Kevin Cornell 2016 was a generally…interesting…year around the world. We saw a lot of changes, but one thing that remained constant was the talented artists within the TuneCore community’s ability to shine! We couldn’t be more proud of 2016’s movers and shakers who continue to crush it in the world of independent music — proving you don’t need to be on a major label (or in some cases a label at all) to build an audience, get heard and get paid what they’re truly owed. So join us as we take a look at some of the standouts from around the industry over the past year! GRAMMY Time! TuneCore artists, songwriters and arrangers are making some serious waves in both the GRAMMY and Latin GRAMMY nomination pools this year.

Check out some of the awesome noms received by independent artists from the TuneCore community and join us in congratulating them: Best Urban Contemporary Album – Coloring Book by Chance the Rapper – We Are KING by KING – The Sun’s Tirade by Isiah Rashad (Hip Hop) – Honor Killed the Samuri by Ka (Hip Hop) SXSW, TuneCore Presents, A3C, Brooklyn Hip Hop Fest, Mondo.NYC 2016 saw a continued effort to connect with artists on the ground at some of America’s most exciting music summits and conferences, including one curated by TuneCore: Deap Vally performing at TuneCore’s 2016 Austin Takeover Director of Video Camille Moussard breaking down how to earn revenue on YouTube during “TuneCore Presents” in conjunction with Austin Music Foundation TuneCore holding it down in the Tidal Tent during the 2016 Brooklyn Hip Hop Festival Sr.

Director of Entertainment Relations Chris Mooney (far right) and Director of Marketing Mitch Wenger (far left) presenting/moderating “Under The Hood: Get Your Music Heard and Get Paid for Doing It” at Mondo.NYC 2016 Reeperbahn, The Great Escape, Indie Week, MusikMesse, MAMA Not only did TuneCore launch new websites in Australia, Germany, France and Italy, we also made our presence known at some of the most prominent music industry events in Canada and across Europe: TuneCore UK Brand Manager Sam Taylor on stage during DIY Day at Great Escape 2016 International VP Marie-Anne Roberts, CEO Scott Ackerman, and Germany Brand Manager Stine Muehle at Reeperbahn 2016 TuneCore’s Meghna Rajaram and Brittany Holloway at Indie Week 2016 Giving Back in 2016 2016 was year for TuneCore to get involved with some amazing music-related non-profit organizations and serve as the distribution platform for some very thoughtful charity-based releases: Songs Of Love Foundation – Based in Queens, the Songs of Love Foundation matches independent songwriters with children and teens in difficult medical, physical and emotional situations, brightening their

 world with personalized songs about them.

TuneCore has partnered with S.O.L. to become their official digital distributor. Read more about Songs of Love here. Broadway For Orlando – After the tragic shooting that took place in the Pulse nightclub of Orlando, Broadway Records headed up a charitable initiative which organized the recording of Burt Bacharach’s classic “What The World Needs Now” sung by an all-star Broadway cast. 100% of the proceeds from this recording went to the GLBT Community Center of Central Florida. TuneCore was honored to be tapped as a distribution partner. Find Broadway For Orlando on iTunes here. Broadway Kids Against Bullying – Similar to the above initiative, Broadway Records coordinated voices from some of the finest young talent on Broadway to perform and release “I Have a Voice”, an effort to stand-up against bullying. All profits from the release go to NoBully.org, and you can find it on iTunes here .

The “Play It Forward” Campaign – In the wake of the Paris terrorist attacks of December in 2015, the band in the middle of it all, Eagles of Death Metal, began an on-going initiative that invited artists from Kings of Leon to Jimmy Eat World to cover their song “I Love You All The Time”, with 100% of the revenue generated going to co-founder Joshua Homme’s nonprofit “Sweet Stuff”. Read more about the Play It Forward campaign here . Notes For Notes – Notes for Notes is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that designs, equips, and staffs after-school recording studios inside Boys & Girls Clubs offering youth the opportunity to explore, create, and record music for free. TuneCore has partnered up with the organization to offer education around distribution, publishing and general music industry tips for young, aspiring artists. So cheers to the end of 2016! We’ll be resting up and getting ready for an exciting 2017 and we hope you join us. Happy New Year! Kevin Cornell TuneCore is excited to announce that we’ve officially partnered with Internet Radio powerhouse Pandora!

Pandora became a household name for music lovers in the United States, New Zealand and Australia as a revolutionary source for music discovery and carefully curated radio stations based on the artists its users love. Now, they’ve launched their brand new Pandora Plus platform – a non-interactive subscription service (meaning Pandora selects the music being played next) free of ads that introduces features like replays, skipping more tracks, and offline station access. Independent artists of all stripes have been asking TuneCore about access to Pandora for years, and now we’re thrilled to be able to offer an avenue of submission for music makers hoping to reach the Internet Radio service’s 78+ million users. It’s important to note that while TuneCore Artists will now have the opportunity to submit as many releases as they’d like to Pandora, the service is still ultimately curated by Pandora, and we can therefore not guarantee that delivered content will go live on Pandora or Pandora Plus. Read more about delivery to Pandora here . How do I get my music delivered to Pandora if I’m a first-time TuneCore Artist? It’s simple – when getting ready to distribute your first release , make sure to ‘opt-in’ to Pandora when selecting which stores and platforms you would like your music delivered to.

I’ve already distributed a release(s) via TuneCore – how can I deliver it/them to Pandora? To send in your previously TuneCore-distributed releases to Pandora for consideration, simply log in to your TuneCore account and visit the TuneCore Cart. Your releases have already been placed in the cart for “Pandora Store-Add”, all you need to do is complete the checkout process (if you have Store Automator , there is no action needed)! Got more questions? Learn more about Pandora Plus or get in touch with our world class Artist Support team . Kevin Cornell Streaming Is On The Rise Across All International Markets BROOKLYN, NEW YORK – December 13, 2016 – TuneCore, the leading digital music distribution and publishing administration service provider, caps off a strong year of sustained and international growth with the announcement today of TuneCore Italy – the service provider’s fourth launch in the European market and sixth international expansion. Since the company’s inception in 2006, TuneCore artists worldwide have earned more than $783 million collectively from over 43.8 billion downloads and streams.

