Warner Chappell Music (WCM) and ICE have announced an expansion of their long-standing partnership.
As part of this, WCM is set to move all online processing from other European digital licensing administration partners to ICE.
Warner Chappell conducted a 10-month review, assessing both existing providers and new entrants to the market. The extended partnership with ICE will give the music publisher more autonomy in the way it licenses digital services across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and beyond.
“Since launching its multi-territory digital licensing initiative in 2006, WCM has operated with multiple partners and the move to consolidate with a single service provider reflects the strength of their partnership and the benefits ICE is able to deliver at scale for its partners,” said a statement.
Guy Moot, co-chair and CEO of Warner Chappell Music, said “At Warner Chappell, we’re always striving to ensure that our songwriters, composers and producers are paid accurately and quickly. In today’s digital music market, there are vast volumes of data to process, and we need to work with a reliable partner to ensure we’re delivering best-in-class service. ICE has always proved to be an innovative and flexible partner, so we’re delighted to expand our relationship with them.”
ICE has always proved to be an innovative and flexible partner, so we’re delighted to expand our relationship with them
Guy Moot
Daniel Lang, VP, international digital licensing & society relations, Warner Chappell Music, said: “We’ve decided to expand our partnership with ICE after conducting a comprehensive review of service providers on the market. Based both on its existing track record and its future plans, it was clear that ICE should be our partner of choice. There are huge technology demands with constantly evolving and fast-moving online uses of music, so it’s vital to have a partner that is agile, leads with industry-first solutions, and operates on a large scale. I’d also like to thank the stellar account management team at ICE, who have worked tirelessly on our business, and been crucial to the success of our partnership to date.“
Ben McEwen, chief commercial officer, ICE, said: “We’re delighted that Warner Chappell has selected ICE as its sole PEDL [pan-European digital licensing] partner, and the recognition that represents the superior service levels and innovation ICE offers. We are focused on ensuring the greatest songwriter returns on the market in everything we do.
“We continue to invest to ensure we have the most accurate data and most effective systems. Specifically in the area of online processing, we have led the way with initiatives such as multi stage invoicing to maximise claims, alongside many other innovations in matching, reporting and quality assurance. It’s a significant decision and we’re committed to continuing to deliver the best services on the market.”
PHOTO CREDIT: Jonathan Weiner
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