YouTube signs music deals with Universal and Sony

YouTube has signed a multi-year licensing deal with Universal Music Group(UMG), according to a report from Bloomberg. Warner Music Group has already signed an agreement with YouTube earlier this month.

Susan Wojcicki, CEO of YouTube said, “We’re thrilled to strengthen our partnership with Universal Music Group. This agreement means we can drive more value to the industry, break and support more artists and deliver an incredible music experience to fans around the world.” Terms of the YouTube and UMG deal were not disclosed.

UMG Chairman Lucian Grainge told Variety, "This important step forward provides our recording artists and songwriters improved content flexibility and growing compensation from YouTube’s ad-supported and paid-subscription tiers, while also furthering YouTube’s commitment to manage music rights on its platform. I look forward to collaborating with Susan and her team at YouTube on the important work ahead to advance artists’ interests and sustain the music industry’s recent growth.”

The Bloomberg report notes that YouTube has also signed a music deal with Sony Music Entertainment. The report notes that YouTube's paid music service Remix is expected to go live in March 2018 and will compete with the likes of Spotify, Apple Music, and other music streaming services.

It is still unclear how long Sony's and Universal's contracts are for. If all goes well, then we might have a new music streaming service on the market very soon.