Music Business Worldwide: SPOTIFY, APPLE AND OTHERS PAY $424.38M IN HISTORICAL UNMATCHED ROYALTIES TO MECHANICAL LICENSING COLLECTIVE | Mechanical Licensing Collective

A total of 20 DSPs have transferred a combined $424.38 million in accrued historical unmatched royalties to The Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) as required in order for them to seek the Music Modernization Act‘s (MMA) limitation on liability for past infringement.

Those DSPs, including Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon, SoundCloud and others, also delivered more than 1,800 data files, which contain in excess of 1.3 terabytes and nine billion lines of data.

Of that $424.38m, $163.3m was received from Apple, $152.2m from Spotify, while Amazon and Google transferred $42.7m and $32.8m, respectively (see below).

According to the MLC, the transfer of these monies “represents the culmination of a months-long effort on the part of The MLC and these DSPs to develop and implement the specifications for these usage reports”.

Now that the MLC has these unmatched royalties and usage reports in hand, it can begin the process of reviewing and analyzing the data in order to find and pay the proper copyright owners.

Click here to view the full article

Get Started

MEmbership is always free

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.

Become A Member

Resources

Resources to help you maximize your earnings

ARTICLES

DURP Informational Webinar

If you’re an independent music distributor, aggregator, or sound recording distributor interested in accessing all the unmatched recordings you’ve

ARTICLES

Data Programs

Data Programs at The MLC The MLC’s data programs support the efforts of dozens of digital media and technology companies around the world to gain insight

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.

FAQs

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.

FAQs

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

Explore All Resources

Stay Up
To Date

News & Press Releases

See more news

Press Releases BETA

Variety: Who Are the Powerhouse Music Execs on the Mechanical Licensing Collective?

February 21, 2026

Press Releases BETA