Jon Glass of Warner Music Group (WMG) and Alasdair McMullan of Universal Music Group (UMG) have joined SoundExchange’s board of directors.
Glass and McMullan will bring their business development expertise and legal acumen to the nonprofit, he says.
Jon Glass is Senior Vice President and Head of Digital Legal Affairs at Warner Music Group (WMG).
He leads the company’s business and legal efforts in support of WMG’s digital initiatives, working with WMG’s business development team.
In 2021, he was named one of Billboard’s Top Music Lawyers.
McMullan is executive vice president of business and legal affairs at Universal Music Group (UMG).
He oversees a team of attorneys responsible for maintaining and supervising litigation globally on behalf of the company.
McMullan joined UMG after the acquisition of EMI Music, where he was executive vice president of legal and business affairs for EMI Music North America.
Current SoundExchange board members Jeffrey Harleston of UMG and Paul Robinson of WMG have stepped down after 13 and 19 years with the organization, respectively.
“Jon Glass and Alasdair McMullan are world-class business and legal experts and proven industry changemakers.”
Michael Huppe, SoundExchange
Michael Huppe, CEO and President of SoundExchange, said, “Jon Glass and Alasdair McMullan are world-class business and legal experts and proven industry changemakers.
“Each will be a key advisor and collaborator as we continue to strengthen SoundExchange’s role as a champion of fair compensation and a music technology leader in today’s digitally driven, creator economy. “
“Jeff Harleston and Paul Robinson have each had an indelible impact on our organization.
“We have accomplished so much during their tenure, and I appreciate the support and guidance they have given us throughout the process. Each has contributed to helping SoundExchange achieve the position it now holds.
In December, SoundExchange won a legal victory in a royalty battle with US television service Music Choice.
The court ruled that the case would be referred to the Copyright Royalties Board (CRB), rather than being heard in federal court.
SoundExchange filed a lawsuit against Music Choice to recover underpaid royalties in April 2019, following an audit of Music Choice’s royalty statements.
At the time, SoundExchange claimed that “Music Choice had systematically under-reported its gross proceeds”, resulting in an underpayment to SoundExchange for statutory royalties related to its Business Establishment Service (BES).The music industry around the world
