📃 Music publishing agreement

About this category

A music publishing agreement is a contract between a songwriter and a music publisher. The songwriter agrees to give the publisher the exclusive right to publish and exploit their songs. The publisher agrees to promote and exploit the songs, and to pay the songwriter a percentage of the revenues generated.

📃 Music publishing agreement

templates

Publishing Deal For Songwriter (Publishing Agreement)

A music publishing agreement is a contract in which a songwriter assigns the copyright of their songs to a publisher. The publisher is then responsible for exploiting the songs and collecting the income from licensing, and then sharing that income with the songwriter. The agreement includes a minimum commitment from the songwriter, expressed as a proportion of songs on commercially released albums, and the contract lasts for an initial term with the option to extend the contract for additional periods.

What to watch out for

The songwriter assigns the copyright in their songs to the publisher for a limited period

The publisher is not absolutely obligated to exploit the songs, but is expected to do so

The agreement provides for a minimum commitment from the writer in terms of the proportion of songs contained on commercially released albums

The agreement runs for an initial term followed by optional extension periods, each with its own minimum commitment

Publisher

Genie AI

Jurisdiction

England and Wales

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Associated business activities

Assign copyright in music

There are many reasons why someone might want to assign copyright in music. For example, if a musician is looking to sign a music publishing agreement, they will likely need to assign copyright in their music to the publishing company. This is because the publishing company will need to have the exclusive rights to the music in order to commercially exploit it. Additionally, if a musician is looking to sign a record deal, they will likely need to assign copyright in their music to the record label. This is because the record label will need to have the exclusive rights to the music in order to commercially exploit it.

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Legal firms who might be able to help

Note: Although we list lawyers as well as legal firms who may be able to help, this does not indicate that the listed law firms have an affiliation or partnership with Genie AI.