Facebook Stares Down Labels Over Project Playlist Takedown Demand
Earlier this afternoon MySpace scrubbed all traces of Project Playlist music widgets from the site, and users are unable to embed any further playlists. The scrub was the result of infringement notices from the major labels …
Context & Ripple Effects
Facebook had already approached labels about a music service in March 2008, making the dispute over Project Playlist widgets a test of whether social platforms could carry music tools without settled label terms. MySpace’s removal of the widgets gives the labels an immediate enforcement win while Facebook takes the opposing position.
First-order effects
- MySpace users lose access to Project Playlist widgets and can no longer embed new playlists after the platform acted on the labels’ infringement notices.
- Facebook’s refusal to remove Project Playlist content puts the platform in direct conflict with the major labels’ takedown demand.
Second-order effects
- Project Playlist’s distribution becomes uneven across major social-network hosts, with access determined by each platform’s willingness to absorb label-rights risk.
- Label negotiations with Facebook gain greater urgency because the company’s earlier music-service outreach has not resolved the widget dispute.
Third-order effects
- If labels can make platform-by-platform enforcement the norm, social music features will increasingly depend on direct licensing arrangements rather than third-party embeds.
- The dispute points toward major rights holders acting as gatekeepers for music functionality on large social networks.
The trend: Social platforms are being pushed from open third-party music embeds toward label-controlled licensing relationships.