As the only major global distribution service with a dedicated Italian offering, Tunecore.it features local content in the native language that caters to the Italian independent artist community. As part of its continued commitment to support independent artists around the world, in 2016 TuneCore launched three international sites including TuneCore Germany (April 2016), TuneCore France (October 2016) and now, TuneCore Italy (December 2016). TuneCore’s global expansion efforts have led to an overall increase in its year-to-date international customer base. Further, TuneCore’s local offerings in international markets have seen significant increases in customer growth, specifically in the France and Germany markets. TuneCore also identified Hip Hop and R&B/Soul as two of the fastest growing genres in each of its key international markets (U.S., Canada, UK, Australia, Germany and France). Additionally, TuneCore has seen the growing popularity of streaming reflected across its international markets, with a 340 percent year-over-year increase in streaming in Canada, as well as year-over-year increases in Australia (92 percent), Germany (71 percent) and the UK (67 percent).

Streaming also continues to grow in the U.S., with a 65 percent year-over-year increase. “As we head into 2017, global expansion is pivotal in furthering our mission to bring more music to more people worldwide, while continuing to establish TuneCore as a leader in the international digital music distribution market,” says Scott Ackerman, CEO at TuneCore. “Our global expansion into Italy – a market that previously lacked a dedicated local offering from a global distributor – is a natural fit as we continue to support our artists by giving them the local resources and tools they need to be successful.” In addition to keeping 100 percent of their revenues, and retaining complete creative control and ownership of their music, Italian customers will have access to TuneCore’s robust portfolio of artist services, as well as local Italian partners such as Music Raiser and MusicOFF, and world-class customer service. TuneCore Italy artists can also opt to include their music in storefronts controlled by TuneCore’s extensive network of more than 150 digital partners across the globe, including iTunes, Spotify, Apple Music, Google Play and Amazon Music. In addition, TuneCore Italy customers will be able to take advantage of the company’s strategic partnership with Believe Digital.

With an already existing office in Italy with more than 30 employees, Believe Digital will offer TuneCore Italy customers access to a variety of advanced artist services, such as international campaign management, trade and online digital marketing, video management and distribution, physical distribution and more. With its expansion into Italy, TuneCore now offers local musicians in seven countries outside of the U.S. – UK, Australia, Canada, Japan, Germany, France, and Italy – the opportunity to collect revenue from streaming services, digital download stores, songwriter royalties, and sync licensing opportunities, all in their local currency. ### About TuneCore TuneCore brings more music to more people, while helping musicians and songwriters increase money-earning opportunities and take charge of their own careers. The company has one of the highest artist revenue-generating music catalogs in the world, earning TuneCore Artists $783 million from over 43.8 billion downloads and streams since inception. TuneCore Music Distribution services help artists, labels and managers sell their music through iTunes, Apple Music, Spotify, Amazon Music, Google Play and other major download and streaming sites while retaining 100 percent of their sales revenue and rights for a low annual flat fee.

TuneCore Music Publishing Administration assists songwriters by administering their compositions through licensing, registration, world-wide royalty collections, and placement opportunities in film, TV, commercials, video games and more. The TuneCore Artist Services portal offers a suite of tools and services that enable artists to promote their craft, connect with fans, and get their music heard. TuneCore, part of Believe Digital Services, operates as an independent company and is headquartered in Brooklyn, NY with offices in Burbank, CA, Nashville, TN and Austin, TX, and global expansions in the UK, Australia, Japan, Canada, Germany and France. For additional information about TuneCore, please visit or . Kevin Cornell By Hugh McIntyre The end of 2016 is close enough to touch, but we’re not there quite yet. November was a big month for music, if not the business, and a number of the most popular movers and shakers in the game made waves with new projects, changed history, and tried to push the boundaries of where their art had been before.

The Chainsmokers and Halsey are now immortalized in charting history thanks to their shockingly-popular hit “Closer;” With a new string of mixtapes on the way, it is starting to seem as if Hamilton will never go away—not that you’d want it to; Beyoncé, the country music star? If she has her way, she’ll be on top of every genre. The Chainsmokers now have the fourth longest-running number one hit of all time After what felt like forever, The Chainsmokers finally slipped a single spot on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart, vacating the number one spot the EDM duo had owned for months. The pairing’s hit song “Closer,” which features the vocals of up-and-coming pop singer Halsey, ruled the all-encompassing singles tally for an incredible 12 consecutive weeks , which puts the track into the history books alongside some of the greatest tunes that have ever been released.

The surprising reign enjoyed by The Chainsmokers and Halsey goes to show that despite reports, EDM is far from dead, and in fact in many ways, it has become the new “pop.” For months on end, “Closer” was the most-played song on the radio, the most streamed track, and the best-selling song in the country, proving that the masses have accepted this relatively new genre just as they have so many others in the past. As production software becomes cheaper and easier to use, there are more remixers and dance producers than ever before, but clearly there is a market for this kind of material, and it is now entering a new era where it can compete with the biggest of all time. Lin-Manuel Miranda is extending the Hamilton brand into a series of mixtapes Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda is clearly a proponent of the idea that if something is working, keep running with it until people are tired of it. The man behind the hottest show to come to Broadway in years began rolling out the first tracks from the Hamilton mixtape that he revealed as in the works earlier this year, and already people are freaking out.

The album-length project doesn’t yet have a release date, though it’s due at some point before the end of the year, but it already looks like it will be one of the biggest, and certainly the most highly-anticipated, pieces of music of all of 2016. Miranda caused a frenzy online when he tweeted a photo featuring the tracklist for the Hamilton mixtape, complete with what artists had taken up vocal duties on all of the reworked songs. The group of names that the theatrical prodigy was able to put together is incredible, and it reads more like the lineup of which artists are set to perform at the Grammys or who has been hired to headline Coachella than a mixtape. Kelly Clarkson, Sia, Chance The Rapper, The Roots, Usher, Alicia Keys, and over a dozen others have all lent their talents to the CD, which is now even more hotly tipped than ever before (if that’s at all possible). Around the same time, the playwright also revealed that this upcoming album was just the first mixtape, and that he was planning on turning Hamilton into not one, but a series of mixtapes .

The actual cast recording of the show, which has already been certified double platinum and is still hanging on in the top ten on the Billboard 200, features 46 tracks, so it’s not difficult to understand how Miranda could continue to roll out mixtape after mixtape, keeping the brand fresh and alive for years to come. Hamilton was creative enough as it is, but Miranda’s plan to morph it into mixtapes is a fantastic idea, not just in a creative sense, but when it comes to business as well. He’s turned one successful project into several, which is something that other musicians should take to heart. If audiences love a song or an album, why not keep serving it to them in different ways to see how far it can stretch? Beyoncé runs the (country) world—or at least she wants to Beyoncé, or as many know her, Queen Bey, has already conquered the worlds of R&B and pop, but someone as ambitious as she is always looking for new challenges and new ways to come out on top. When the singer launched her second surprise visual album earlier this year, fans were excited and shocked to hear a bit of twang on the new CD.

