Rights management organisation MCPS (Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society) is celebrating its centenary this year. For almost half of that period, the MCPS has been part of the Music Publishers Association (MPA).
The organisation’s distributions in 2023 were the highest in over 15 years at £204 million. In fact, the MCPS has distributed more than £4 billion to publishers, songwriters and composers since the turn of the century.
MCPS’ 100th birthday was celebrated earlier this year with a black tie gala event with speeches from MCPS chair, Jackie Alway OBE and MCPS/MPA chief executive, Paul Clements.
Here, Paul Clements examines MCPS’ legacy, considers the technological changes that continue to drive the business and shares his thoughts around the debate on music creators’ earnings from streaming…
MCPS has just celebrated its 100th anniversary, how important has it been for the music industry and songwriters/composers over the years?
“I think MCPS has been hugely important. Since the Copyright Act in 1911 – when the mechanical right was recognised and enabled songwriters/composers and emerging publishers to collect revenues and protect rights in respect of the reproduction of a song – it's ensured that creators are remunerated fairly whenever their music is copied. And it’s becoming increasingly important in this digital age.”
You were appointed to head up the MPA just over five years ago, how do you reflect on that period?
“I'm really proud of what we've achieved. To have increased revenues to members by 43% is a really positive outcome. We've had an increase of around 9,000 writer and songwriter/composer members over the last five years. We now have 30,000 direct writer members alongside around 700 indie publishers, and we look after their rights not just in the UK, but internationally. When I came in, it appeared we had this flatlining international revenue distribution of around four million, so we really honed in on that. We were able to have robust conversations with sister societies around the world to understand what was underpinning lower distributions than we would have expected in a lot of territories. Lo and behold, five years later, we're in and around £12 million worth of revenue for international and that will grow further.”
How significant for MCPS/PRS members is the turnaround for physical music?
“It's a contributing factor to the growth, rather than being highly significant. Whilst it is welcome, the digital revenue streams are still the most important to us and the area where we need to have the greatest amount of input and argumentation to ensure we're getting appropriate value. The focus and continued growth potential is definitely in that digital space.”
The MPA and BPI worked on an LA trade mission in September. What do you think the sync opportunities are for UK songwriters and publishers? Is it a growth area?
“It definitely has been. Sync is an interesting area. It's a one-on-one transaction: a user wants to use a piece of music and it depends how much they want to use a particular piece of music in terms of your bargaining power. As premium use, it most definitely will continue to deliver really good value and the potential is there for further growth. The increase in platform subscription video on demand (VOD) platforms provides ample opportunity.”
Paul Clements speaking at the MCPS 100th anniversary event (credit: Patrick Gunning)
What do you want to achieve for songwriter and publisher members from streaming? Would you like to see a greater share for songwriters?
“I'd like to see increased revenues. A greater share? I think that's too binary – and I've argued this for some time. If we go back to the origins of why the share is what it is today, it all sits around the UK Copyright Tribunal's determination around downloads and ringtones. Those low rates were delivered 17 years ago and that's the benchmark from which you have to fight your case. Whether through hubs such as ICE Services or, in France, SACEM, or AMRA, or direct deals by major publishers – whoever those parties are – we have all been aligned in trying to ensure that rate continues to increase and we've leveraged multi-territory licensing and deals to help assist in those endeavours.”
The MPA is part of the Creator Remuneration Working Group on streaming chaired by DCMS. How is this progressing under a new government?
“I think it's progressing quite well, but these meetings can become quite turbulent. You have strong voices and opinions focusing sometimes on perceptions, rather than necessarily knowing all of the facts or the history, and so part of that exercise is education and understanding. We are categorically all in the same game of protecting the interests of creators and, where there are sticky tensions, you sit there optimistic that things will be resolved in the passage of time.
"In relation to that creative earnings discussion, I think there is much closer alignment and understanding on the composer-songwriter side of the business and the services provided by publishers. It's important we're at the table to fully understand the argumentation, the issues and how we may be impacted by any material change in the rules of engagement between labels and artists and, indeed, their relationships with DSPs. That's where my focus lies at the moment. I want to ensure that we mitigate any risk of being caught up in any crossfire as a result of those discussions and what may ensue. But I think it's fair to say we've been actively engaged, listening and sharing thoughts and support for the songwriters-composers throughout the exercise. So I'm hopeful the process actually translates into changes – if they are necessary – and we will have a more perfect ecosystem around creators' earnings.”
In a music ecosystem that’s been transformed over the past decade, what’s the vision for MCPS in the years ahead?
“Every technological development that has included the need to copy music has provided an opportunity for MCPS, so we’ve evolved and have benefited from that evolution. What does the future look like? Well, we expect more services to make themselves available. We will undoubtedly see transformation and some evolution as a result of AI. We are seeing technological innovation consistently and constantly, so there'll be opportunities to generate revenues from that.”
I'm hopeful we will have a more perfect ecosystem around creators' earnings
Paul Clements
Are there new opportunities the MPA can help support its members with in terms of income from video games, short form video and Web 3 opportunities?
“Absolutely. We've been doing a lot of due diligence around the video game market. In the past there were sync licensing deals for music accompanying games and in those negotiations the video producers, by and large, wanted comprehensive buyouts of the rights. That's been changing and publishers – not dissimilar to the licensing they do for subscription VOD platforms – have been reserving their reproduction rights, so we have been doing a lot of work in the background to ensure that we have the correct portfolio of rights, the right to collect. We will be entering into negotiations with all the major video games platforms very shortly on the basis of that work having completed. If there is a copy of music being made in the market, we will pursue it. We will negotiate hard but fairly for the right compensation – then it's about ensuring we have the right process in place to collect the data required to get the money out accurately, fairly and transparently. That will continue to be the essence of our mission.”
Finally, what other potential additional revenue streams spring to mind?
“The International Confederation Of Music Publishers (ICMP) has been in detailed correspondence with the likes of Apple and Google, in respect of unlicensed stream-ripping apps hosted by those platforms. There is a significant revenue stream available to us going forward if we can resolve those issues and ensure those types of platforms pay what they ought to be paying for making those apps available to the public. The point being, there are a range of things out there in the market that are visible, but are not necessarily at the forefront of the minds of the creator community.
“And whether it is David Israelite at the NMPA, or myself and others, how long did we beat the drum in terms of increasing that £9.99 monthly subscription value? And that's not about the rate, that's about making sensible decisions around what a market is willing to pay for an incredibly rich volume of music on tap. A combination of things will help us to increase revenues, and the fixation on one point is always a mistake in any set of negotiations or commercial deals. You want a suite of parameters that you can negotiate around to help maximise the returns for creators. That formula has worked for decades for me and isn't going to change anytime soon.”
Interview: James Hanley
MAIN PHOTO: Louise Haywood-Schiefer
