Lyricfind Files Antimonopoly Lawsuit
Lyricfind has initiated an antimonopoly lawsuit against Musixmatch, the text supplier, along with its owner, TPG private investment.
On Wednesday (March 5), a lawsuit was lodged that outlines eight federal antitrust violations and five state law violations. The arrangement involving Lyricfind is termed as “unprecedented” and “exceptional,” posing a threat to competition in the music industry.
Details of the Lawsuit
The case revolves around an agreement set for March 2024, granting Musixmatch exclusive rights to both Warner Chappell Music texts and the provision of lyrical data to third parties, including those who maintain direct licensing agreements with WCM.
In a statement released by MBW, Musixmatch dismissed the accusations as “meritless.”
“For over 15 years, Musixmatch has offered its customers the highest quality lyrics and data rights platform in the world,” the statement emphasized.
The complaint asserts that TPG and Musixmatch conspired to compel DSPs to eliminate texts sourced from any supplier other than Musixmatch.
“This is not merely hypothetical — it’s exactly what transpired with Spotify last year, which completed an agreement with Lyricfind but was deprived of choosing its preferred lyrical supplier.”
Darril Ballantin, Lyricfind
“After March 20, 2025, DSPs wanting to display lyrical data for WCM titles must adhere to a recent judicial filing. The filing indicates that Musixmatch serves over 80% of DSP traffic and collaborates with six of the seven largest DSP global subscribers.
Lyricfind’s founder and CEO, Darril Ballantin, who established the company over 20 years ago, alleges that the agreement with WCM has disrupted business relations. In an open letter accompanying the lawsuit, Ballantin cited Spotify as an example of a compromised partnership.
“Spotify was likely the first to suffer this, so we are now taking action to safeguard every music streaming service’s right to collaborate with a lyrical supplier of their choosing,” Ballantin stated in an open letter published on Wednesday (March 7).
The legal complaint contends that the exclusive agreement impacts not only competitors like Lyricfind but also other participants in the music industry.
“Other publishers, collective management organizations, and songwriters jointly owning and controlling rights with WCM are adversely affected by the exclusivity since their texts will now be exclusively provided through Musixmatch,” the hearing indicates.
“Artists and labels linked to WCM currently rely on Musixmatch to supply lyrical data and rights for their songs and cannot do so independently or through another supplier,” the legal document continued.
Lyricfind claims to be facilitating $25 million in payments to songwriters and publishers in 2024; this agreement may particularly harm independent artists and small publishers, facing reduced royalties without competitive alternatives.
Ballantin noted that Musixmatch already mandates indie artists and songwriters to pay for Musixmatch Pro to feature their lyrics on platforms like Spotify and Instagram.
“Without competition, what could these fees escalate to? Furthermore, DSPs might find it impossible to accept lyrics directly from artists, labels, and digital distributors for their own records if they cover Warner Chappell works, without breaching Musixmatch’s exclusivity,” Lyricfind’s founder and CEO Darril Ballantin remarked.
Ballantin also argued that the alleged violations of Musixmatch appear to follow the classic Private Equity PlayBook.
He further added, “Musixmatch is owned by TPG Growth, a major private equity firm. Lyricfind has never accepted institutional funding, allowing us to prioritize what’s best for music publishers and songwriters — rather than merely catering to short-term investor returns.”
