The General Secretary of the Musicians’ Union, Naomi Pohl, has called on the major labels to “step up and make some offers” to address the issues that have been raised around creator remuneration in streaming.
She was commenting on the UK government’s response last week to the ‘Creator Remuneration’ report which was published earlier this year by Parliament’s culture select committee.
In that response, the current Labour government reaffirmed its commitment to the Creator Remuneration Working Group that was set up by the last Conservative government, and which brings together stakeholders from across the music industry to discuss how streaming money is shared out between platforms, record labels, music publishers and music creators.
The MU is part of that working group and, says Pohl, will continue to work with it to try to address the issues that have been raised by artists, musicians, songwriters and studio producers regarding how they share in streaming income.
However, she adds, “Musicians and music creators have been waiting far too long for a fair deal on music streaming”. Ever since streaming became the main way people consume recorded music, she says, the MU and other music creator organisations “have been arguing that there should be guaranteed royalty streams for all performers and that contracts should be upgraded to fair and modern terms”.
“Labour could achieve this with legislation”, she goes on, “but we are working hard to secure a voluntary solution in the meantime”.
The Creator Remuneration Working Group was set up in response to an earlier report from the culture select committee specifically on the economics of music streaming.
That report proposed a number of copyright law reforms that would change the way artists and musicians get paid, including new rights to allow creators and performers to adjust or terminate old record and publishing deals, and the introduction of a performer equitable remuneration right on streaming similar to that which already exists when music is broadcast.
In its statement last week, the government noted studies undertaken by the Competition & Markets Authority and Intellectual Property Office on the streaming market and those proposed copyright reforms. It said, “this research suggests that these potential legislative measures do not necessarily offer low-risk or low-cost solutions to the concerns raised by creators”.
To that end, the government said its preference would be for the industry to identify its own solutions via the working group process. Although ministers added that they still “reserve the right to consider alternative measures if necessary”.
Noting the government's comments on the CMA and IPO studies, the MU says its position is that “the CMA’s findings do not reflect the reality that most musicians experience”.
Nevertheless, the Union says it will continue to work with the rest of the industry to try to find solutions through the working group, but insists that that requires the major record companies to propose some compromises that will see more revenue flow to creators and performers.
“It’s time for the major record labels to step up and make some offers”, Pohl concludes. “The government and select committee remain fully committed to the ongoing process, and music-maker representatives like the MU aren’t going to drop our campaign for a fair deal”.