Music technology company VNUE and upstart performing rights organization (PRO) Pro Music Rights (ProMusicRights.com) have joined forces “to create a new paradigm in music licensing”.
Together, Pro Music Rights and VNUE hope to reshape the licensing model from the typical “blanket license” scenario, to a more “utility-based,” model, where licensees pay for what is actually played, and the specific stakeholders are compensated for those plays.
Pro Music Rights is a privately funded, for-profit PRO founded by music industry executive Jake P. Noch.
The company has a fast-growing catalog, representing thousands of songwriters, composers, and publishers, and is in negotiations with multiple global streaming companies.
VNUE, Inc., last year acquired its Soundstr music recognition technology (MRT), which identifies music played on radio, in bars, restaurants, and other brick and mortar establishments.
VNUE and Pro Music Rights intend to start rollout to licensees within three to four months for businesses that do not have live music, and six to 12 months for those that do.
Pro Music Rights will be updating its license agreements in the coming days to reflect the Soundstr requirement.
Most licensees will pay a small monthly fee combined with a “pay-per-play” royalty, which will go 100% to the rights holders.
According to VNUE CEO Zach Bair, in the coming months, Soundstr will be introducing “beacon” technology, whereby the company believes that that targeted geo-centric advertising revenue driven by the devices will eventually offset the cost of the licenses and potentially provide business owners with another source of revenue.
“We are…enabling a model that has been dreamed about for a long time by artists and venues alike, but never been accomplished until now.”
Zach Bair, VNUE
“Today, in almost all situations, licensees of music must pay PROs for blanket licenses, even though the likelihood of the business using the entire catalog is quite slim,” said Zach Bair, CEO of VNUE, Inc.
“The model that Pro Music Rights is developing is a much more sustainable, transparent model, and works for big and small businesses alike.
Instead of paying for music that may never be played, licensees will pay for what they use, very much like how a consumer would pay for their electric bill.
Added Bair: “Soundstr will act as the ‘meter’ for all practical purposes. This has huge benefit not just for the business owners, but especially for the rights holders.
“The Soundstr platform and technology will identify when, where, and how many times their music has been performed, and will create an audit trail.
“We are therefore enabling a model that has been dreamed about for a long time by artists and venues alike, but never been accomplished until now. It is Jake’s forethought into creating a more sustainable model, combined with our technology and VNUE’s core beliefs along the same lines, which makes this so exciting.”
“Pro Music Rights is taking the approach that Rights Holders should be fairly compensated for each usage of their work(s) while still being affordable and transparent for all parties, including music users.”
Jake Noch, Pro Music Rights
Jake P. Noch added: “Pro Music Rights is taking the approach that Rights Holders should be fairly compensated for each usage of their work(s) while still being affordable and transparent for all parties, including music users.
“VNUE’s Soundstr platform and the data it provides is the key ingredient in the success of the Pro Music Rights model.
“Music is consumed just like electricity or water, and by creating a model whereby the fees reflect the actual usage, we create a much friendlier and transparent licensing scenario, one where the rights holders of the actual music being utilized are receiving royalties for each and every song play while still reducing licensing costs for music users.”Music Business Worldwide
