Apple Music Fights Suno Over Private Royalty Details

Apple Music asked a judge to stop Suno from questioning it about the streaming business after handing over data on AI songs already reaching listeners.

The dispute put royalty money at the center of the copyright case brought by Universal Music Group and Sony Music against the AI music company.

According to Billboard, Apple said it had answered six document subpoenas from Suno and the labels. That included information on how it finds AI music and how much Suno material appears on its platform.

Apple argued that testimony would expose private business information well beyond what Suno needed, Digital Music News reported. Among the questions: could Apple Music stay in business without the major labels’ catalogs?

Suno also sought details about minimum payments and how royalty terms treated AI songs compared with other music. The demand covered streaming fraud and Apple’s licensing talks with Universal and Sony.

Apple said the companies suing Suno could supply relevant information themselves. It pointed to more than 90 emails and over 10 discussions across more than a year to work out what it would provide.

The labels accused Suno of training on their music without permission and said its AI tracks competed with those recordings. Suno claimed fair use. For artists, that dispute concerns who gets streams and the money attached to them. Warner Music Group, an original plaintiff, settled with Suno in 2025. Universal and Sony’s case continued, with evidence gathering set to last through mid-2027.

Rap producers have a separate stake in the wider fight over AI music. As AllHipHop previously reported, music publisher Reservoir accused Suno of creating tracks that included producer tags, the short signatures heard on rap songs. Reservoir’s lawsuit sought $157.5 million over 1,050 works.

The publisher alleged that Suno trained its tools with songs split into vocals and backing tracks, along with cover versions. Reservoir also sued Anthropic over lyrics, seeking $127.95 million on copyright claims tied to 853 works. Those were separate lawsuits from the Universal and Sony case that brought Apple into the evidence fight.

Apple sought to cancel the testimony demand or obtain an order to protect its information. Digital Music News reported that the motion was listed for December 1, leaving that request for a judge to decide.