Who collects music royalties, and which do you need?
One song earns several kinds of royalty and no single organization collects them all. A performing rights organization collects for the song being played, a mechanical collector handles the reproduction side, and a neighboring rights body collects for the recording. Registering with one does not register you with the others.
| Organization | Region | Role | What it covers | Cost to join |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PRS for Music | UK | Collects | Performance royalties for the song: radio, TV, live, streaming, public spaces. | One-off joining fee, reduced if you are under 25 |
| MCPS | UK | Collects | Mechanical royalties for the song: the reproduction side of streams, downloads and physical. | Separate one-off joining fee, on top of PRS |
| PPL | UK | Collects | Neighboring rights for the recording: radio, TV and public performance. Not on-demand streaming. | Free |
| ASCAP | US | Collects | Performance royalties for the song. | Free for writers at present, which ASCAP describes as temporary |
| BMI | US | Collects | Performance royalties for the song. | Free for writers |
| The MLC | US | Collects | US digital audio mechanicals from streams and downloads. | Free |
| SoundExchange | US | Collects | Digital performance for the recording: satellite and internet radio, cable music channels. Not on-demand streaming, not AM/FM. | Free |
| CISAC members directory | International | Directory | Find the songwriter society for your country. | Varies by society |
| SCAPR members directory | International | Directory | Find the performer society for your country. | Varies by society |
Registering with one does not register you with the others. The two directories do not collect anything themselves; they are lists of the societies that do, for countries this table does not cover.
Work it out for your own release
Answer a few questions and see which royalty registrations you may be missing, what each one collects, and what it costs to join. Most of them are free.
Open Royalty Checklist