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The Intellectual Property StrategistFeaturesCopyrightsIntellectual Property

Music Rates and Royalties In 2023

By Jeff Brabec and Todd Brabec
May 01, 2023

This article is Part Two of a two-part article. Part One, which appeared in our March 2023 issue, discussed mechanical licenses and interactive streaming services. Part Two covers songwriters and music publishers, and record labels.

In the United States and in most foreign countries, the "performance right" is one of the most important rights of copyright and, in many cases, the most lucrative. In the United States, there is no statutory license under the Copyright Act for this right. Songwriters, composers, lyricists (jointly "writers") and music publishers join these organizations, which in turn negotiate licenses with the users of music, collect the license fees from those users and distribute the monies to writers and publishers based on surveys of performances, specific payment schedules and distribution rules, as well as other factors. All performance monies are distributed 50% to writers and 50% to music publishers.

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