AKM? AUME? LSG? A Path Through the Jungle of Collecting Societies
Authors: Rainer Praschak (mica), Georg Vlaschits (ÖMR)
You are a composer and have composed a piece of music or written the lyrics? Naturally, you’re pleased when an orchestra, radio station, or band performs your work. But how can you make money from it? This is where the collecting societies come into play! Simply put, there are different collecting societies for various professions, such as composers, lyricists, musicians, music producers, etc.
Becoming a Member
As a composer or even as a lyricist of musical works, you should become a member of the AKM (Authors, Composers, and Music Publishers) and AUME (Austro Mechana). Simply put, anyone who publicly performs or otherwise publicly uses a work by a member (composer/lyricist) of a collecting society must pay a fee to the responsible collecting society. This society then distributes the royalties collected according to a set formula.
Earning Royalties
So what happens if a label wants to duplicate and release your composition?
In this case, Austro Mechana is responsible. The collecting societies have reciprocal agreements, so Austrian collecting societies can license almost the entire global repertoire in Austria, and conversely, the Austrian repertoire can be licensed worldwide, with a few exceptions. This means, for example, that if a German radio station plays a piece of yours, there will be a money flow between GEMA, the sister society in Germany, and AKM/AUME in Austria. AKM and AUME will then pay out the corresponding royalties to you.
As a performer, you also have the right to compensation when recordings on which you are featured are broadcast or publicly played. This mainly concerns radio and television. For this purpose, the responsible collecting society LSG (Performance Rights Management GmbH) records the broadcast occurrences of major broadcasters. If music is played from sound recordings in venues, those venues must pay for it.
In the live performance sector, performers usually receive their fee directly from the organizer. Extra income from royalties is earned if the concert is recorded and broadcast live on the radio. The LSG can only pay out if the producer has independently registered the recording and you as the musician with the LSG. Therefore, you should always ensure that recordings are properly registered. Just ask the producer!
Copyright
Good to know: Copyright protects all works for 70 years after the death of the last living author.
Self-Employment
On the mica website under Practical Knowledge, you can find useful information and tips on collecting societies!