A lot of artists and businesses that reach out to us often ask us how Rightsify is different from collection societies and PRO’s such as ASCAP, BMI, SoundExchange, PRS, PPL, APRA, GEMA or other collection societies. 

The main difference with how we work at Rightsify is we operate entirely via direct licensing. Instead of getting music via the traditional method of collection societies, we work directly with artists and the actual owners of music and enable them to monetize their music in businesses anywhere in the world. From hotels in the US to cafes in Australia and restaurants in India, Rightsify is unique in that we can help artists monetize their music on a global scale, all from one place.

Collection Societies:

Collection Societies, also known as PRO’s are national organizations that are set up to collect royalties. They are often founded and managed by a board of directors which are mostly comprised of music publishers, record labels or major artists and songwriters in that country.

As we have noted in an earlier article, collection societies have traditionally paid artists and rights holders for music played in businesses using outdated models based on factors such as airplay data. So if you are an artist who’s music is played in businesses all across the globe but your music isn’t played on the radio, you most likely aren’t earning anything from when your music is played in businesses. While collection societies often do represent a majority of commercially released music, they by no means have the rights to license or a mandate on all music. This is a common misconception as business owners are often under the impression that a license from a collection society is mandatory for them to play any music in their business. So while collection societies do represent a majority of commercially released music, artists that are not members of these societies (of which there are many) are free to license their music to businesses without any involvement from collection societies, which is where Rightsify and direct licensing come in. 

Rightsify:

At Rightsify, we’ve introduced an entirely digital way to operate for licensing music in businesses. From offering businesses an annual music license that can be purchased in just a few clicks to helping artists monetize their music in businesses all over the world. Every license we issue is done electronically and all of the usage is logged in our system, meaning that we are able to collect accurate data on which music is being played, thus our members get paid every time their music is played. 

In addition to providing an efficient system for businesses to license music, we’re also available globally, which helps both businesses and artists. All of the artists and rights holders we work with control 100% of the rights to their music which enables us to provide our service everywhere. We also pay our members every month, regardless of the country a license was issued in which greatly reduces traditional industry standards of rights holders waiting for quarterly or bi-annual reporting to come in from certain countries.

So to recap, the ways Rightsify is different are:

– Monthly payments. We pay our members every month instead of the traditional quarterly or bi-annual reporting.

– Available globally. We help rights holders monetize their music globally, not just one country.

– Transparent. We provide deep data and insight into every time a song is played, such as the country, business type and amount earned. 

Have any questions or looking to become a member? You can contact us or apply here.