Lemonade featured a country song entitled “Daddy Lessons,” which saw Bey going in a new direction with her music. Fans and critics applauded the effort, and it has been noted as a standout track from the album alongside singles like “Formation” and “Sorry.” Now, with Lemonade slowly working its way down the charts, Beyoncé has launched a full-scale promotional campaign to make her mark in the country music world with “Daddy Lessons,” but surprisingly, it isn’t going as smoothly as the star is used to. Just days before the CMAs (Country Music Association Awards), it was announced that Bey would join forces with the Dixie Chicks to perform “Lessons,” which excited both country fans and the Beyhive. The aftermath of her stellar showing was mixed, with many complementing the excellent performance, while others commented that she seemed out of place at the CMAs, which are focused solely on country. Not long after her time on stage, a live version of “Lessons” made its way onto Spotify , becoming the first track off of Lemonade to be made available to the public outside of either Tidal or iTunes.

Up until late November, the only way the public could hear the superstar’s new collection was to buy it in full or sign up for Tidal, a streaming service co-owned by Bey, her husband Jay Z, and a few dozen other musicians. Her acquiescence shows that while she might be one of the biggest stars in the world, even Beyoncé needs to be on Spotify, where millions around the world access their music. Reinventing yourself as an artist is difficult, especially when it comes to switching genres, though it’s not impossible. Bey was smart enough to go country in her own way, and not simply copy what the chart-toppers in the genre do. “Daddy Lessons” may have more guitar than the world is used to hearing from her, but she was able to discover what she could bring to the table that other superstars weren’t, which is a Louisiana vibe and a charisma and voice no other artist can match. Transitioning from one style to another is possible, but it needs to be done intelligently and correctly if it’s to work out. Kevin Cornell Last week, TuneCore partnered with the Austin Music Foundation to offer an evening of education, networking, industry discussion, and a couple of amazing live performances.

The goal of of our multi-functional event, dubbed ‘TuneCore Presents’, was to help artists and partners better understand TuneCore’s services and their music’s revenue sources. The night kicked off with a VIP reception for some of our TuneCore Artists and music industry colleagues based in Austin. It was a blast to connect with members of the scene on both fronts, especially as our Austin office has still been open just over a year. After a few cocktails, guests filtered in and we kicked off some presentations! First up was TuneCore CEO Scott Ackerman, who opened up the evening discussing the value of digital distribution and making music available in stores and on streaming platforms in territories all over the world. Diving into the world of songwriter royalties and licensing next was TuneCore’s VP of Music Publishing Administration Gillian Morris. Gillian is an experienced expert in often confusing arena of publishing, making herself available to Austin-based TuneCore Artists who seek to learn more about how we administer and collect royalties on their behalf. She also dove into the much talked about value of sync placements and how TuneCore is helping to get independent artists of all genres placed in TV, film, ads, video games and more.

The last speaker of the evening was TuneCore’s Director of Video Camille Moussard. Our foremost expert when it comes to how artists can utilize YouTube as a revenue stream, Camille broke it all down for artists and industry folks in the crowd. She covered the ins and outs of collecting royalties from sound recordings on YouTube and how artists could very well be leaving dough on the table. Each discussion wrapped with Q&A sessions, allowing for some very thoughtful and thorough questions from our engaged audience. Once everything was wrapped up, it was time for the artists to take the stage! The crowd was treated to a delightful set of synthy soul tunes from Austin trio Keeper. Closing out the night was the ever-entertaining three-piece Migrant Kids, who naturally invited our CEO Scott (who they endearingly nicknamed ‘Papa TuneCore’) to join them on lead vocals during their cover of Prince’s “Purple Rain”. Thanks to all those TuneCore Artists, interested music-makers, and industry pals who showed up to a wonderfully successful event! We’re looking forward to more showcases like this in the coming year, so stay tuned. For now, enjoy our gallery of photos below – maybe you’ll see yourself!

Photos by Ashley Bradley & Megan Watcki Director of Video Camille Moussard breaking down how to earn revenue on YouTube during “TuneCore Presents” in conjunction with Austin Music Foundation Music Industry on High Alert as Tunecore Gets Hacked Music Industry on High Alert as Tunecore Gets Hacked Updated: Monday, 12/7 9:00 am PT: Tunecore offers an official statement on the hack (updated below). Security breaches are sadly becoming routine these days, though hacks are suddenly spiking in the music industry. On Friday, Tunecore became the latest to suffer a breach, though the exact nature of the damage remains uncertain. Initial correspondence from CEO Scott Ackerman started late Friday night and into Saturday morning, with an official statement now released to Digital Music News: A recent data breach may have resulted in unauthorized access to some of our customers’ personal data and account information. TuneCore takes data security very seriously, especially the security of our customers’ personal information. TuneCore already had in place a number of security measures, including: manual review of all requests for payment, restricting access to our main website and protecting account passwords.

We are actively working with law enforcement to investigate this unlawful act, and we have retained a leading cybersecurity firm to help prevent this from happening again. We are also working to further enhance our network and software security, and will continue to do so in the weeks and months ahead. TuneCore greatly values our customers and respects the privacy of their information, any customers with additional questions can refer to this FAQ page . The actual fallout could take weeks or months to understand, though Tunecore appears to be playing tight defense. Among the potentially stolen data are customer names, addresses, email addresses, account numbers, and passwords, according to Ackerman, though no mention of credit card numbers has been made. Unfortunately, this damage can easily ripple beyond Tunecore, with hackers using passwords to break into other accounts that employ the same login credentials. In response, Tunecore has already invalidated passwords, and other measures are certainly being taken. Thankfully, Tunecore is giving its users the bad news in a straightforward fashion, a smart hedge against potentially more serious issues ahead. “It is possible for a determined hacker with sufficient time, using advanced computing tools, to recover those passwords,”Ackerman noted.

The unfortunate breach follows cracks at Spotify, Patreon, and Songkick in recent months, among others. In the case of Songkick, an overwhelming level of demand for Adele tickets led to some strange mishaps, including the display of other fans’ ticketing purchases. “At no time was anyone able to access another person’s password, nor their payment or credit card details (which are not retained by Songkick),” the company told the BBC . In the other cases, the damage seems to be contained, though none of that is especially reassuring to affected users. Cover image by Leo Grübler, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC by 2.0). Share it! 6 Steps To Making Your Band Press Friendly – TuneCore [Editor’s Note: This blog was written by Janelle Rogers, the founder of Green Light Go Publicity, a music PR firm which helps up-and-coming musicians reach their audience.] Have you ever tried to reach out to media only to find the sound of a deep and resounding silence on the other end? Maybe you… tunecore.com Soulja Boy TuneCore Artist since 2009 Grow & Manage Your Career Your music career is more than just downloads and streams.

