Music labels crack down on unlicensed song use by brands, creators

Music labels in India are stepping up their crackdown on the unlicensed use of songs they own, especially by brands and influencers on social media and in advertisements.

- Lata Jha

The Delhi High Court recently issued an interim order against One8 Commune, Virat Kohli's restaurant chain, barring it from playing songs copyrighted by Phonographic Performance Limited (PPL) without a valid licence. Earlier, Sony Music issued a legal notice to the Marriott Group for copyright infringement.

Brands such as Epigamia and some e-commerce players have also been sued for playing unlicensed music in their ads.

Music and legal experts said in addition to incurring legal expenses, brands lose reputation and customer trust by not procuring music licences.

"Playing music without a licence is not just illegal, it also deprives artists of royalties. Social media platforms like Instagram and YouTube allow in-app music for personal use only, which is non-commercial. Playing it in branded content without permission may lead to copyright strikes, takedowns, or lawsuits," said Gaurav Dagaonkar, co-founder of Hoopr, a music licensing platform.