What’s Going On With These New Co-Publishing and Administration Deals? ( Music Op-Ed)
By: Karl Fowlkes
Tags: Entertainment, Business, Music, Songwriting, Culture

What’s Going On With These New Co-Publishing and Administration Deals? ( Music Op-Ed)

With streaming and technology changing the music business inside and out, songwriters and producers are becoming more of a commodity to distribution, publishing, and administration companies but what value is being exchanged?

Photo by dhe haivan on Unsplash

In a co-publishing deal, a songwriter and/or producer is usually assigning 50% of their publishing share over to this other entity in exchange (usually) for money. In an administration deal, a company will administer your compositions by licensing, registering, collecting royalties on behalf of your work while ensuring you get paid. The key difference is an administration deal you are retaining 100% ownership interest in your work and the goal is to collect all of your royalties on the composition side while in a co-publishing deal this company will obtain an ownership interest in your work while actively providing resources and value to your career as a songwriter and producer in addition to the administration duties.

The biggest question you should be asking yourself if you are being presented one of these deals is, “Is this company actually able to provide the services it is claiming it can provide?”

I don't present this question with any sort of malice to anyone involved in the publishing or administration space but collecting and administering rights globally for a songwriter or producer is not a small task. Furthermore, if you are offering co-publishing services you really have to be in a position to put songwriters and producers in rooms for placements and skill development and being realistic, most companies offering these services are not in a position to do so.

For these reasons alone, it is important to understand the ramifications and rights being tied up in these deals. A lot of these companies pray on songwriters and producers alike early in their careers because of the residual nature of publishing income. Most songwriters and producers although they might have some placements do not have the immediate capital to provide for an up to par lifestyle which might include family they have to support. Thus, administration company, publishing company and/or a production company faking as one of the two will offer you $10,000 and lock you up for exclusive administration or co-publishing rights.

Now, you are stuck with a company that can’t provide the support or promotional tools you need to succeed all because a paycheck was dangled at a vulnerable time. Imagine a scenario in which you have leveraged your online and offline connections to land placements without the help of your co-publishing company yet they are still entitled to half of your publisher’s share regardless of the work they put in. It is a situation that happens all the time to unassuming composers who have a need for immediate capital and have a little buzz without a knowledgeable management or legal team.

These are the types of deals that you will regret when you really start making a mark in the music industry. There are plenty of reputable companies such as TuneCore Publishing and Songtrust, who can do the administration job for you without tying up your rights for a long time. Songtrust is the biggest publishing administration company, working with over 100,000 composers and you’ll pay a one-time $100 fee per registration with the service. Songtrust then takes 15% of the royalties off the top of all the royalties they collect. TuneCore Publishing is very similar and takes 15% of the publishing royalties. Both collect international mechanical royalties as well. Considering these two are thought to be leaders in the administration space be wary of giving up more than 15% of your publisher’s share income in the form of an administrative fee for a term of more than 1–3 years. Note, this number might be a bit higher if you received an advance against future royalty earnings.

The perks of using these platforms are simple, you are getting trusted and credible music publishing administration that has the technical capabilities to collect all of your publishing nationally and across the globe. Some of the smaller administration arms might have great intentions but they might not have the same collection relationships that the bigger players have thus you could be giving away exclusive administration rights without getting all of your royalties in return. Another thing to remember is administration agreements do not provide for any creative services and focus solely on administrative duties such as properly registering your songs with collection societies around the world to collect all of your publishing royalties.

On the co-publishing side, it is crucial to remember the purpose of the deal. Because the publishing companies are making a bigger investment into you, they have a much larger incentive to successfully help you monetize your compositions. Accordingly, not only do they provide the necessary administrative tools, a publishing company should be soliciting synchronization opportunities in television, film, and advertising, as well as getting your composition out to labels and artists to be recorded and released by major artists at major record labels (seeking major label placements). A good publishing company should also be getting you into the studio with other producers, songwriters, and talented artists. Additionally, a co-pub deal should come with an advance which should be anywhere from $25,000 to near a million dollars depending on where you are in your career and what you are giving up.

With that being said, it is important to note that you really can’t have an administration deal and a co-publishing deal at the same so signing a long-term administration deal can hinder your ability to secure a lucrative co-publishing deal.

This article was not written to scare you into not signing a co-publishing deal or administration deal but emphasize the importance of understanding both. In fact, it is hard to collect all of your royalties without working with a music publishing administration company. There are a lot of companies entering into these spaces without the real capabilities of fulfilling their obligations and they prey on the prospects of composers early in there career. I have been one to say that legal budgets should be small early in your career but do not sign an administration or co-publishing deal without consulting with a music attorney. This agreement is too important to skim over and sign. Rule of thumb, if you are assigning rights to your music to someone, you should be consulting a music attorney.

These deals present the paradox scenario musicians face in the music business. They are forced to make important, short term decisions that have tremendously impactful longterm consequences.

Karl Fowlkes, Esq.

Entertainment Attorney

The Fowlkes Firm

www.elawandbusiness.com

Email: kfowlkes@elawandbusiness.com