TuneCore’s tools and services can help you: Improve the sound quality of your tracks Engage listeners across social media Get your music reviewed by fans We offer a range of artist tools & services to help support you no matter where you are in your career. Learn More Collect Songwriting Royalties & License Your Music The songs you write generate over a dozen royalties when they’re sold, streamed, or performed live. You can’t get these royalties yourself without a publishing administrator. TuneCore Music Publishing Administration not only collects these royalties for you, but also: Helps you get your music placed in film, TV, commercials & more Works with performing rights organizations (PROs) to collect more royalties Registers your music worldwide in 60+ countries And you keep 100% of your music rights. Ditto Music Promotion | Sell Music Online | Music Distribution Sign up and start uploading music in less than 5 minutes Introducing Ditto Music We're an online digital music distributor with a proven record of getting unsigned artists into the UK Top 40, and the world's biggest artists into the world's digital stores. We're musicians ourselves: we understand, care and have won awards for our customer service.

We give you everything a record label can offer and value no one can match. Wherever the next innovation in online music distribution is, we'll find it and make it easier for you to get your music out there, heard and sold. We're Ditto. And the world is listening. Sign Up Today Spinnup | Get distributed, get discovered! GET STARTED 250,000,000 Thats the number of times Vigiland have been streamed on Spotify. They were discovered on Spinnup before signing to Universal Music, and have since gone 15x Platinum in Sweden! COULD YOU BE NEXT? Get Your Music Heard Spinnup’s network of scouts are constantly looking for the best undiscovered artists to work with and introduce to Universal Music’s A&R team GET STARTED You’re In Control You’ll keep 100% of your royalties, all rights to your music and we’ll give you a detailed breakdown of your data including sales and social stats as they grow GET STARTED The new way into the music industry "In the new world of music distribution it’s hard to find the jewels.

With Spinnup we can track, embrace and sign what we believe can cut through the noise” – Per Sundin, MD of Universal Music, Nordic Region. TuneCore Reports $42 Million Collected, Dramatic Jump in YouTube Revenue | Billboard TuneCore Reports $42 Million Collected, Dramatic Jump in YouTube Revenue Getty Images As the global music industry edges closer and closer to a digital-dominated revenue reality, digital distributor Tunecore is growing right along with it. In the first quarter of 2016, TuneCore paid out $42 million to its artists, a 16 percent increase year-over-year from the first quarter of 2015 and higher than the 10.2 percent increase in digital revenue that the IFPI recorded in its annual Global Report this past April . The breakdown of the numbers parallels the explosion in streaming and the potential of international markets that led to the global music industry's first year of revenue growth in over a decade.

Accordingly, increases from streaming services like Spotify, Tidal, Deezer and Rhapsody (recently re-branded as Napster) were up across the board, as increased competition from the likes of Tidal and Apple Music increased the number of subscribers 66 percent in 2015. And while an increase in artists who signed up for the platform (up 44 percent year-over-year) and added streaming subscribers helps push revenue higher, TuneCore CEO Scott Ackerman also points to services' emphasis on playlists and curation as an opportunity for its indie and up-and-coming artists. IFPI Global Report: Digital Revenues Surpass Physical for the First Time as Streaming Explodes "Playlists and features are an important piece," he tells Billboard. "We try to identify it and work with the stores to [get our artists involved], but I think the stores are getting more aggressive and trying to do it themselves now, too.

[It's] really a win-win, because an artist has both the store and Tunecore supporting them to get their music heard." One of the most eye-opening statistics from TuneCore's report is a 126 percent growth in gross revenue from YouTube, which includes a 730 percent increase in revenue from YouTube's Art Tracks initiative, which creates a " YouTube version of a sound recording " that is sanctioned by the artist and label in lieu of a music video. The growth in revenue from YouTube comes at a contentious time for the video streaming service, which has been under fire from labels, artists and managers about its royalty rate and use of the DMCA's safe harbor provision that protects them from lawsuits over user-uploaded copyrighted content. Ackerman recently referred to revenue from YouTube as " found money ." TuneCore CEO Praises YouTube, Predicts Consolidation of Digital Distributors "We call it found money because artists don't really know it's there," Ackerman says, referring to artists' ability to monetize those songs uploaded without permission, which TuneCore helps to accomplish.

"This year we're going to almost triple the YouTube revenue in that product, because there's more and more people creating videos and using artists' music." But in terms of the larger DMCA complaint, Ackerman declines to jump into the debate. "I think when you look at our artist base, they're not as concerned that somebody put a video up using their music, as long as they're being paid for it," he says. "If they're not being recognized for that music and getting monetized for it, that's wrong. But YouTube has a system where artists can go through TuneCore and we'll go out and search for them where their music is being heard and give them the money they deserve off the advertising piece... While some artists are claiming that they're not making money on YouTube, our artists are continuing to make more and more, and they're getting more exposure." TuneCore and Believe Digital Partner to Argue for Better Streaming Rates, Offer Clients a Wider World TuneCore's publishing administration division also saw a 36 percent boost, with a new emphasis on synchs driving 188 percent growth. And a renewed focus on international offices -- since September 2015, TuneCore has launched in the U.K.

, Australia and, this April, Germany , in addition to its Canada and Japan operations -- helped drive double-digit growth in Britain and Australia. "When we survey our artists, the number one reason they come to TuneCore is for worldwide distribution," Ackerman says, noting that there are plans for further expansion later this year. "We put our artists' music up in Asia now, focusing on a lot of new stores in Africa. We're working hard to get our artists heard more and more globally so there are more opportunities to make more money." Online Music Distribution | Source Music Distribution Jul 22, 2015 Estimated reading time: 6 minutes When it comes to digitally distributing your music, there are options galore. From the heavyweights like CD Baby and The Orchard, to smaller companies like Mondotunes, you have options, and can pick the distribution company that is exactly right for you. In this article we are going to take a look at ONErpm. ONEprm is a digital distribution service based in Brooklyn, NY, with offices in Brazil, and a new office opening in Nashville. They are an iTunes preferred partner, as well as one of the largest multi-channel networks on YouTube.

