The UK’s Council Of Music Makers brings together the organisations that represent those who compose, record, perform and produce the music we all love. We jointly campaign to address issues and challenges impacting on the UK music industry’s creative talent.
Below is a summary of some of the key campaigns where CMM members are working together, as discussed during the CMM-programmed strand at The Great Escape in Brighton in May 2025. You can download a PDF version of this manifesto here.
1. MUSIC STREAMING
PROBLEM: Streaming has delivered massive financial gains for the music industry. However, many music-makers haven’t benefited, because their industry partners are enforcing pre-digital contract terms and out-dated industry conventions. Bad metadata prevents music-makers from being credited and impacts on songwriters getting paid. There is a lack of transparency about streaming business models.
SOLUTIONS: Government-led work to address issues around music-maker remuneration has been slow but is now progressing – this work must continue and copyright reform may be necessary. Government-led work on data and transparency has resulted in codes of best practice which are now being implemented. We will see this year whether these codes effectively address the issues.
2. AI
PROBLEM: Streaming has delivered massive financial gains for the music industry. However, many music-makers haven’t benefited, because their industry partners are enforcing pre-digital contract terms and out-dated industry conventions. Bad metadata prevents music-makers from being credited and impacts on songwriters getting paid. There is a lack of transparency about streaming business models.
SOLUTIONS: Government-led work to address issues around music-maker remuneration has been slow but is now progressing – this work must continue and copyright reform may be necessary. Government-led work on data and transparency has resulted in codes of best practice which are now being implemented. We will see this year whether these codes effectively address the issues.
3. LIVE MUSIC
PROBLEM: The music-maker community is dealing with a cost of touring crisis. Surging costs mean that, at the grassroots level and even in the mid-tier, the entire live music ecosystem – artists, promoters and venues – are struggling. Meanwhile, with in-demand concerts, ticket touts continue to rip off music fans.
SOLUTIONS: Under pressure from the government, the live sector is introducing a ticket levy on large-scale shows to support the grassroots community. This should be a mandatory levy on all shows. It is also paramount that these funds support music-makers directly as well as venues. The music industry’s FanFair campaign has set out proposals to address the ticket touts problem.
4. MEDIA COMPOSERS
PROBLEM: When music-makers write music for audio-visual productions, there is a fair and established model for how music-makers get paid: a commissioning fee upfront and royalties over time. However, broadcasters and media companies are increasingly pressuring music-makers into ‘buy-out’ deals that see them lose both rights and royalties.
SOLUTIONS: A number of CMM’s members have developed a Fair Commissioning Manifesto that calls for an end to buy-outs and a pitching process that works for media composers as well as commissioners. We call on broadcasters to embrace this manifesto.
5. MISOGYNY IN MUSIC
PROBLEM: The Women And Equalities Select Committee published a report setting out how women working in the music industry face limitations in opportunity, a lack of support, gender discrimination, unequal pay, and sexual harassment and assault. It set out recommendations for industry and government – however the last government rejected the recommendations for changes to the law.
SOLUTIONS: The government should implement the legislative proposals recommended in the committee’s report, while keeping pressure on industry to continue playing its part in ending misogyny in music.