Piracy has become a hot-button issue in AI litigation ever since Anthropic reached a $1.5 billion settlement for torrenting books — but such claims won’t be part of the copyright infringement lawsuit brought by music publishers against the Claude chatbot maker.

Federal court records show that on Wednesday (Oct. 8), Judge Eumi K. Lee denied a motion by Universal Music Publishing Group, Concord Music and ABKCO Music to amend their 2023 lawsuit against Anthropic. The case centers on claims that Anthropic trained its large language model Claude on copyrighted song lyrics and now spits out copycat lyrics when prompted.

The music publishers asked in August to add piracy claims to the lawsuit, saying they’d recently learned that seven million books in Anthropic’s training arsenal were illegally torrented from online pirate libraries. The publishers said their intellectual property is likely part of this booty, including numerous music and lyrics compendiums and the sheet music to hits like Elton John’s “Tiny Dancer” and Ariana Grande’s “7 Rings.”

The publishers’ proposed amended complaint was part of a bigger trend in the dozens of AI copyright cases making their way through the court system. Plaintiffs have been focusing on piracy since a landmark June court opinion held Anthropic liable for storing torrented books, and the trend only intensified after Anthropic settled that case for $1.5 billion in September.

The major record labels, for example, are currently trying to amend their copyright lawsuits against AI music generators Suno and Udio with new stream-ripping claims. Suno and Udio say such allegations are legally bogus.

Anthropic opposed the amendment in the music publishers’ case as well, slamming the new claims as an improper attempt to “fundamentally transform this case at the eleventh hour.” The AI company said the publishers could have discovered their torrenting activity long ago, and that adding piracy claims now would unfairly delay the already two-year-old case.

Judge Lee ultimately sided with Anthropic. According to Bloomberg Law, the judge stated during a court hearing in San Jose, Calif., on Wednesday that the amendment is inappropriate because the publishers failed to properly investigate the piracy theory earlier.

The publishers’ lawyers declined to comment on the ruling on Thursday (Oct. 9). Anthropic’s reps did not immediately return a request for comment.

While Wednesday’s ruling is a loss for the publishers, they won a victory just a few days earlier when Judge Lee rejected Anthropic’s bid to trim down the original copyright infringement claims on Monday (Oct. 6).

Anthropic insists that training Claude on copyrighted material is fair use — a foundational tenet of copyright law that allows protected works to be recycled for “transformative” purposes, like news reporting or parody.

Whether or not AI training constitutes fair use is a hotly contested legal question that is still being hammered out by the courts. This issue is the subject of ongoing evidence discovery in the publishers’ case against Anthropic, which is scheduled to run through March.

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Crocs dropped a collection of official Wicked clogs last year to celebrate the first movie in the two-part film series. Now, fans have one more chance to pick up the coveted shoes with a surprise sale that discounts the Wicked x Crocs collab by 50% off.

Add a magical touch to your footwear rotation while expanding your Wicked merch collection when you throw on a pair of the Elphaba Clogs or platform Glinda Siren Crocs. They’re on sale now starting from just $35 online, with multiple sizes still available as of this writing.

Keep reading to shop the Wicked Crocs collection below.

LIMITED-TIME DEAL

“Wicked” Elphaba Classic Clog

$35 $69.99 50% off

Buy Now on crocs

Have your defying gravity moment when you slip on the official Elphaba Crocs featuring a statement-making metallic green upper that’ll have you shining with every step. The adjustable heel strap comes with a textured black design inspired by the Wicked Witch’s billowing black cape.

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SELLING FAST

“Wicked” Glinda Siren Clog

$47.50 $94.99 50% off

Buy Now on crocs

Feel as though you’re floating in these cushy platform Crocs inspired by the pink-loving Glinda. Along the sole is a white shimmery bubble pattern while the upper has a bubblegum pink shade with a glittery design that’ll have you ready to belt out “Popular.”

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Each pair features intricate details inspired by the characters including exclusive Jibbitz charms you can only get with the Crocs. Since there are two pairs up for grabs, you and your bestie can channel your inner Glinda or Elphaba as you practice “What Is This Feeling” before the film’s premiere.

If you can’t bear to choose between the two, you can also snag a five pack of Wicked Jibbitz charms ($24.99) that feature the movie’s logo, flying monkey’s and the Emerald City for you to decorate your other Crocs with.

It’s common for Crocs collaborations to sell out quickly, which means you’ll want to snag a pair before they’re gone “For Good.”

In addition to Crocs, Wicked has been casting its spell on other brands, giving you ample opportunity to collect exclusive merch — especially as you prep your movie outfit. Some of the most recent collaborations include a fragrance drop at Ulta, official Mattel dolls and new Funko Pop vinyl figurines.

For more product recommendations, check out ShopBillboard‘s roundups of the best comfortable sandals, platform heels and knee-high boots.

Danny Jacobson has been promoted to head of A&R at Hallwood Media, a recording, management, publishing, distribution and merch company. He will oversee A&R across all divisions of the company, guiding a roster of over 100 signees.

News of the promotion comes after Danny, who is the cousin of Hallwood founder Neil Jacobson, spearheaded Hallwood’s controversial but groundbreaking AI artist signing strategy, including the signing of Xania Monet — the AI artist Billboard reported had signed a multimillion-dollar record deal with Hallwood last month.