They have quite a few options for independent musicians and labels that distribute through them, and we’re going to give you the run down of their most notable features. Lets look at what your options are if you choose ONEprm as your digital distributor. Pricing ONEprm has 2 main pricing options. But a great feature of ONErpm is their free distribution service. Premium Package-a one time fee of $40 per album, or $15 per single. With the Premium Package, they also take a 15% cut of royalties. Arena Package– an annual fee of $30 per album, or $15 per single. You get to keep 100% of your royalties (besides Youtube, but we’ll get into that later). Free Option– ONErpm also has a free distribution tier. This option will distribute your music to Spotify, Rdio, Deezer and more. If you choose the free option, you can still opt-in to other stores, you just have to pay a small fee per store. Adding an album to iTunes is only $5, and since ONErpm is a preferred partner, your music could go live in less than 48 hours.

This is a really cool option for a single that you only want to release in limited formats, or if you are using streaming services as a marketing tool instead of a distributor. All major retailers are included in ONErpm’s digital distribution, although you will have to pay extra for ringtone stores and services like Shazam. Digital Distribution Options on ONErpm ONErpm’s services will cover all your basic digital distribution needs, but ONErpm stands out with a few features that aren’t offered on other digital distribution platforms. YouTube Certified One of the major advantages of digitally distributing with ONErpm is their relationship with YouTube. Right now, YouTube is the number one music streaming service in the world, and their music infrastructure is only set to grow. ONErpm is a YouTube certified company, and they have one of the largest multi-channel networks in the world. A multi-channel network, or MCN, is simply a company that works with channel owners to effectively monetize their channel, provide digital rights management, funding, and audience management. When you distribute your music through ONErpm, you have the option to distribute to YouTube. This doesn’t mean that your music automatically get uploaded onto a YouTube channel, it simply means that ONErpm enters your music into YouTube’s ContentID.

When your music is identified in YouTube’s system, you can manage how your music is being used. This means that when people use your songs in their videos, or even re-upload a video that you created, you can locate those videos, and either issue a take-down notice, or file a claim to receive revenue on that video. ONErpm’s unique connection to YouTube can also help you get extra revenue from your own videos, since ONErpm works directly with advertisers to negotiate a higher ad rate for their channels. They will also help you optimize your YouTube channel for monetization. Being a part of ONErpm’s MCN is free and open to any YouTube creator, even if you aren’t a musician, or don’t choose to distribute your music through ONErpm. A nice bonus if you live in the NYC area is that ONErpm has a video production studio that you have free access to as a member of their MCN. A downside to ONErpm’s YouTube services is that ONErpm takes a 30% cut of all revenue generated from YouTube. However, it may be worth it to let ONErpm handle your YouTube revenue if the money you gain from their higher ad prices equals out the 30% you pay them for managing your account.

If YouTube is an important part of your music, and you’re interested in joining an MCN, ONErpm might be the best distributing option for you. Neither Tunecore or CD Baby offer YouTube ContentID tracking, and they don’t have an MCN. Marketing Resources ONErpm also has several marketing options for artists. Their basic package includes social media management, verified profiles on streaming services, and email marketing. You can also upgrade to their specialized marketing services. Much like CD Baby, fans can also go directly to your profile on ONErpm’s website and download music there. ONErpm has several pricing tiers, and lets you choose which one best fits you. In addition to setting your own prices for your downloads, you have the option to give away a free download in exchange for an email address. You can then download those emails and export them into whatever program you use to send email newsletters. ONErpm also provides a free Facebook app that lets fans download music directly from your Facebook page. You can use this app to sell singles, full albums, or give away a download in exchange for an email.

You can make this app the landing page for your band’s Facebook profile, and use “fan-gating” to ask users to like your page before they have the option to download your music. ONErpm also gives you analytics, and monthly sales reports. You get paid through Paypal, and can withdraw funds whenever you like. Your Choice ONErpm’s digital distribution has some great benefits, and they offer a great deal of flexibility to artists in terms of services and price points. This personalization helps makes them a good choice for indie artists. ONErpm might be the right distributor for you if: You are interested in flexible pricing options, or free distribution to streaming services You would like to sell your music directly on Facebook You are interested in joining a YouTube MCN, and want someone to help you monetize your YouTube account. You want your distributor to give you marketing support. As you are looking for a digital distributor, keep your individual needs in mind. With so many companies offering similar services, make sure you find the company that best fits your needs as an artist. Have you used ONErpm? What was your experience? Let us know in the comments below!

Related Articles: Jul 10, 2015 Estimated reading time: 3 minutes Here’s the scenario: Your fan just bought a CD at a show. They are so excited to listen to it that they immediately take it out of the package and put it into the CD player in their car. After having it in their car for a few weeks, they finally decide to take it inside and add your music to their iTunes library. They put the CD into their computer, and iTunes pops up to import it. But no track or artist information is listed. Unfortunately, they left the CD packaging in the car and don’t remember all the titles to your songs. They still import it, but your music gets moved down to the bottom of the their music library, with no way to distinguish it from all the other annoying untitled tracks. This is a problem that can be easily solved. Gracenote is a music recognition service that is employed by many major music retailers and other music services to provide metadata about music files. Metadata is data about other data. It seems complicated, but actually it’s pretty simple.

If you have an mp3 file (the original data), the metadata (data about the original data) might include the artist name, track name, album name, genre, or even the album artwork. It’s important to have this metadata attached to your files so that you music can be recognized easily, and Gracenote is the most widely used way to make this data available. Getting Your Music To Gracenote The great thing about Gracenote is that it is really simple. There are two ways to add your music to their database. Digital Distribution If you are distributing your music digitally, Gracenote might be included in your distribution pack. This is the most convenient way to upload your metadata, because your distributor already has all the information. Major online distributors like TuneCore, and CD Baby (Gracenote is included in their Mega Distribution bundle) will add your metadata information when you upload your files. As long as you entered all the information correctly when you submitted your music, all your metadata information will be correct. Manually Entering Information If you are not using an aggregator that automatically uploads metadata to Gracenote, don’t worry. Entering your metadata is an incredibly easy process.

Step One: Simply put your CD into your computer, or upload an mp3 into your iTunes library. However, if you just upload an mp3, make sure it is a finished—hopefully mastered—product, because Gracenote uses the duration of your songs to recognize them in iTunes. Step Two: Gracenote might show you a fuzzy matches dialog box of albums that could be matches. Close this box if it pops up. Step Three: Right click on one of the track names and choose the option “Get Info.” Step Four: Enter all the information for each song exactly as you want the metadata to appear. Step Five: If you are using the latest version of iTunes, there will be a button on the right that says “Options.” Click this button and choose “Submit CD Track Names…” A dialog box to choose a genre will pop up if the genre you have currently selected is not supported by Gracenote. Click the submit button, wait 2-3 days and then insert your CD again. Your metadata will either be automatically entered, or you will choose from a list of albums that exactly match the duration of each of your songs.

