music and songs are the artist's assets. Like every asset, it needs to be registered, monetized, and make sure you have legal protection. Here's a short article that will help you understand how to register your work.
Types of Copyright
There are really 2 kinds of copyright in every recording:
1. The musical work: Musical works are basically the melody and lyrics. usually created by the songwriter or author, who holds the copyright to the music job. It can be one person who wrote the music and lyrics by himself or many writers who participated in the writing of the song and they all registered as the song writers. The musical work can also be written on sheet music; in some cases, it's a legal protection. The copyright owner is the song writer and/or the lyricist.
2. The sound recording: This refers to the audio recording of the musical piece, which includes the instruments and the vocal singing. This is also called the mechanical recording, or the master rights. The sound recordings and the musical work can be owned by the same person or a different entity. The copyright owner can be the artist or a record label. Where it comes to working with record labels, based on your record deal, in most cases they usually own the mechanical rights; if it's an independent, unsigned artist, he or she is usually the mechanical right holder. The term "mechanical rights" has its roots in the early days of the music industry.
It refers to the era when songs were reproduced through physical, mechanical means like piano rolls and vinyl records. Despite the shift to digital formats in modern times, we still use this terminology. While it might seem outdated or confusing in today's digital landscape, the core concept of "reproduction" remains the same, whether the music is on a physical record or a digital file. In both cases, there isn't a reason to register unpublished works.
These 2 copyrights are registered independently, and in some cases, they are registered with different organizations. The U.S. government plays a key role in determining mechanical royalty rates. These rates are not set arbitrarily by the music industry but are instead established through official regulations. Specifically, they are defined and updated through various amendments to the U.S. Copyright Act. This means that the rates are subject to legal oversight and can change as copyright laws are revised over time.In the case of a cover song, where the artist does not own the music copyrights, artist can register only his/her own recording. In most cases, written agreement or consent from the original artist is not required, and you can cover a song, 24 hours after it was published.
Registering the musical work
Every country has a different performance rights organization to register the musical work, or, in short, PRO's. Here's a short list of the different organizations:
United States
ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers)
BMI (Broadcast Music, Inc.)
SESAC (Society of European Stage Authors and Composers)
United Kingdom
PRS for Music (Performing Right Society)
Canada
SOCAN (Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada
Australia
APRA AMCOS (Australasian Performing Right Association and Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society)
France
SACEM (Société des Auteurs, Compositeurs et Éditeurs de Musique)
Germany
GEMA (Gesellschaft für musikalische Aufführungs- und mechanische Vervielfältigungsrechte)
Japan
JASRAC (Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers)
Brazil
ECAD (Escritório Central de Arrecadação e Distribuição)
Spain
SGAE (Sociedad General de Autores y Editores)
To register your rights, you will need to become a member of the organization in your country, or in a country you wish to collect royalties from. Every organization has a different terms and member fee for registration. Once you are registered, you can register each musical work and also receive royalties from the use of your music. whether it's broadcast or licensing. Royalty payments are delivered quarterly, and in most cases, the pro's websites are self-service, and copyright registration is done by the artist. The copyright registration process is quite simple and requires the writer's information, song titles, and shares to be split. In some Pro's, you can music copyright multiple songs.
Registering Mechanical Rights
Mechanical rights refer to the permissions to make copies and share a music piece like CDs or digital downloads. Are usually overseen by performing rights organizations (PROs) as well as mechanical rights agencies. To register a sound recordings, you have to be a member of the mechanical rights organization. Here's a list of major mechanical rights organizations where you can register sound recordings:
In the United States, the major entity in charge of taking care of licenses for legal rights under the copyright law is the Harry Fox Company (called HFA). HFA functions carefully with the National Music Publishers' Organization (NMPA), functioning as a licensing firm for mechanical legal rights in the songs sector under the copyright legislation.
United States copyright office:
The Harry Fox Agency (HFA)
Music Reports, Inc. (MRI)
United Kingdom
Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society (MCPS)—part of PRS for Music
Canada
Canadian Musical Reproduction Rights Agency (CMRRA)
Germany
GEMA (Gesellschaft für musikalische Aufführungs- und mechanische Vervielfältigungsrechte)
France
SACEM (Société des Auteurs, Compositeurs et Éditeurs de Musique)
Japan
JASRAC (Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers)
Australia and New Zealand
AMCOS (Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society) operates in conjunction with APRA
Brazil
ADDAF (Associação Defensora de Direitos Autorais Fonomecânicos)
How do you get paid?
Royalties are typically paid when your music is used commercially for purposes like licensing or streaming and is broadcasted to the audience by Performing Rights Organizations (PROs) who manage the collection and distribution of royalties, to songwriters and composers.
Artists typically register their music with a Performance Rights Organization (PRO) such as ASCAP or BMI, in the United States.
PROs provide licenses to venues and streaming services, among others, for the performance of music.
Performance tracking: PROs use various methods to track when and where songs are played, including:
Radio and TV airplay monitoring
Live performance reports from venues
Streaming data from digital services
Royalty calculation: Based on the tracking data from the public record, PROs calculate royalties for each song. The exact formulas can be complex and vary by PRO.
Distribution: PROs distribute royalties to their members, typically on a quarterly basis. The amount an artist receives depends on factors like:
How often their songs were played
Where they were played (e.g., prime-time TV pays more than late-night radio)
The specific license fees collected for those performances
Statements: Artists receive detailed statements showing where their music was played and how much they earned.
Mechanical Royalties in the Streaming Era
On-demand or interactive streaming services have introduced a unique approach to royalty payments. Unlike traditional formats, these services typically handle both the licensing and payment processes directly. When it comes to compensating songwriters and music publishers, they pay two distinct types of royalties: public performance and mechanical.
The payment structure for streaming is quite different from physical sales. Instead of a set amount per unit sold, streaming royalties are calculated based on the number of plays. The rates are quite small on a per-stream basis. While the exact calculations can vary depending on the method used, a rough estimate for mechanical royalties from streaming lands at approximately 4 cents for every 100 on-demand streams.
This system reflects the shift in music consumption patterns and how the industry has adapted its royalty structures to accommodate the streaming model.
If you're still confused, check out "Charles Cleyn" advice video, the video was made in 2020, but the methods are the same today.
Read more about how much Spotify pays per stream
Keywords: copyright office, copyright infringement, tangible form, legal action, legal protection,