APRA AMCOS posts record $300m royalty collections

The copyright collecting society posted a record $300 million for music royalty collections, helped by a 26% rise in royalties from overseas use of music from Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) to $34 million. 

Domestic performing right revenue was up to $195 million, which marked a 5.6% rise, with over 128,000 businesses licensed across ANZ. Reproduction right revenue grew 2% to $68 million while group revenue (excluding management fees) was up 6.4% to $300.84 million. 

APRA AMCOS’ annual Year in Review reported that the UK and the US remain the biggest consumers of ANZ music, generating $2 out of every $5 of total overseas royalties for APRA’s 85,987 members and AMCOS’ 15, 148 members in the 2014/2015 financial year.  

The Americans use of ANZ music was through radio and the Brits via TV. “Sia Furler, Five Seconds of Summer, Lorde and Vance Joy have enjoyed unprecedented success in these markets.” The association reported AC/DC and Gotye were also major royalty-generators. 

Foreign royalties were becoming an important source of revenue. Even Denmark, with a population of just 6 million, generated over $2 million. 

APRA AMCOS’ Sydney based CEO Brett Cottle, AM, called the 26% rise in foreign royalties to $34 million “an outstanding achievement and a direct reflection of the rapid internationalisation of our business. To our members, Nashville is becoming as important as Melbourne, London is becoming as important as Auckland.” 

APRA AMCOS has spent a huge amount in technology to manage the increasing amount of foreign data and expand its services across the globe. 

Piracy remains a massive problem, Cottle emphasised, praising the Australian Government for introducing access blocking to overseas pirate sites.  But new income was generated from the digital sector.  

“Transformation of the digital market from downloads to subscription-streaming services was telling. Twelve months ago, nearly half of digital licensing revenue came from downloads. This financial year, this has dropped to one-third and in the FY16 this is likely to be one-quarter of revenue. Streaming service revenue has well and truly taken over. 

“Video on demand has over the past year become a major factor in the film and TV market in Australia and New Zealand, and will undoubtedly be an increasingly important source of growth in music performing royalties in the years ahead.” 

In other key figures: 

* For the first time ever, APRA stand-alone net distributable revenue surpassed $200 million (which has doubled over the past decade). 

* Domestic performing right revenue rose 5.6% to $195 million. 

* Reproduction right revenue was up 2% to $68 million. 

* Total performing right revenue generated in NZ Increased to NZD $31.1 million, which marked an astounding growth of 28.5%. It accounted for more than half of total domestic growth during the year. Overall revenue from public performance licensing more than doubling to NZ$12 million, and APRA members’ share of that figure grew by over 20%. 

* There was an increase in group net distributable revenue of 6.9% to $262.7 million. 

*Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander APRA AMCOS membership grew by 8.7% to 1148. 

* AMCOS revenue grew by 2%. This is despite the continuing decline in traditional sources of mechanical royalty income – it estimates total annual mechanical royalty revenue from sales of physical product in ANZ as $16.5 million compared with $40 million a decade ago. 

*  The number of musical works paid in distributions increased from 917,687 to 1,011,262. 

* 7,400 APRA AMCOS members attended 159 APRA AMCOS educational seminars.