TUESDAY 30 MAY 2023
The Council Of Music Makers welcomes confirmation today that the UK government will convene a working group to consider music-maker remuneration from streaming. That development was confirmed in a letter to the Culture, Media & Sport Select Committee in Parliament.
The Chair of the committee, Dame Caroline Dinenage MP, said: “The creation of a working group we have been calling for is a welcome step towards addressing the frustrations of musicians and songwriters whose pay falls far short of a fair level given their central role in the success of the music streaming industry”.
“The government must now make sure the group is more than a talking shop and leads to concrete change so the talented creators and performers we have in this country are properly rewarded for their creativity. The committee will be keeping a close eye on progress and also looking more widely at artist and creator remuneration to ensure everyone who works in our creative industries can share in its successes”.
In a collective statement welcoming this development, the CMM said: “Music-maker remuneration is the single biggest issue in streaming. Which is why we have been calling for a working group to be convened to allow the music community to come together to discuss the different ways that we can address these challenges, including the copyright reforms that have been proposed and other possible solutions”.
“We greatly appreciate the government’s positive response to this request and look forward to now getting to work. We will be publishing a new white paper later this week setting out the different elements of the music-maker remuneration debate, building on the five fundamental objectives for streaming reform that we outlined earlier this year”.
“We’d also like to again thank the Culture, Media & Sport Select Committee, whose streaming inquiry and ongoing diligence has ensured that various issues faced by music-makers are now being addressed”.
“The working groups on data and transparency, which have been expertly led by the Intellectual Property Office, are set to result in a number of positive changes which, although small steps, are nevertheless important steps towards delivering a transparent, dynamic and equitable streaming business. We hope similar things can now be achieved around remuneration”.
