American Songwriter: The MLC in 3 Update: Over $2 Billion in Streaming Royalties Distributed in the First 3 Years – Are You Collecting Yours?

Last month, the Mechanical Licensing Collective (The MLC) reached a significant milestone by distributing over $2 billion in total royalties to members, including thousands of songwriters and music publishers. The MLC reached this milestone in just over three years since the first royalty distribution in April 2021. Since then, The MLC has delivered royalty distributions each month and has grown membership to over 38,000.

So, how do you know if you should become a member of The MLC?

The MLC is a nonprofit organization revolutionizing the way songwriters, publishers and other rightsholders are paid for their music that streams on digital platforms (like Apple Music and Spotify) in the United States. Every month, The MLC collects digital audio (streaming) mechanical royalties and data from those platforms, matches the money to the creator who has earned it, and then pays them (or their publishers and administrator partners) the royalties they are due. And membership is completely free!

If you are a songwriter and your music is streaming in the U.S., you need to make sure you are connected with The MLC to collect your streaming royalties. There are a few different ways to collect your royalties, depending on if you are independently published or if you have a publisher.

For songwriters who do not have a publisher or administrator (sometimes called a “self-administered” songwriter), you can sign up and become a member of The MLC and receive your monthly royalties directly from The MLC. If you have a publisher or administrator, they will collect your royalties for you. However, if you have a publisher or administrator but you also have some songs that are self-published, you will need to become a member of The MLC to collect the royalties for the songs you have independently published.

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Our mission is to support creators like you with full transparency into the performance of your music. Our member portal helps you see which of your songs have earned royalties, which ones are still being matched, and when payments are made. This openness helps you trust the process and know that your songs are being tracked and paid for fairly.

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FAQs

What are the regulations and where can one find the full text of the rates and terms for Phono 4?

The CRB published a Final Rule in the U.S. Federal Register setting the blanket license mechanical royalty rates for permanent digital downloads.

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Where can I find answers about The MLC portal?

After you have established a login to the Portal, you will find helpful information in our Knowledge Base.

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I want to read the regulation myself. Where can I find it?

The regulation outlining this entire process is found in 37 CFR 210.10(c)(5). You can also reference the regulation along with supplementary information as

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