Music Publishing Weekly Roundup: Rap Genius & NMPA Truce, PS4 Launches & More

The NMPA has agreed to temporarily shelve its takedown actions toward popular lyric annotation site Rap Genius. Last week, the NMPA sent take-down notices to Rap Genius and 49 other unlicensed lyric sites. However, in light of the site’s announcement of a licensing arrangement with Sony/ATV, both sides have agreed to meet for a productive and mutually beneficial agreement, rather than taking legal action.

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• Sony’s Playstation 4, which hit American and Canadian stores last Friday, sold over 1 million consoles in 24 hours. Each PS4 has the capability to let gamers replace a game’s music with their own music streamed from the console’s preloaded on-demand Music Unlimited streaming service. Fortunately for songwriters and publishers, these streams will generate performance and mechanical royalties, unlike traditionally work-for-hire or licensed (usually waiving the performance right) music.
• According to this study released by the International Intellectual Property Alliance, copyright industries added $1 trillion to the 2012 US economy, 6.5 percent of the total U.S. GDP. While this broad umbrella of industries includes much more than music and music publishing – film, software, books, etc – it does reinforce the important role copyright businesses play in the US and global economy.
• Sony/ATV has sealed a “creative collaboration” deal with Pulse Films. This deal will provide Sony’s artists with opportunities in film, television, advertising and branded content. UMPG inked a worldwide publishing deal with Julian Bunetta, one of the writers behind One Direction’s “Best Song Ever” and “Story of My Life”, for past and future compositions. In two separate deals, Warner/Chappell signed worldwide publishing agreements with Slash and Megadeath’s Dave Mustaine.
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Courtesy of Songtrust - Global royalty collection for music professionals.