May 2 (Reuters) - Universal Music Group and

TikTok said on Thursday that they had reached a new licensing

agreement that will restore the label's songs and artists to the

social media platform.

TikTok began removing Universal's content from its app after

their licensing deal expired in January and the two sides failed

to reach agreement on royalty payments to artists and

songwriters, protections from artificial intelligence (AI), and

online safety for TikTok's users.

The short video app is a valuable marketing and

promotional tool for the music industry. TikTok is where 16- to

19-year-olds in the United States most commonly discover music,

ahead of YouTube and music streaming services such as Spotify ( SPOT )

, according to Midia Research.

"Roughly a quarter of U.S. consumers say they listen to

songs they have heard on TikTok," said Tatiana Cirisano, Midia's

senior music industry analyst.

However, Universal Music claimed its artists and songwriters

are paid just a fraction of what it receives from other major

social media platforms.

The music label said TikTok accounts for 1% of its annual

revenue, or about $110 million in 2023. YouTube, by

contrast, paid the music industry $1.8 billion from

user-generated content in the 12 months ending in June 2022,

according to Midia.

In a move that may well have eroded its bargaining power,

Taylor Swift, one of Universal Music's biggest acts, allowed a

selection of her songs to return to TikTok as she promoted her

latest album, "The Tortured Poets Department."

Swift owns the copyrights to her recordings through her 2018

deal with Universal, and can control where her songs are

available, according to the Financial Times.

As licensing negotiations resumed in recent weeks, AI has

remained a major point of contention. Universal has claimed

TikTok is "flooded" with AI-generated recordings, including

songs that users create with the help of TikTok's AI songwriting

tools.

TikTok has maintained these AI-generated works should be

eligible for royalty payments, a position Universal opposed,

arguing it would dilute the pool of money available to

compensate human performers and composers.

Concerns about AI are growing in the creative community.

In April, a non-profit group called the Artist Rights Alliance

published an open letter urging the responsible use of the

technology. The group of more than 200 musicians and songwriters

called on technology companies and digital music services to

pledge not to deploy AI in a way that would "undermine or

replace the human artistry of songwriters and artists or deny us

fair compensation for our work."

The deal comes amid questions over TikTok's long-term future

in the United States. President Joe Biden signed legislation

last week that gives TikTok's Chinese owner, ByteDance, 270 days

to sell its U.S. assets. TikTok has vowed to file suit to

challenge the legislation, which it calls a ban.

More than 170 million Americans use its video service,

according to TikTok.