Frequently Asked Questions

Why do I need UREEQA Music to collect my publishing royalties?

UREEQA Music enables independent and unpublished songwriters to collect worldwide publishing royalties with the help of our professional administration network.

Collecting global publishing royalties can be difficult, expensive, and time-consuming for unpublished songwriters and their managers, lawyers, and record labels. With UREEQA Music's international network of collection agencies, we handle all of the hard work for you.

Even if you're already affiliated with a Performing Rights Organization (PRO) and/or have your own publishing company, you may still be missing out on many other royalty types and territories. We help you collect mechanical and international royalties directly, and also assist with managing your current PRO's catalog to more accurately collect performance royalties. Additionally, we can help you oversee other songwriters, register live performances worldwide, and collect all of the royalties your songs earn.

What is a performance royalty?

Performance royalties are paid to songwriters and their publishers in exchange for the right to broadcast or perform a copyrighted musical composition in a public environment. This includes radio airplay, TV broadcasts, live performance in venues like bars and clubs, and, last but not least, interactive digital streams.

What is a mechanical royalty?

Mechanical royalties (or “mechanicals”) are royalties earned through the physical and digital reproduction of copyrighted works. That includes everything from vinyl records and CDs to interactive streaming platforms and fixed MP3 files, to karaoke recordings, film soundtracks, and cover songs. While some countries and territories have collection societies that collect performance and mechanical royalties, that’s not the case everywhere. And unless you’re affiliated with them directly, you may not be collecting all of what you’ve earned. Without a publishing partner, you’re likely leaving uncollected money on the table.

What am I entitled to if I am performing my works publicly?

If you perform your works publicly, whether live on stage, broadcast over the radio or on a streaming radio service like Pandora, you own the copyright and are entitled to both the writer's and publisher's share of any performance royalties generated.

If your audience is only domestic, registering with your local PRO and MRO or CMO may be enough to collect your royalties. However, if your songs are being played and streamed globally, it is beneficial to work with a publishing administrator like UREEQA Music. We have direct affiliations with other territories, and your local collection society may not be able to collect royalties generated outside of your home territory.

How often do you pay out royalties?

UREEQA Music pays out royalties within 60 days of quarterly statement periods ending on March 31, June 30, September 30 and December 31 of each year.

What is the UREEQA Music dashboard?

Once you have signed a contract with UREEQA Music, created your account, and submitted your catalog to us, you will have access to your personal dashboard on the UREEQA Music platform. As soon as your uploaded songs start collecting royalties, you will be able to view information about your royalty payments and the performance analytics of your copyrights from around the world. This valuable information is available to you online at any time, in a simple, easy-to-read format.

What is the difference between writers share and publishers share?

Every composition has two sets of rights: the writer's share and the publisher's share. As the copyright holder/creator, you inherently own both.

Performance royalties have always been split this way, with one half being paid to the songwriters directly (writer share) and the other half collected by a publisher (publisher share). Thanks to administration services like UREEQA Music, you now have the option to maintain full ownership of both shares and collect both sets of royalties.

By entering into an administration agreement with UREEQA Music, you maintain ownership of your rights as a copyright holder and transfer administration rights to us, so we can collect your publisher's share. Because we have direct relationships with performing rights organizations and other collection societies around the world, we are able to collect your global royalties without additional cuts, delays, or lost revenue.

Writer's share royalties are delivered to the writer directly by their Performing Rights Organization (PRO). UREEQA Music collects the publisher's share on your behalf.

Do you collect my publishing money from YouTube?

YES: UREEQA Music offers YouTube monetization services as part of our global publishing administration. When you register with us and add songs to your account with at least one ISRC, we automatically deliver them to YouTube's Content ID system. When YouTube finds a video that matches the metadata we provided, it automatically claims the video for us.

Please note that UREEQA Music can only monetize your compositions. If you own the sound recordings, you will need a distributor, label, or third party to help monetize them on your behalf.

