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Publishing Overview |
MUSIC PUBLISHING OVERVIEW
Music publishing has been the largest source of earnings for composers
since the turn of the century. A good music publisher will have a
good royalty department, pay or advance money for demos, be enthusiastic
and knowledgable about the artist and the music, and have an aggressive
staff that will attempt to get the songs to the right people.
A music attorney should always be consulted to review any agreement
that a composer is asked to sign. Composers should become as knowledgable
as possible, and carefully investigate when choosing their advisors and
business partners.
The income from a Standard Publishing Agreement is generally
split into the following areas:
- Performance Income - Compensation is paid to copyright owners for the public
performance of their works. Performing rights organizations collect
payments from television and radio stations, nightclubs, theatres, etc.,
and distribute the revenues to the publishers and composers.
The publisher collects the income, and 50% is paid to the composer.
- Mechanical Income - This is produced by the manufacture and sale of sound
recordings. The amounts are set by the Copyright Royalty Tribunal
based on changes in the consumer price index. In the U.S., mechanical
income is paid to the publisher by the record company that manufactures
the recording, according to a contract between them, known as a "mechanical
license". The publisher collects its share of the performance
income. The composer is paid by the performing rights organization, and
gets the "writer's share" of the performance income.
- Print Income - This is earnings produced by the sale of sheet music.
The publisher collects the income and pays the composer 10 cents per printed
edition.
- Synchronization Income - This refers to earnings paid by television and
film production companies for the right to use the musical compositions.
The publisher collects the income and splits it 50/50 with the composer.
- Foreign Income - Domestic publishers enter into agreements with publishers
operating outside the U.S. and Canada. The income is credited to the publisher,
and is split 50/50 with the composer.
Co-publishing Agreements are similar to general agreements in that
the publisher and the composer split roughly 50% of the income, but
in this case the composer also gets a share of the publisher's income.
Administration Agreements involve the conducting of the administrative
activities of a songwriter's company by another publisher. These
functions include issuing mechanical licenses, registering compositions
with performing rights organizations, and collecting income. This
administrator normally retains about 15% of the gross revenues, while the
songwriter's company collects at least as much as a co-publisher's share.
Points of Negotiation - The points in publishing contracts vary
in importance among various publishing companies. The composer must become
knowledgable and/or have advisors to determine the best methods of dealing
with music publishing.
Self-Publishing is a viable alternative to the usual business
arrangments with publishers, for the composer interested in and capable
of administering and promoting his/her music.
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