Mine only had one other exact match, so it was easy for me (and my fans!) to find the correct information. If you have any more questions, or your metadata hasn’t appeared after a few days, you can visit Gracenote’s official site to get some help. Jan 21, 2014 Estimated reading time: 2 minutes For better or worse, the music industry is not what it once was. For example, with the internet securely in their toolbox, independent artists no longer need to rely on major labels to get their music out to fans. If you’re in that position and are hoping to get your music up on retail sites, here are a few online music distribution channels: Bandcamp Unlike the below distributors, who connect artists to retailers, Bandcamp allows artists to become their own retailer. With a free account, Bandcamp users set up pre-orders, sell merch, and sell music in physical and digital format. Artists do pay 15 percent of music sales as royalties, although this drops to 10 percent once revenue exceeds $5000. On merchandise sales, artists only pay 10 percent as royalties. The site boasts expert mobile and search engine optimization.

Bandcamp sends sales reports to Nielsen SoundScan, the company behind Billboard’s charts. MondoTunes MondoTunes claims over 750 retailers as partners. By choosing a basic sign-up package, artists pay one-time fees of $7.99 per single, $24.99 per EP, or $37.99 per album. Other services vary in price and include marketing, registering a label, mastering, etc. After partners deduct their respective shares, MondoTunes forwards the remaining royalties, approximately 63 percent of sales, to the artist. CD Baby With CD Baby’s Basic Album Signup, users pay $49.00 per album or $12.95 per single. The package includes physical distribution (vinyl or CD). There are a la carte options users can choose, with a separate charge for each. With CD Baby Pro, users can take advantage of ASCAP and BMI affiliation. There’s also a service that enables users to license their music through various channels. TuneCore Artists can gain exposure through Spotify, Google Play, and others.

The service charges a one-time annual fee for a single, album, or ringtone, and the musician keeps 100 percent of all revenue. TuneCore also provides cover art, if needed. SongCast Users sell on a variety of digital platforms including iTunes, Google Play, and Rhapsody. SongCast offers Facebook and Twitter linking, access to iTunes trending reports, and an opportunity to promote through SongCast Radio, a Facebook app. The cost for listing music through SongCast is $5.99 per month, with $9.99 per single and $19.99 per album. Artists retain 100 percent of all royalties on digital sales, and 35 percent on CD sales through Amazon Disc-On-Demand. Music distribution, especially with the ease of online distribution , affords the independent artist a way to provide their music to listeners. That is, after all, what a musician dreams about—being heard. Have you used any of the above sites for music distribution? How did the experience work out for you? If there’s another site that you’ve used and would recommend, tell us about it.

Streaming Music Companies Battle for International Ears - Rolling Stone Streaming Music Companies Battle for International Ears Watch Colbert, Kimmel, Corden Mock Betsy DeVos' Grizzly... Streaming Music Companies Battle for International Ears Winning over a country isn't as simple as just opening an office. Here are nine key countries at the heart of global streaming domination Credit: Getty All Stories As on-demand music-streaming services such as Spotify, Deezer and Rdio gouge each other's eyes out to reach the most possible American customers, they've also expanded their battlegrounds throughout the world. Deezer is in 180 countries, with Rdio and Spotify available in 85 and 50 countries, respectively. And it's not as if they can open a local office in Argentina or Germany and start streaming — to be successful, a streaming service has to work with record labels, publishers and other local rights holders, make deals with Internet and cellphone providers and, in the case of Brazil, figure out the difference between baile funk and bossa nova.

More News Streaming and Vinyl Up, Album Sales Down in 2014 Vinyl sales nearly double in 2014, while the compact disc experiences a record low year "You have hip-hop in virtually every place and people that make jazz and people that do funk and you have a ridiculous amount of folk traditions," says Dan Rosenberg, a compilation producer for the Rough Guide world-music series. "If you wanted to do that [music-streaming] service, you would essentially want to be doing all those playlists." Rolling Stone has identified nine key countries as being crucial to winning the international streaming wars. Here's a run-down of how Spotify, Deezer and the rest have been trying to win them over. India With a population of 1.2 billion, India is a huge prize for expanding Western streaming services — beginning with Rdio, which launched there in January. Rather than just applying its standard-issue catalog and playlists, Rdio bought local service Dhingana a year ago to help curate Bollywood soundtracks and unique regional hitmakers such as Punjabi dance producer and rapper Yo Yo Honey Singh.

More than a dozen digital-music operations in India mostly focus on selling downloads, from Saavn to Australia-based Guvera , which launched a streaming service there last November. "It isn't that simple," says Sachin Doshi, vice president of content and distribution for Spotify, which has yet to launch in the country. "The Bollywood content — that's a fragmented business in itself." Brazil Streaming services have competed fiercely to reach Brazil's 100 million music fans — although Google Play has a built-in advantage, since almost all local smartphones contain Android operating systems. Spotify, Deezer and others have made progress, in part because they're savvy about curating homepages and playlists to accommodate the country's diverse musical tastes. "It's a very divided country in terms of social class. There's huge income disparity," says Emmanuel Zunz, chief executive of ONErpm, a New York digital-distribution firm specializing in Brazilian music.

"People who are more educated tend to have different musical tastes than the people from the favelas." Sweden Home of not just legal Spotify but renegade Pirate Bay, Sweden has been far ahead of almost any other region in plunging into online music — first via piracy, then streaming, which accounts for 80 percent of local music consumption, according to the International Federation of the Music Industry. "It's a very affluent country," Doshi says. "There's a much larger base of smartphone users." Also based in Spotify: Aspiro, which owns high-quality streaming service Tidal; Jay Z bid $56 million in January to buy it. China When Taylor Swift yanked her music from Spotify last fall, she made a corresponding move with China's own streaming services — which pissed off local executives. "I personally believe this is a stupid move by Taylor Swift. It’s also ungrateful; she has used the Internet to generate hype, then cut the Internet out," Wang Hao, chief executive of China's Xiami, said at the time . Although Nokia and Microsoft have an online-radio service in China, every other Western service remains shut out — even iTunes.

Getty Japan Japanese music fans really love CDs — 85 percent of the country's music sales come via shiny plastic disc, and an old-school, storefront version of Tower Records still exists. That means Spotify, Rdio and others have had a tough time breaking into the market. "There's really no major streaming player," Charles Coonen, Deezer's chief operating officer, said last year of electronics giant Sony Corp.'s home base. "We're exploring ways to enter that market but we don't have anything concrete yet." Russia Competition for music-streaming customers in Russia rivals the U.S., as Spotify and Deezer battle for local players such as Zvooq , which has 2.7 million customers and provides downloads as well as a "freemium" model. Complicating things is Russian music fans' ongoing obsession with piracy — Spotify boasts of its ability to turn pirates into customers, but it's difficult in Russia. "It's a bit of a wild West," Doshi says. "Some of the more famous MP3 sites, like AllOfMP3.com, have come out of Russia." Related Ari's Take: CD Baby Pro vs. TuneCore Publishing (The Full Report) CD Baby Pro vs.

