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Sunday, January 27, 2013

SoundExchange 2012


There is good news in 2012 for the music industry.  SoundExchange has reported a substantial amount of money paid out in 2012. Just in case you do not know about SoundExchange, from their website, “SoundExchange is a non-profit performance rights organization that collects statutory royalties from satellite radio (such as SIRIUS XM), internet radio, cable TV music channels and similar platforms for streaming sound recordings.”  

The information being reported by SoundExchange states that SoundExchange has paid out an incredible $462 million for 2012.  This is an increase of 58% over 2011.  And the forth quarter of 2012 set a pay out record at $134.9 million. According to Michael Huppe, President of SoundExchange “…it means more money in the pockets of the creators of music...”

All music creators should register with a performance rights organization to ensure that they are receiving all royalties due to them. Alternatively, the SoundExchange provides a unique and valuable service for sound recording copyright owners, because they only deal with digital royalties. There has previously been a void in royalty collection for digital performance royalties.  It is still necessary for the recording artist to belong to a performance rights organization such as Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI), the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) or the Society of European Stage Authors & Composers (SESAC), as they collect royalties from organizations that use sound recording in public forums.  However, registering with SoundExchange can provide an additional source of royalty income for music creators.

In the United States, performance rights organizations are appointed by The U.S. Library of Congress, specifically the Copyright Royalty Board. According to the SoundExchange website, the Copyright Royalty Board only allows SoundExchange to collect royalties from digital use. 

If you are a music creator it might be in your interest to register with SoundExchange to ensure that you are receiving all of the royalties that are due to you. 

To learn more about SoundExchange’s services:



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