Your distributor pays you for your recordings. If you also wrote the song, there's a second stream of money: publishing royalties. These are collected by a collecting society, not by your distributor. Wherever you live, the steps are the same: find the society that covers your country, join it and register your songs.
What this means
It helps to think of every song you release as two things, each with its own copyright:
| The recording (master) | The song (composition) |
What it is | The audio file you recorded | The melody and lyrics you wrote |
Code that identifies it | ISRC | ISWC |
Who pays you | Your distributor. On The Artist Platform, see how master royalties are paid | A collecting society (also called a PRO or CMO), and a publisher if you have one |
We pay your master royalties. Your publishing royalties are collected separately, by your collecting society.
Writer's share and publisher's share
Publishing royalties are usually split into a writer's share and a publisher's share. If you don't have a publisher, you're self-published. How the publisher's share reaches you then depends on your society's rules, so it's worth asking them.
Performance royalties
You earn these when your song is played in public or to the public: radio, TV, live venues, shops and bars, and streaming services.
Mechanical royalties
You earn these when your song is copied, for example as a download, a stream or a physical copy. Some societies collect both types. In other places, a separate organisation handles mechanicals.
When this applies
This applies if you wrote or co-wrote the lyrics or the music of a song you released. If you performed on someone else's song, its songwriters and their publishers collect these royalties.
Which society covers you
Each country has its own system. Here's how it works in the USA and Europe, and how to find your society anywhere else.
USA
Mechanical royalties: join The MLC, which collects digital mechanical royalties in the US. Self-published songwriters can join directly.
SoundExchange pays royalties for sound recordings, not songs, so it isn't where you register your songwriting.
Europe
Each country has its own society, and writers usually join the society in the country where they live. For example:
Some societies handle both performance and mechanical royalties. Others work with a partner for mechanicals. Your society's website explains which.
Anywhere else
Search the CISAC member directory by country to find the society that covers you.
Each society sets its own membership rules and any fees, so check them on its website.
What you need before you start
Your legal name and contact details.
A list of the songs you wrote, with each co-writer's name and share. Agree the shares in writing first, so everyone registers the same split.
The ISRC of each recording, so the society can match your song to the released audio. Where to find your ISRC
The publishing information you entered when you uploaded. Publishing information at upload
Two codes you'll come across:
IPI number: identifies you as a songwriter or publisher in the international system societies share. You get one when you join a society.
ISWC: identifies a song (the composition). It's allocated when the song is registered with a society.
For how these relate to the ISRC and UPC on your release, see What are UPC and ISRC codes?
Step-by-step
Check what you entered at upload. Open your release on The Artist Platform and look at the publishing details: whether the song is under copyright control or published, and the songwriter splits. Publishing information at upload
Find your society. Use the examples above, or the CISAC member directory for any other country.
Join as a writer. Apply on your society's website and follow its registration steps.
Register each song. Use exactly the same titles and writer splits as on your release. That's how the society matches your song.
Add the ISRC of each recording to the registration, so the society can link plays and streams to your song.
Keep your records. Save your IPI number and each song's ISWC with your release details. You'll need them if you switch society, sign with a publisher or register new songs.
Example (fictional): Mia and Sam co-write "Night Drive" 50/50. On the release they enter both as songwriters with 50% each. Mia lives in Germany and registers her 50% with GEMA. Sam lives in the US and registers his 50% with his PRO and The MLC. Both use the same title and the same ISRC.
What happens next
Societies pay on their own schedules, separate from our payments. Your society's website explains its payment dates and statements.
Royalties from abroad usually reach you through agreements between societies, so you don't need to join a society in every country.
Register each new song when you release it, so nothing slips through.
Troubleshooting
Problem | What to do |
My co-writer lives in another country | Each writer joins the society where they live and registers their share. Use the same title and splits on both registrations. |
I'm already signed to a publisher | Your publisher usually registers your songs. Check with them before you register anything, so no song is registered twice. |
Do I need a publisher? | Not to get started. You can register as a self-published writer. Some writers later use a publisher or a publishing administrator to collect worldwide and register songs for them. Compare the terms carefully before you sign anything. |
My song isn't being matched or paid | Check that the title, writers and splits on your society registration exactly match your release, and that the ISRC is added. Then contact your society. |
The publishing details on my release are wrong | |
Someone else has uploaded or claimed my song | |
The song is a cover | You don't register the original song as yours. See Can I distribute a cover? and track copyright information. |
I'm not sure which society covers my country | Search the CISAC member directory by country. |
Need help?
For membership and registration questions, your collecting society is the best place to ask, because they manage your songwriter account. For questions about the publishing information on your release, contact us through the chat in The Artist Platform, or see How can I contact you?, with your release title and UPC. We aim to get back to you within 1 business day.