By Teghan O' Connell
The increased popularity of apps like TikTok and Instagram has led to a widespread culture of copyright infringement, TikTok for music and Instagram for photography. [1] TikTok’s business users have faced a litany of lawsuits from Sony Music, claiming the companies have used Sony’s music without a license. Sony has sued companies Gym Shark, Marriott, [2] and the University of Southern California [3] for copyright infringement in social media advertising.
TikTok has broad licensing agreements with music companies Sony, Warner, and Universal, however not all TikTok content and users are protected. These agreements are mostly to protect TikTok from being liable themselves and extend to the average individual user. [4] Unfortunately, this protection does not always extend to accounts owned by large companies. Companies forget that just because an audio is trending on TikTok, the audio has not necessarily been licensed for use. Often, the company’s size or following will make them a target for copyright infringement lawsuits, as seen with Sony Music and Gym shark, Marriott, and USC. Musical copyright infringement is prevalent on TikTok because most videos are posted with some type of audio, often a song. [5]
TikTok has also played a role in a separate copyright infringement lawsuit. Following the release of Netflix’s Bridgerton TV series, TikTok users Emily Bear and Abigail Barlow posted videos singing a series of original songs. Their videos gained widespread popularity, garnering 36 million likes. This inspired the women to keep posting, crowd sourcing feedback as they continued to write their songs. The songs are based off the plot of Netflix’s Bridgerton, depicting the show and its scenes, characters, and plot in a musical format. The women eventually released a studio album recording of the songs, title the Unofficial Bridgerton Musical. Netflix stayed silent as the album was recorded and the women won a Grammy for best musical theater album in 2022. However, when a date was set for a show at the Kennedy Center, Netflix filed a copyright infringement lawsuit. Netflix, which holds exclusive rights to Bridgerton, claimed the writers of the musical have blatantly copied the show and are now attempting to profit from the violation of Netflix’s rights. While Barlow and Bear had previously said Netflix was supportive of the project, Netflix stated they never gave permission for the women to produce the project. [6] The two parties settled outside of court. [7]
Though TikTok usually has copyright disputes over music, a photographer sued the app claiming TikTok had allowed users to upload and spread her copyrighted photos. Elizabeth Waterman said she sent a series of takedown notices to the app, which the app ignored. The case was dismissed in October 2024, as Waterman could not provide proof of the notices, and TikTok said they had not received them. [8] Though dismissed, this lawsuit highlights the issue with photography and social media. In a world of sharing images and videos, how do you stop the spread of unlicensed material?
[1] Anna Potter Gleason, Copyright Owners’ Love/Hate Relationship With TikTok and Instagram Raises Legal Issues, The National Law Review (Aug. 28, 2020), https://natlawreview.com/article/copyright-owners-lovehate-relationship-tiktok-and-instagram-raises-legal-issues
[2] Little Media Agency, Social Media and Copyright: How to Avoid Serious Issues, Little Media Agency (Accessed Mar. 24, 2025), https://littlemediaagency.com/social-media-and-copyright-how-to-avoid-serious-issues/
[3] Blake Brittain, Sony Music sues University of Southern California over social media ads, Reuters (Mar. 12, 2025, 7:44 PM), https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/sony-music-sues-university-southern-california-over-social-media-ads-2025-03-12/
[4] Jordan Meggison-Decker, Viral TikTok or Copyright Infringement Lawsuit?, Brown Winick Law (Jan. 25, 2022), https://www.brownwinick.com/insights/viral-tiktok-or-copyright-infringement-lawsuit
[5] Anna Potter Gleason, Copyright Owners’ Love/Hate Relationship With TikTok and Instagram Raises Legal Issues, The National Law Review (Aug. 28, 2020), https://natlawreview.com/article/copyright-owners-lovehate-relationship-tiktok-and-instagram-raises-legal-issues
[6] Deanna Schwartz, The Netflix v. ‘Unofficial Bridgerton Musical’ lawsuit, explained, WLIW (Aug. 4, 2022), https://www.wliw.org/radio/news/the-netflix-v-unofficial-bridgerton-musical-lawsuit-explained/
[7] Logan Culwell-Block, Netflix Settles Lawsuit Oveer Abigail Barlow and Emily Bear’s Unnoficial Bridgerton Musical, Playbill (Sept. 26, 2022), https://playbill.com/article/netflix-settles-lawsuit-over-abigail-barlow-and-emily-bears-unofficial-bridgerton-musical
[8] Eric Goldman, TikTok Defeats Copyright Lawsuit Over Users’ Uploads- Waterman v. TikTok (Catch-Up Post), Technology and Marketing Law Blog (Feb. 23, 2025), https://blog.ericgoldman.org/archives/2025/02/tiktok-defeats-copyright-lawsuit-over-users-uploads-waterman-v-tiktok-catch-up-post.htm