Toronto – July 31, 2018
SOCAN has announced today its acquisition of Montréal-based mechanical licensing collective SODRAC. After several previous attempts to merge these organizations, this comes as no surprise. SOCAN and SODRAC are looking to adapt to today’s rapidly evolving music industry and it’s understandable that, as two Canadian-based author societies, they have finally come together.
CMRRA itself responded to this changing landscape by forming its own strategic partnership with SoundExchange just over a year ago. Under the ownership of the newly created SXWorks, CMRRA benefits from the direction of an independent publisher committee that oversees key decisions on the management of publisher rights regarding advocacy, tariffs, and licensing. This offers CMRRA’s music publisher affiliates a robust governance structure that was not achievable under the previously proposed alliance between CMRRA, SOCAN and SODRAC.
Related Previous News Items:
- Letter to Clients: CMRRA Acquisition by SoundExchange
- SoundExchange Acquires Canadian Musical Reproduction Rights Agency (CMRRA)
CMRRA represents the vast majority of music publishers that do business in Canada, including self-published authors as well as some of the largest Quebec-based music publishers who bring to CMRRA an extensive francophone and international repertoire. CMRRA continues to license and administer an increasing share of the music market, with a repertoire that has largely captured the listening time of Canadians, resulting in royalty collections representing nearly all of streaming services’ mechanical royalty payments to date.
CMRRA’s unmatched service levels, cutting edge technology, and specialized tools ensure music publishers can quickly and efficiently collect and track their royalties from a variety of sources. Our tools and à la carte affiliation model meet marketplace demand for flexibility as well as comprehensive and transparent data and royalty reporting. CMRRA’s ability to serve music publishers has only been strengthened through our partnership with SoundExchange and SXWorks, global leaders in the development of business solutions benefiting the entire music industry. This, coupled with CMRRA’s expertise and ability to maximize the value of the reproduction right, will continue to set CMRRA apart in this evolving industry.