If you come across any videos with more than 10,000 views that are using your music and we have not already claimed them, please submit them in the Manual Claims section under YouTube in your UREEQA Music account. These claims will be reviewed and confirmed by the UREEQA Music team once they meet YouTube's monetization eligibility requirements.

What is a synchronization license?

A synchronization license is essentially a license granting permission to synchronize a song with moving images on a screen - generally in television, film, or advertisements. Sync licenses are required from both the recording owner and the composition owner when a song is used. However, in addition to the upfront fee, songs earn a performance royalty (payable to songwriters/publishers) when the program containing their song is broadcast or streamed.

How does UREEQA Music handle sync opportunities?

UREEQA Music will forward any sync requests to you for approval, as we are the administrator of record at PROs and often receive these requests for our clients. We will handle all licensing negotiations and collection efforts of the respective fee on your behalf.

What is a Music Supervisor?

A music supervisor is the person in charge of selecting and placing music in films, TV shows, advertising, and video games. Clients (advertisers, TV networks, etc.) approach music supervisors with an idea of the type of music they need for their project, and sometimes even specific songs they want. The music supervisor then finds the appropriate music.

The music supervisor acts as a liaison between their clients and the rights holders of the music. They arrange the necessary licensing agreements for the songs and negotiate licensing deals that fit within their clients' budgets. UREEQA Music works closely with a network of music supervisors to bring opportunities to our members.

Do I need a PRO if I am with UREEQA Music?

YES: UREEQA Music helps you manage your Performing Rights Organization (PRO) catalog and ensures you receive all the performance and mechanical royalties generated outside your home territory. In order to use our services, you must be affiliated with a PRO. However, just being affiliated with a PRO is not enough to collect all the royalties you're owed worldwide.

Each territory has its own PRO that is responsible for collecting performance royalties. When you join UREEQA Music, we register your songs at global PROs to collect performance royalties directly. This allows you to collect mechanical royalties that are not collected by PROs. Mechanical royalties are generated from physical sales and interactive streams (e.g. Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal). All UREEQA Music clients collect from the Harry Fox Agency (HFA), the Mechanical Licensing Collective (The MLC), and international collection agencies directly.

Additionally, we collect from YouTube by claiming and monetizing user-generated content through its Content ID service.

Why can't I manage my own publishing catalog?

The process of collecting publishing royalties can be challenging for songwriters, managers, and lawyers. There are many global collection societies to contact, a lot of paperwork, high expenses, and confusing jargon. These royalties are only available through a global publishing relationship and cannot be collected by individuals without the help of a service like UREEQA Music.

We simplify this process with our one-stop digital publishing administration service. When you sign up with UREEQA Music, you get automatic access to global collection societies that you wouldn't have access to otherwise.

We offer professional intellectual property management without requiring you to give up any shares of your songs or sign a long-term contract. In addition, we work hard to license your songs with leading digital services (e.g. Amazon, Spotify, YouTube, and Instagram) that you might not be able to negotiate with on your own.

In short, UREEQA Music handles your song registration, administration, and royalty collection at a lower cost and with less effort than doing it yourself.

Does UREEQA Music replace my need for a PRO?

No, all songwriters must be registered with a Performing Rights Organization (PRO) in order to receive their writer's share of performance royalties. UREEQA Music does not handle this part of the process; we manage the publisher's share, which allows you to collect international performance and mechanical royalties from your UREEQA Music account.

If you're already affiliated with ASCAP, BMI, PRS, SOCAN, IMRO, or any other PRO, UREEQA Music can administer your copyrights. We will help you manage your current PRO catalog, act as a one-stop registration hub for your works, and identify sources of additional income through global and mechanical royalties.

Do I still own and control my copyrights?

Yes, absolutely! UREEQA Music does not take ownership of your publishing at all. As the original creator of your composition, you automatically own 100% of your copyright. UREEQA Music is a publishing administration service, which means that we only administer songs you add to your account. Any publishing royalties we collect for these songs will be paid out to you, and you maintain 100% ownership of your publishing for the duration of your agreement with us. We simply collect the royalties on your behalf and you pay us a collection fee of 20%.

