The European Commission is likely to clear the $775 million acquisition of Downtown Music Holdings by Universal Music Group after UMG offered remedies, according to a report from Reuters, citing "people with direct knowledge of the matter." Reuters said the Commission's competition division "signaled acceptance" of UMG's offer to sell royalty services platform Curve to address the Commission's concerns. According to the report, regulators have not demanded further concessions. The deadline for t...

Independent music company's global organisation WIN has warned the European Commission that the proposed acquisition of Downtown Music Holdings by Universal Music Group "must be blocked outright" as the merger of the two companies poses "grave risk" to "fair competition" in the music market. EU's competition authorities launched an in-depth investigation into the transaction in July 2025. In November, following an in-depth investigation to assess the potential impact of the transaction, the Comm...

Cyprus, which assumes the Presidency of the European Union from January 1 to June 30, has vowed to "support efforts for a robust copyright framework" as part of the EU's Intellectual Property agenda. The Presidency will also and monitor "the developments related to emerging technologies and their impact on intellectual property rights," according to the country's published programme. Details of the proposed IP agenda have not been disclosed yet. The Presidency will also "drive progress" on the ...