Epidemic Sound launches Soundproof as new research reveals widespread music licensing risk across brand content
New research finds that 56% of brands have experienced music copyright or takedown issues in the past two years; 83% say they're concerned their past music use would not survive a formal audit
STOCKHOLM, June 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- As brands race to produce more content across more channels, a significant majority are exposing themselves to growing licensing, compliance and governance risk, according to a new survey of 500 US and UK brands conducted by Epidemic Sound.
The Content Shift: How Brands are Adapting in 2026, released today, reveals that a staggering 83% of brands are concerned that their past music use on social media would not survive a formal audit or legal challenge – a risk that's increasingly becoming a reality as technology makes it faster, easier and more cost-effective for music rightsholders to pursue brands for unlicensed music in their content.
In fact, the study found that the majority of brands surveyed (56%) have experienced a copyright or takedown issue in the past 24 months, with nearly 8 in 10 experiencing at least one negative business impact linked to licensing or copyright issues, including added costs, delayed campaigns and reputational damage. Additionally, 95% of brands said that music licensing complexity slows production timelines.
Brands increasingly recognize that they're at risk, but as platform rules continue to evolve and content distribution spans more channels and geographies, licensing and compliance remain a moving target.
"Our research confirmed that there's a clear gap between brands' recognition of the risks they're facing and the actions they're taking to actually address those risks," said Emil Henriksson, VP, Head of Commercial Legal at Epidemic Sound. "That's why today, Epidemic Sound is announcing the launch of Soundproof, a new compliance solution that combines audit, monitoring, and licensing expertise to find, mitigate, and prevent music copyright exposure across social media and influencer content."
Soundproof's proprietary tech begins by scanning brand and influencer content across social media, using AI to surface potential risks. Where risk is detected, brands can then leverage Epidemic Sound's catalogue of fully-owned music and its AI-assisted tools to re-soundtrack non-compliant content with full peace of mind. In addition to correcting any risk in past or current content, Soundproof further provides continuous monitoring of brand content to catch new risks as they arise.
"With content creation scaling at rates we've never seen before, brands are realizing that managing music licensing risk can no longer be just a legal consideration – it needs to be part of the operational infrastructure that goes into content production," added Henriksson. "As seen in the report, the fragmented music landscape slows campaigns down, while increasing costs and risks. Soundproof is a key piece of the puzzle in mitigating that risk and providing peace of mind for creative teams, even as content creation scales."
Epidemic Sound's The Content Shift: How Brands are Adapting in 2026 report also examined brands' attitudes around AI adoption, creativity, and productivity, revealing an "AI confidence gap" between brands' desire to use AI to move faster and their confidence in the quality, governance, and licensing foundations underpinning that content.
The report found that while 90% of brands say they feel pressure to use AI to keep up with the speed, scale or expectations of their industry, only 56% believe AI-generated content currently meets quality expectations. For brands, transparency around AI use in the creative process is key: 71% said transparency increases trust, while 66% said it improves content performance.
"The next phase of content creation won't be defined by who can produce the most content. It will be defined by who can scale with confidence," said Sara Börsvik, Interim Chief Executive Officer at Epidemic Sound. "Our research shows brands are embracing AI, but many still lack confidence around quality, licensing, and governance. Epidemic Sound gives customers complete peace of mind when they use our music, which soundtracks content seen over 3.5 billion times every day. With Soundproof, we're bringing that same expertise, technology, and licensing certainty to give brands greater visibility into risk and the confidence to create, publish, and scale their content."The Content Shift: How Brands are Adapting in 2026 is the second report in Epidemic Sound's The Sound of Creativity series. To read the full report, go to LINK.
For more information, please contact:
Anna-Clara Olofsson
Director PR & Communications
[email protected]
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SOURCE Epidemic Sound
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