At times it seems like a constant struggle for songwriters and performers to receive the royalty payments due them.
In a landmark decision, the Copyright Office has enacted a ruling that will ensure songwriters are given the royalties they are owed after reclaiming their works from publishers. The law also ensures that songwriters also receive streaming royalties via The Mechanical Licensing Collective.
Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason approved the move saying, “the Academy applauds the Copyright Office for protecting the rights of songwriters and affirming their ability to receive appropriate compensation after reclaiming their copyrights.”
It is often more convenient and less time consuming for a songwriter to, at least temporarily, sign over the copyright for their music to the publisher for the purposes of promotion, marketing, and licensing of the song. Under these conditions the songwriters have “termination rights” that allow them to reclaim the rights to the songs once the deal has concluded.
However, the MLC issued a blanket streaming license for songs that allowed for the publishers to continue earning the royalties even after a contract was terminated.
The new agreement calls the MLC’s practice “erroneous” and allows songwriters to regain their royalties once an agreement with a publisher has been terminated.