Intro to Music Publishing

Ken Consor

What is Music Publishing

• Music Publishing is the business of protecting and exploiting musical copyright

• Publishers make sure songwriters are compensated

• Isn’t ‘exploiting’ bad?

What is a copyright?

• Copyright is granted by law to a songwriter, giving them 6 Exclusive Rights:

1. To make copies (physical or digital)2. To make derivative works (arrangements)3. To perform the work publicly4. To display the work publicly5. To distribute the work6. To perform the copyrighted worked by means of digital audio transmission• As soon as a song is in a “fixed and tangible form” (written down

on paper, recorded on a computer, etc), the songwriter has a copyright

Royalties

• Royalties are payments to a songwriter made every time a song is played in a public setting (Performance), downloaded (Mechanical), or used to go along with a visual work (sync)

Performance Royalties

• Performance Royalties are generated from public performances of musical work

• Some main sources of performance royalties today is radio play, streaming services (Spotify, YouTube), and live performances

• Performance royalties are distributed by Performance Rights Organizations (PROs)

• When songwriter registers his/her songs with a PRO, they collect fees from businesses that use that song, which they then distribute back to the songwriter

• In the USA, the two main PROs are ASCAP and BMI

Mechanical Royalties

• Earned from the reproduction of songs in physical and digital forms• Royalties are calculated by using the Statutory Mechanical Royalty

Rate. Currently it is 9.1 cents per track or 1.75 cents per minute of playing time, whichever is greater. Interactive streaming services such as Spotify also pay mechanical royalties which are calculated differently

• Mechanical royalties are collected from societies who monitor physical and digital reproduction - in the United States, it is the Harry Fox Agency

• Harry Fox usually requires a songwriter to have a label that provides a large release or distribution of a musical work, that’s where an admin deal with Songtrust can help

Synch Royalties

• Generated when a musical work is ‘synced’ with an audiovisual work, such as a commercial, television show, video game, or movie

• Sync royalties have no set rate, but usually differ based on popularity of the song, the audience size (local vs. national broadcast), and amount of time and presence of the song (background music or main theme)

• Rates are negotiable

Buzz Words to Know

• Split sheet- sheet that determines the split ownership of a song represented as a percentage. For example a song can be owned 50% by John Doe for writing the lyrics and 50% by Adam Smith for writing the music

• ISRC- International Standard Recording Code. 12-character alphanumeric code used to uniquely identify a sound recording. Is a song has multiple recordings or has been remixed it can have more than one ISRC. Typically assigned by labels or distributors

• ISWC- International Standard Musical Work code. 11-character alphanumeric code used to uniquely identify a musical work. If a song has been arranged, rewritten, or translated it can have more than one ISWC. They are assigned by PROs

• IPI- Interested Parties Information. 9 digit number that is used to identify a songwriter or publisher. Also called CAE numbers (Composer, Author, Publisher). They are like social security numbers just for songwriters and publishers