Merlin partners with music licensing service Lickd

The news comes days after Merlin elected a new board. Lickd allows video creators to legally use copyrighted audio in their videos, providing independent and major labels access to preapproved licensed videos.

The partnership is expected to convert music from “tens of thousands of labels and hundreds of thousands of artists across the globe” into usable content, which will create new revenue streams for artists while offering them exposure.

“We are over the moon to be working hand in hand with Merlin to ensure that creators have access to music from independents – an industry sector that is growing at an exponential rate,” Lickd CEO Paul Sampson said. “This partnership will not only offer opportunities for YouTubers and other content creators to expand their income, it will also put independents in a position where they can further maximise their revenue potential.

Merlin chief operating officer Charlie Lexton said: “We’re delighted to partner with Lickd to power its platform and to give creators access to millions of songs from around the world. Our partnership will make the licensing process more streamlined for Merlin members. User-generated social video content is one of the fastest-growing sectors in the media and entertainment industries, and we’re thrilled to help keep our members’ music at the forefront.”

Merlin represents a music catalogue spanning more than 20 000 labels and thousands of artists from around the globe, which constitutes over 15% of the global music market share. In December, the company expanded its agreement with Boomplay, Africa’s largest music streaming platform, extending the availability of Merlin members’ music catalogue to 47 additional countries on the continent. Boomplay boats more than 60 million monthly active users and a catalogue of over 65 million tracks – the most extensive catalogue of African content globally.