TuneCore Publishing (The Full Report) Next DISCLAIMER - This is NOT a post about CD Baby or Tunecore's distribution services. This is strictly about their admin publishing services. HOWEVER I did a full report on their distribution services here. Read on to learn about music publishing and compare services. This report was updated on 6/4/14 So far Tunecore has racked up nearly 22,000 songwriters to their service with 286,000 compositions . CD Baby Pro has over 54,000 songwriters with a catalog of 246,000 songs (updated 2/20/15). Many have asked me what's the better service. What's the difference in the two? WHICH SHOULD I SIGN UP FOR (if either)? I have spent weeks and countless hours delving into both of these companies and learning as much about them as I possibly can. I'm well versed in music publishing, so I understand the fine print. After my research, I still had a bunch of questions for both companies that I couldn't find in their FAQs (or terms of service).

I sat down with the president of Tunecore Publishing, Jamie Purpora , (no longer at the company as of 1-1-15) and the head of marketing at CD Baby, Kevin Breuner, to discuss their services in detail. You're asking why didn't I sit down with the president of CD Baby Pro also? More on that later (hint: there isn't one). I'm not posting our entire hour+ long conversations, but just summarizing the most important points for each service and picking a winner for each point. Music publishing is a very elusive part of the music industry and most musicians, record company execs, managers and bookers can go their entire careers without knowing anything about it. I'm going to try to explain, in simple, Ari (non-lawyer) terms, what each point means. Then I'll compare the two services. **Full disclosure: I have used both CD Baby and Tunecore services in the past. I have written for both of their blogs ( diymusician.cdbaby.com and blog.tunecore.com ). I am attempting to be as unbiased as possible.

Definitions and some things you need to understand about publishing first: Publishing splits: For every song, there is a writer's cut (50%), split amongst everyone who wrote the song, and there is a publisher's cut (50%). Because TuneCore Publishing and CD Baby Pro are acting as your publisher, they take their commission from the publisher's cut (not the songwriter's). More on this later. **Rule to live by: you should never give any of your songwriter royalties to anyone who did not have a part in writing the song. Performance Royalties: Anytime there is a "public performance" of your song, you are owed a royalty. Like when your song is on the radio, Pandora, Spotify radio, YouTube, TV, heard in JC Penny, Sirius/XM, from a jukebox in a bar, performed live at your concert, etc. You can see the full list of what ASCAP collect here . These royalties are currently collected by Performing Rights Organizations (see below). Performing Rights Organizations (PROs): ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, SOCAN, etc. These are organizations that collect performance royalties (NOT mechanical royalties - see below).

The way these PROs make money to pay songwriters their earned royalty money is PROs collect money from thousands of venues (radio stations, internet radio (like Pandora), JC Penny, bars, live venues, etc) by requiring them to purchase "blanket licenses" which gives these venues permission to play music in their establishment (or on the air). The PROs then pool all of this money up and divide it amongst all of their songwriters and publishers based on the frequency of each song's public performance. The PROs then pay the publishing companies their 50% and the songwriters their 50%. Make sense? You can only sign up for one PRO. You cannot be a member of ASCAP and BMI (in America). You have to choose. Find out what the PROs are in your country and pick one and sign up. (CBP and TCP will do this for you if you currently aren't signed up for one). Mechanical Royalties: When someone buys your song (or streams it) you, the songwriter, is owed money. Spotify, Apple Music, Deezer and similar "interactive" (that means you pick the song) streaming services owe you mechanical royalties every time your song is streamed on their service.

If someone wants to cover your song they must pay you 9.1 cents per unit (download, CD) AND a little ( very complicated formula to calculate this) per stream in the US. Internationally, these rates are about the same. The Harry Fox Agency (HFA) Songfile, Loudr and Easy Song Licensing issues these licenses for most songs. Let's say you want to cover Taylor Swift's song "I Knew You Were Trouble." You would go to Songfile.com, Loudr or Easy Song Licensing and search for the song. You could then estimate that you will sell 1000 downloads of this and pay $91 on the spot with a credit card. This gives you the "compulsory mechanical license" required to release your cover of "I Knew You Were Trouble." +How To Legally Release Cover Songs Sync Licensing: When a TV show wants to use your song, the show pays you a Sync License fee and a Master Use License fee for the rights to use the recording. The Sync (stands for synchronization) fee is for the song and goes to the publisher and songwriter, the master use license fee is for the actual recording and goes to the person, band or label that owns the recording.

Meaning, if your band records a cover of Taylor Swift's "I Knew You Were Trouble," and it gets on 2 Broke Girls, you would get money for the Master Use License and Taylor Swift (and her publishing company) would get money for the Sync License. Sync License = composition Master Use License = sound recording From this airing on 2 Broke Girls, Taylor Swift's PRO would collect performance royalties (from this "public performance") and pay her and her publishing company. You would not get any performance royalties (but just the money up front from 2 Broke Girls for the Master Use License - because you didn't write the song). There are licensing pitch houses out there whose sole job is pitching songs to music supervisors for TV shows, movies, commercials, etc. Technically, no one is allowed to sync video to a song (get where the "sync" comes from?) unless they get permission from the songwriter (and the publishing company). SO, the music supervisor of 2 Broke Girls would need to get permission from Taylor Swift AND her publishing company AND you (for your recording) to use your version of her song on the show.

Admin Publishing: Both CD Baby Pro and TuneCore Publishing are acting as administrators to collect royalties for your songs. They are not full-on publishing companies. When you sign up with them you are signing an "Admin Publishing" deal. Where Does SoundExchange Play Into All of This? SoundExchange is a service (similar to PROs) that collects revenue for the master rights holders (record label or the band who recorded the song - YOU in our "I Knew You Were Trouble" example) from digital platforms for public performances of your recording (like satellite radio, Pandora, cable TV music channels, and streaming music). These royalties are for the artist who recorded the song NOT the songwriter. So if your Taylor Swift cover blows up, SoundExchange will pay you royalties and Taylor's PRO will pay her royalties. NOW LET'S BEGIN THE COMPARISON! Who Can Signup: Any songwriter anywhere in the world can signup if they don't currently have a publisher. CD Baby Pro (CBP): Currently only US, Canadian and UK songwriters can signup if they don't currently have a publisher. **Updated 5-19-15 Who is doing the grunt work? Who is making the phone calls?

