With concerts on hold, it’s abundantly clear that most musicians can’t live off streaming income alone. With #PayPerformers we are working to fix the system and ensure that performers receive fair and equitable remuneration from streaming services via a new right granted by the new Copyright Directive from the EU.
WHAT PERFORMERS SAY
Performer, Slovenia
In light of the revenues these platforms generate, the fact that we do not receive a fair remuneration from them is tantamount to a criminal act.
Performer, Sweden
We must adapt the legislation to current technology. Since the majority of listening takes place through streaming today, it is strange that we as studio musicians do not receive any compensation at all from streaming, when we do receive compensation from radio.
Performer, Belgium
If you want artists to receive a fair and proportionate remuneration for the online distribution of their performances, a remuneration right to be collected by the management companies is the only guarantee.
Frequently asked questions
How does the current contractual system work?
How can we be sure that a CMO will act in the interests of performers?
What is the remuneration right in the Copyright Directive?
The latest Copyright Directive (EU) 2019/790 introduced a mandatory provision on fair remuneration for authors and performers. Specifically this provision obliges European Union member states to “ensure that where authors and performers license or transfer their exclusive rights for the exploitation of their works or other subject matter, they are entitled to receive appropriate and proportionate remuneration.” European Union member states now have until 7 June 2021 to introduce such remuneration into the national law.
How much do performers receive now from streaming?
What is a CMO?
A collective management organisation (CMO), sometimes also called collecting society, is an organisation mandated by rightholders (in our case performers) to agree licences with users on their behalf and collect and distribute relevant royalties.
The legal definition is:
Any organisation which is authorised by law or by way of assignment, licence or any other contractual arrangement to manage copyright or rights related to copyright on behalf of more than one rightholder, for the collective benefit of those rightholders, as its sole or main purpose, and which fulfils one or both of the following criteria:
(i) it is owned or controlled by its members
(ii) it is organised on a not-for-profit basis (CRM Directive)
Why are CMOs best placed to administer the remuneration right?
CMOs have the critical mass of rights to provide a one-stop shop for commercial users to pay for the use of the work. They are also able to administer huge amounts of works which a single performer would not be able to do. Performer CMOs have shared databases of 700,000 performers, several million recordings and annually process up to a trillion lines of data. They are best placed within the music value chain to administer high volume rights such as remuneration.
They often also fulfil cultural and societal objectives eg by supporting performers and composers in a hardship.