The NO FAKES Act: Including the Potential Federal Right of Publicity in Catalog Acquisitions

Among the most dominant trends in the music industry over the past decade has been the proliferation of investment in catalogs of musical compositions and sound recordings. While many investors’ theses focus solely on the evergreen value of royalties generated from these copyrights over the span of many years, some buyers have reportedly purchased the rights to recording artists’ names, images, and likenesses, with a specific focus on these artists’ digital replicas. Recent examples include Pophouse buying assets relating to the band KISS in April 2024 and Primary Wave acquiring a stake in rig