Setting up the international mechanical royalty (I'll get to that) collection services? Working with the PROs and on and on. Specifically who? TCP: TCP has built up their own infrastructure so they are doing everything in house. Jamie Purpora has 20 years of experience in music publishing, first 17 years working at Bug Music Inc. (now BMG Music) and 3 years at Tunecore Publishing. He has assembled a team to handle all of the duties to have a successful admin publishing (and sync licensing) team in house. CBP: CBP outsources all admin publishing duties to SongTrust. The head of SongTrust is Justin Kalifowitz, who has also spent his life in music publishing. He started Downtown Music Publishing and SongTrust . SongTrust actually started as a similar service as CBP and TCP to help independent songwriters. CBP also outsources their sync licensing (what's sync licensing again?? - reference it above!) to Rumblefish, a service you can opt in to when you sign up for CD Baby Distribution. WINNER: No clear winner here. I don't really care that CBP outsources to a company who's kickass at this already. I trust Jamie and Justin equally.

Sync Licensing Who is getting your songs placed on TV, in film and commercials? Are there any restrictions if you want to work with an outside licensing company? TCP: Tunecore Publishing has a synch licensing department and last I checked there were about 5 people working there. However, with tens of thousands of songwriters signed up to the service and hundreds of thousands of songs there's no way any of these people have actually listened to your music or is actively pitching it for placements. However, if someone comes to you (or TCP) directly and wants to use your music, Tunecore will help negotiate a synch license fee. Tunecore, however, is EXCLUSIVE, in the sense, if you signup for Tunecore Publishing you are not allowed to work any other licensing company to pitch your music. Let me repeat, if you signup for Tunecore Publishing, you cannot work with another song plugging company (who may be really passionate about you) to pitch your music to TV shows, movies and commercials. This, for me, is a deal breaker. Deal. Breaker. CBP: CD Baby Pro outsources their synch licensing to Rumblefish as an opt-in service.

If you do not opt in, you are free to work with outside licensing companies to pitch your music to film, TV and commercials. Territories Covered: If you have distributed your music to iTunes, Spotify and the rest of the bunch, you are owed money that you haven't received. Internationally, there could be quite a bit of money you haven't gotten if you've actually sold music (or had significant streams). Both TCP and CBP have in place ways to grab this money. TCP: Covers most of the territories in the world CBP: Covers most of the territories in the world. WINNER: No clear winner as both companies cover most of the international markets. I'm going to try and get a COMPLETE list. CBP has not posted their complete list anywhere online (yet). Cost: Both CBP and TCP take a percentage cut of your earnings. Both have a signup fee. However, the devil is in the details. Remember, royalties earned for a song are split 50% songwriting and 50% publishing. Neither service touches the songwriting royalties (that's split amongst those who wrote the song ONLY). The percentage CBP and TCP take are from JUST the publishing side.

TCP: There is a one time signup fee of $75 for 1 songwriter for ALL SONGS (unlimited). This does not include signing up for the Distribution service (to get your songs into iTunes, Spotify, etc - That costs $29.99 the first year and $49.99 each year after that for renewal). TCP take 10% of earned Publishing Royalties (NOT SONGWRITER ROYALTIES). You get the remaining publishing royalties. If you want to register 10 albums or 1 album, 100 singles or 1 single, the signup fee is still $75 ONCE. However, if you have 4 songwriters in your band, they each must sign up separately for $75 to be repped by TCP. CBP: It costs $99 per album and $39 per single. This also includes registration with CD Baby distribution (to get the album in iTunes, Spotify, etc). If you've already signed up for distribution it costs $59 per album and $39 per single to upgrade to CBP.

CBP allows bands to register additional songwriters for $10 each (TCP makes you register each songwriter separately for $75 each). CPB takes 15% of publishing (TCP takes 10%). CBP takes 9% of download/streaming sales (TCP takes 0%). **CBP DOES NOT allow you to JUST signup for publishing (TCP does) without signing up for Distribution. WINNER: No clear winner. Take a close look and decide what's better for your purposes. Note, TuneCore takes a smaller percentage so it will be better in the long run if one of your songs explodes. Just use for publishing NOT distribution? TCP: Yes CBP: No Sign you up for a PRO? If you've already signed up for a PRO, that's fine. Both companies will register your songs with your PRO (if you haven't done this already). If you have, that's fine, they will just attach their name to these songs to make sure the publishing money goes to them. If you already have a "vanity" publishing company registered with your PRO, both CBP and TCP will override this and take over as your publisher.

If you don't know what a "vanity" publishing company is, don't worry about it. You don't need one if you sign up for TCP or CBP. TCP: TCP will register your songs with your PRO. If you aren't signed up with a PRO initially they will default you to BMI. You will still need to go to the BMI website and signup as a songwriter. CBP: CBP will sign you up and register your songs with the PRO you choose. International Collections of Mechanical Royalties: The BIG BIG BIG point that both services are trying to get across: If you sell a download (for a song you wrote) on iTunes in the US, the mechanical royalty is built into the sale and you get that through your distribution service (TuneCore or CD Baby). Internationally IT IS NOT! Meaning all the iTunes sales (and Spotify streams) you've been making internationally, there is money owed to you that you have not yet received. And, up until now, you were not able to collect these (no indie songwriter could). The royalty rates internationally are about 9% per download (so like 9 cents an iTunes download) and about 1 cent a stream (but this varies tremendously per streaming service).

If you have your sales reports do some quick math and figure out if it's worth it to sign up. Both companies claim they WILL get all the unclaimed money to you (that has been building up over the years). So theoretically your first check could be HUGE! TCP: Has direct relationships with most international markets to collect these royalties. CBP: Has direct relationships with most international markets to collect these royalties. WINNER: No clear winner International Collection of Performance Royalties Your local PRO (in the US they are ASCAP, BMI and SESAC) can and does currently collect performance royalties from international PROs. BUT both TCP and CBP have built up their own relationships with these international PROs to get you more money faster. International PROs will no longer report your earned performance royalties to your local PRO (In the US it's ASCAP, BMI and SESAC) but to either TCP or CBP directly. They do this so your local PRO doesn't take a cut of the money coming in internationally. TCP and CBP are just trying to get this money to change fewer hands (and so they get a bigger cut). **note not all international collection services are simply PROs. Some also collect mechanical royalties as well. TCP:

Question: Deezer, Tidal, Onerpm, and Tunecore operate in what industrial sector?
Answer: Music