Do I need UREEQA Music if I release my music through independent distributors like DistroKid or Tunecore?

There are two types of ownership in the music industry: the recording/master side and the composition/publishing side. These are traditionally handled separately by labels (recording) and publishers (composition). However, with the rise of digital music, independent creators are now able to oversee both sides themselves.

Labels and distributors like Distrokid and TuneCore make sure your music is available on popular streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music. Unless you have a publishing agreement with them, distributors typically pay royalties based on your ownership of a recording.

UREEQA Music is not a distributor. We are a publishing administrator, providing a one-stop shop for monetizing your publishing rights and meeting your royalty collection needs for compositions.

When does it make sense for me to join UREEQA Music?

If you have written, recorded, and/or released your music, and are over 18 years of age, you are able to join UREEQA Music. There are no specific timeframes or requirements for registering with a music publishing administrator. You can do so at any time.

What if I’ve already released recordings on streaming platforms?

If you plan to release or have already released recordings of your original compositions on streaming platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, and Tidal, you have the potential to earn money from these two halves of your songs: the recording and the underlying composition.

UREEQA Music can help you collect the mechanical royalties generated by on-demand streaming services and pass this money on to you since Performing Rights Organizations (PROs) don't handle mechanical royalties and Collective Management Organizations and Mechanical Rights Organizations like The Mechanical Licensing Collective focus on their own territories.

What is a co-publishing agreement?

In most co-publishing agreements, songwriters give up a 50% ownership interest in all their copyrights to the designated publisher.

Co-publishing deals often require the songwriter to give up control of the composition itself, allowing their publishing company to seek out sync opportunities (commercials, films, television shows, etc.) and administer the copyright globally.

One of the biggest advantages of a co-publishing deal is the advance. This can be appealing to songwriters because it can allow them to quit their day job and focus on writing. However, it's important to note that the publisher must recoup the advance in full before the songwriter receives any additional royalties from their compositions.

What is a music license?

Music licenses and their associated fees are the primary way to protect yourself if you want to use someone else's song, and the way rightsholders can grant permission for these uses.

A license is a legal document that gives someone permission to use another artist's copyrighted music for their own purposes. Without a license, copyrighted music has the full protection of the United States government. (You can learn more about that here.)

All types of copyrighted music require a music license for usage unless you are the writer who created it. This includes playing copyrighted music in a public space, recording a copyrighted song, or using a copyrighted song with any form of visual media (also known as syncs).

What is Harry Fox Agency?

The Harry Fox Agency (HFA) is often confused with Performing Rights Organizations (PROs) like ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC, although they deal with different rights types.

PROs are responsible for collecting performance royalties on behalf of registered songwriters and publishers whenever a song is performed or broadcast in public places like television or radio stations, clubs, or restaurants.

HFA is a mechanical licensing organization. Like The Mechanical Licensing Collective (The MLC) and Music Reports (MRI), it is responsible for licensing and collecting mechanical royalties on behalf of music publishers in the United States. These royalties include the recording and reproduction of music streams, CDs, ringtones, lyrics, and digital downloads.

Do I have to file a copyright application for every song I own?

You are not required to register your work with the Copyright Office in the United States in order to make a copyright claim. Copyright is automatically given under the Copyright Law of the United States once it has been fixed in a tangible form.

The U.S. Copyright Office provides a certificate of registration, not the copyright itself. The document confirms the record of copyright registration you have on file at the Library of Congress. This documentation can help you make a stronger claim and improve your chances of receiving damages if someone infringes on your rights.

UREEQA Music does not register your songs with the U.S. Copyright Office. If you would like to do so, you can visit copyright.gov.

Please note: Registering your works with the U.S. Copyright Office does not guarantee that you will be paid. You still need to sign a traditional publishing deal, or register your catalog with a publishing administrator like UREEQA Music to properly exploit your works.