Monet, the alias of poet Telisha “Nikki” Jones, who uses Suno to transform her words into songs, made headlines for her record-breaking deal with Hallwood, but also for her appearance on the Billboard charts. Her single “How Was I Supposed to Know” reached No. 1 on Billboard‘s R&B Digital Song Sales chart and was the No. 1 most-added song at R&B radio last week.

Danny, however, has signed far more than just Monet. According to a press release about his promotion, he has inked other so-called “AI-powered” talent, including China Styles, Bleeding Verse, Drew Meadows, Lone Star Lyric House, David Sven and several other projects still to be announced.

In a press release about his new position, Danny notes that he’s “thrilled to step into this new role and continue pushing the boundaries of what A&R can be. At Hallwood, we move first and fast, spotting talent early and helping them turn momentum into careers.”

Since joining Hallwood in 2020, Danny has worked in both management and A&R positions at the company and is said to have played a key role in shaping Hallwood’s A&R strategy, including building out its research department and developing a pipeline for discovering and supporting emerging artists.

Neil says of the appointment: “Danny has been an integral part of Hallwood since day one, building our research department, signing incredible artists, and proving himself as a visionary. To be promoted to this role at such a young age is a testament to his uncanny eye for talent, deep understanding of youth culture, and relentless work ethic — he’s the future of A&R.”

All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes.

Rejoicify! Ariana Grande just dropped two perfumes under her wildly popular fragrance line in celebration of Wicked: For Good.

These two limited-edition perfumes can be shopped right now at Ulta Beauty and retail for $72 each. Are you an Elphaba or a Glinda? Whichever witch you are, this collection caters to both, all packaged in adorable bottles. You’ve got the Glinda Bubbly Pink Eau de Parfum in a round bubble-esque package adorned with a gilded crown cap and an Elphaba Enchanted Eau de Parfum in an emerald green potion-esque bottle with a black slanted cap.

Before we get into the notes and all that jazz, it’s important to know what an Eau de Parfum is. To put it plainly, an Eau de Parfum is classified as a fragrance with a high concentration of fragrance oils, around 15 to 20%. This means an Eau de Parfum is much stronger than an Eau De Toilette, which has a smaller percentage of fragrance oils in it.

Wicked Glinda Bubbly Pink Eau de Parfum

$72

Buy Now at ulta

A Glinda-themed perfume.

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Now that that’s settled, let’s get down to the notes. Glinda’s perfume is a Floral Gourmand, as you’d expect. The fragrance’s top notes include pink sparkle apple, blush nectarine and pink pepper which gives the scent a fruity and slightly peppery hit. The middle notes are straight-up floral with what Grande describes as charming princess tulip and dewy peony. On the bottom, you’ve got creamy cedarwood/blond woods, sandalwood and sugared musks which smells musky and woody, as you’d expect. Added all together this scent is sweet with a hint of something musky and earthy, making the scent more complex.

On the flipside you have Elphaba’s perfume which is an Amber Woody scent. On top, the scent is fruity green glow apple, freesia and black plum while the middle notes are floral and vanilla-scented. On the bottom, there’s smoldering oudwood, oak moss, vanilla elixir which translates to smelling earthy, wood and, once again, vanilla. Overall, this fragrance is woody with sweet vanilla. If you’re looking for a unique scent with a bold mossy undertone, this one is for you.

Wicked Elphaba Enchanted Eau de Parfum

$72

Buy Now at ulta

An Elphaba-themed perfume.

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Following the box office success that was Wicked, Wicked: For Good will hit theaters Nov. 21, 2025, just one day shy of the one-year anniversary of the film’s first half. The sequel was first announced on X back in April from director Jon M. Chu’s “OzPhone.” The filmmaker wrote, “With more space, we can tell the story of Wicked as it was meant to be told while bringing even more depth and surprise to the journeys of these beloved characters.”

Following the cheeky post, fans and followers of the franchise were treated to a trailer on June 4, sharing first looks at Glinda and Elphaba’s journeys following the very dramatic “Defying Gravity” sequence and a hefty cliffhanger folks were left with in part one.

Complex has announced a partnership with Verzuz to relaunch the music battle series, which will return at ComplexCon on Oct. 25.

No Limit Records and Cash Money Records will revive the series, as Complex gets in control of the distribution rights to Verzuz.

“Rather than talking so much, we just want to get to the action,” Verzuz co-founders Swizz Beatz and Timbaland said in a joint statement.

No Limit and Cash Money are the first of many Verzuz battles to come, as the new partnership promises more coming in 2026 and beyond. Fans will have the opportunity to purchase tickets to the epic No Limit-Cash Money brawl, which will be broadcast live from Las Vegas at ComplexCon.

“What Swizz Beatz and Timbaland have built with Verzuz is nothing short of incredible — a cultural phenomenon that has reshaped how fans engage with music and artists,” Aaron Levant, Complex CEO, said. “We are thrilled to welcome Verzuz into the Complex family, and we can’t wait to propel the show to new heights with an unrivaled line-up of events, kicking off at ComplexCon this Oct. 25 & 26.”

It’s unclear who will be repping No Limit and Cash Money in Sin City, but it wouldn’t be right without Birdman, Slim and Master P in the building for the battle.

Timbaland and Swizz launched Verzuz in March 2020 with the COVID-19 pandemic forcing everyone to pivot and find new creative outlets inside the confines of their homes. They sold the company to Triller Network in March 2021.

Verzuz has been dormant for the better part of three years, with the last battles coming in 2022 with Cypress Hill and Onyx, 8 Ball & MJG versus UGK, Omarion against Mario and Luny Tunes versus DJ Nelson.