Getting Songwriters Paid - Fix the Leaky Pipes!

Part of SXSW 2023

This event took place on Tuesday, March 14, 2023 at 4:00 PM UTC.

Venue:Austin Convention Center, Room 18AB. The Copyright Royalty Board ruling that the royalty rate for songs will rise to 15% of US streaming revenue should be a major cause for celebration. However, unless outdated industry infrastructures and distribution mechanisms are urgently addressed, the impact of this progress might be limited. Research by the Music Managers Forum (MMF), shows songwriters are currently waiting several years to receive payment for streaming. Due to the tangled complex of collecting society and publisher networks, up to 30% of royalties can be deducted in admin costs. Millions more dollars of "unmatched" revenues are torrenting into black boxes, before being re-apportioned by market share to the biggest rights holders.