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Jane Dyball to depart the Music Publishers Association

By Chris Cooke | Published on Thursday 26 July 2018

The boss of the UK’s Music Publishers Association – Jane Dyball – yesterday announced that she will step down from the role at the start of next year.

She originally joined the organisation in 2014 to run the trade body’s licensing activities, which included mechanical rights collecting society MCPS, sheet music licensing body PMLL and digital licensing scheme IMPEL. She subsequently became CEO of the MPA itself, with the trade body and its business ventures being more closely aligned under the name of the MPA Group Of Companies. IMPEL was then spun off as a separate entity earlier this year.

Noting key developments at the wider MPA group that have occurred under Dyball’s leadership, the trade body yesterday listed: “Steering MCPS in its first few years as a standalone business which has paid down more than £16 million [in] debt, revamping the MPA service to its members and developing new licensing schemes at PMLL”.

Dyball also led a review of MCPS’s relationship with its former business partner PRS, which included a tender process whereby other entities were invited to pitch to manage and administrate the mechanical rights of the society’s members. Though in the end much of MCPS’s deal with PRS was renewed.

Confirming that she will leave the MPA next year, Dyball said: “It’s always hard to know when to leave because there is always more to do, and these companies have a really great future. However, I have either completed or set in motion everything on the ‘to do’ list that I wrote on my first day and it seemed the right time to move on”.

She added of her time with the association: “It has been challenging but rewarding and I have loved working with such a great team – both within the group but also among our members and partners. I’m really grateful to the boards and members who I have tried my best to represent for letting me have this opportunity”.

The organisation’s Chair, Universal Music Publishing’s Jackie Alway, added: “Jane has been a force for good at the MPA for the last four years, driving innovation and positive change. The MPA group of companies has been brought together and rendered streamlined and efficient. The MPA itself is now a dynamic organisation staffed by a talented and hardworking team achieving great things”.

“We are sharply focussed on defending publishers’ and creators’ rights at policy level, and beyond that Jane has been the architect of a great evolution in the services we provide to members”, Always continued. “We are so grateful to Jane for her energy, humour and vision. We wish her further success in her next ventures and we look forward to the challenge of finding a new leader for our organisation who can build on these well-laid foundations”.