Answers/Glossary/Sub-publisher
Glossary · Publishing
Sub-publisher
A sub-publisher is a publishing company that represents another publisher's catalogue in a specific foreign territory, registering the works with the local collection society and collecting royalties there in exchange for a percentage.
Publishing royalties are collected nationally. A song played on the radio in Germany generates money at GEMA, in France at SACEM, in the United Kingdom at PRS for Music, in Japan at JASRAC. Each of those societies pays a publisher registered with it. A US writer with no representation in those countries is not automatically in their systems, and the money does not automatically travel.
A sub-publisher solves that. The original publisher — which for an independent artist may be their own small publishing entity — appoints a company in each territory to register the catalogue with the local society, collect what it pays, and remit the balance after a commission. Sub-publishing agreements typically run for a term and cover a defined territory, and the sub-publisher's cut is negotiated per deal.
For most independent artists, sub-publishing arrives bundled rather than negotiated. A publishing administrator like Songtrust maintains its own network of foreign relationships, and signing up with one is effectively buying access to sub-publishing without arranging it deal by deal. That is the single strongest argument for using an administrator at all, since inside the United States a self-administering writer can already reach The MLC, ASCAP or BMI, and SoundExchange without help.
The misunderstanding: assuming The MLC collects worldwide. The MLC administers the United States blanket licence created by the Music Modernization Act. Foreign mechanicals and foreign performance royalties are collected by foreign societies, and reaching them requires either sub-publishing or an administrator that has already built those links. Money that has nowhere to go abroad becomes black box.
Independent artist's summary; nothing here substitutes for advice on a specific agreement.
Related terms
- Music publisherA music publisher is a company that owns or controls copyright shares in musical compositions and exploits them — registering…
- Publishing administratorA publishing administrator collects a songwriter's publishing royalties worldwide for a commission without taking ownership of…
- CISACCISAC, the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers, is the global umbrella body for collection…
- Black box royaltiesBlack box royalties are music royalties that were collected but could not be paid to the correct owner, usually because the work…
Definitions on this site describe the United States system. I am an artist who has been through this, not a lawyer.
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