno and Udio, which have trained on huge catalogs without clarifying the rights first. These are positive developments in isolation.
The agreements are between major American music companies and technology companies, and only cover rights that are managed and owned by the music companies. This creates a patchwork of agreements that makes licensing confusing. Consideration for the broad group of European authors and the European music field is not taken into account.
With the existing agreements, AI companies can probably gain access to enough music to reduce the need to practice on other music. The result could be that Norwegian and European music creators are in a weaker position in the face of a future and growing market.
If a fair and sustainable system is to be established, it must be done through a clear European framework. Collective management ensures consent and fair remuneration for all music creators, not just those with large American publishing deals. That is why TONO and the other European collective management societies are now working with the EU to establish that collective licensing should be the main rule.
Norwegian authorities must also follow up. TONO has given input to Norwegian authorities on the need for sustainable regulation of artificial intelligence in the face of music. The Copyright Act must also apply fully to AI actors, and copyright exceptions must be limited. TONO already has a licensing model for AI companies, and we invite Norwegian startups to ensure that licensing is done correctly.
OpenAI recently lost a court case against TONO's German sister society GEMA. Another important case against Suno which is also being conducted by GEMA will be decided in the first quarter of 2026. GEMA has documented that reproduction of their works occurs in AI-generated music. A negative verdict will have ripple effects far beyond Germany, and will also contribute positively to TONO's part. TONO is prepared to take legal action if necessary, but when several European companies have cases going through the legal system, our assessment for now is that it is not appropriate to spend large resources on several parallel lawsuits.
Although licensing and regulation are crucial, it does not solve the parallel challenge of AI-generated music pressuring human creators.
Streaming services report on tens of thousands of new AI-generated tracks dailyOn Suno alone, it generates seven million songs every day, and the users can barely hear the difference on AI music and human music.
TONO has also received some inquiries from businesses that are considering AI music as a way to cut licensing costs. At a time when the business community is talking hotly about sustainability, cultural sustainability is rarely included in the calculation. If we want music created by people in the future, music creation must be guaranteed an income. The framework conditions must support human creativity, and ensure that it is not displaced by unregulated AI production.
The creation and consumption of music has always been changing. If future developments are to be sustainable and ensure good framework conditions for human music creators, we must ensure that technology does not undermine the economy and rights of human creators.
The fact that Warner, Sony and Universal have chosen to license music to certain AI services could be the beginning of a better regulated market, but only if it is the first step on the way. A broad, collective licensing system is better suited to taking care of the breadth of rights holders.
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