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Roblox reaches agreement with US music trade body NMPA

Roblox reaches agreement with US music trade body NMPA

Games platform Roblox has settled a copyright dispute with US music trade body the National Music Publishers' Association (NMPA).

In a post on the latter's website, the duo announced that they had come to an agreement which apparently "expands Roblox's existing relations" with the music industry. The NMPA had previously accused Roblox of violating music copyright, something that the games platform had refuted.

“We are delighted to have come to terms with select NMPA members, building on our existing relationships with major publishers," Roblox VP and global head of music Jon Vlassopulos said.

"We are pleased that the publishing industry sees the potential of Roblox to be a significant creative and commercial opportunity for its members. Music is a natural way for people to express themselves, be entertained, and connect with likeminded people. We strive to offer experiences that bring millions of fans together with the songwriters and artists they love. Roblox currently enables labels and publishers to reach millions of fans at once in hyper social, immersive environments such as launch parties and virtual concerts. Moving forward, we are committed to partnering with the music industry, as a whole, to create an exciting new social era of the music business which engages fans and artists in an unprecedented way in the metaverse.”

NMPA president and CEO David Israelite added: “We are extremely pleased to have found a way forward with Roblox as it continues to offer a unique platform for musicians and songwriters in the metaverse. Roblox understands that music has the potential to play a more integral role on its platform. I appreciate Roblox’s willingness to work with us in pursuit of advancing the interests of publishers and songwriters and look forward to seeing how they expand virtual experiences through music.”

This comes hot on the heals of the NMPA reaching an agreement with Twitch over its streamers using copyrighted music.


PCGamesInsider Contributing Editor

Alex Calvin is a freelance journalist who writes about the business of games. He started out at UK trade paper MCV in 2013 and left as deputy editor over three years later. In June 2017, he joined Steel Media as the editor for new site PCGamesInsider.biz. In October 2019 he left this full-time position at the company but still contributes to the site on a daily basis. He has also written for GamesIndustry.biz, VGC, Games London, The Observer/Guardian and Esquire UK.