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How many of you would take $500-$1500+ for one of your tracks and give up your copyright? I can promise that some would.
By “give up the copyright”, if you mean where you would still get the writer’s share of the performance royalties, then sure, this is done all the time. Libraries with deep pockets routinely pay their composers $1000, sometimes more, for a work-for-hire buy out of licensing income. But the composer of course still gets their writer’s share of the performance royalties.
However, if you meant a dodgy deal where you’d be giving up all the future earning potential of both royalties and licensing, (I think that was your point?) then I would have to say NO WAY! I think that would be a terrible deal unless you were compensated for at least five years worth of potential earnings.
As long as the capitalist system survives automation and the rise of deep AI, and we’re not in a post-money Star Trek-esque society 50 years from now, your music has the potential to generate money for 70 years AFTER you have hopefully lived a long life. Personally, I wouldn’t sign something like that for less than 100k. I realize how ridiculous that might sound to some people, but it really isn’t so wacky when you consider how much one decent track can generate over a decade or more.
Guys,
I hate to be a dark cloud over this thread but we have to accept some harsh truths.
I don’t think it will be anytime soon where the upfront money paid by any library will INCREASE nor will we gather any leverage.
While the concept sounds utopian, we have to accept the fact that there are tens of thousands of Musical pieces that can be purchased from RF markets for 40 bucks and not all of these tracks are garbage. There are even 10-15 minute scoring tracks on these libraries. Sure, there will always be a need for writing to spec but there are plenty of spec writers willing to undercut other spec writers.
On the Exclusive front, the libraries are offering more blanket licenses and paying composer Zero sync/License fees.
There are literally 14 year old kids writing EDM tracks on ipads that are going to find there way in to pretty good libraries.
The business has changed, technology has changed, and competition has become fierce.
Instead of harping on the glory days when writers would get 5000 bucks for a few tracks printed to their Studer Analog machine, we have to think about what people AREN’T doing to stand ahead in the business.
Sometimes businesses are drastically affected by technology. Just think about your pals who ran recording studios at 50-100 bucks an hour for engineering.
Now, millions of teens have Cubase in their bedrooms.
Just so I can be upfront, and honest. My viewpoint about My PRO losing out on money just like I am; is because I am with SESAC..
Aaahhhh. Cool. Makes perfect sense. Congrats.
This business model already exists, as I think Art mentioned earlier in the thread.
Also, I’m with Mark, although my figure would be lower. To give up all future licensing income, and all back end writers share, I’d want at least $20k per track.
I just don’t see the back end earning anything near $20-$100k over a lifetime anymore. Doesn’t backend rely on syndication and re-airs?
Perhaps that’s the case for royalties, but just one decent license fee (commercial, trailer etc) could be $20K. I realize though that for some genres those types of license fees are few and far between.
There are literally 14 year old kids writing EDM tracks on ipads that are going to find there way in to pretty good libraries.
The business has changed, technology has changed, and competition has become fierce.
I CELEBRATE ANYONE that is able to be creative! As well, if this means more “competition” than “Let US raise the bar back to something that sounds like MUSIC AGAIN!!”
This is the same argument that was happening with Jingle writers, and people that were working on Ad/Branding/Commercial Campaigns. The Influx of a large amount of people; that were “poaching on their Creamy, dripping with butter Gigs”. They were fiercely protecting it like it was really “theirs”..
I’m a kid that started on a “Cassette 4track” and dreamed of the days that I could. be in a 24/2 Inch room; on a HUMOUNGOUS Console. These days, it’s FAR from necessary. If they are making music on a Children’s Leap Frog learning computer, and it sounds market ready? I say BRING IT, and congratulations on making it happen for yourself!!
To answer your question John. A lot of people will go for “These Crooked/Shiesty/Underhanded Deals” that take place, in this business we call music. I was xxxxx MULTIPLE TIMES!! But, you are just happy to be doing something that you love. It’s no different from the Record Side of the business. You get in any way you can, and hopefully get an opportunity to turn the bad deal(s) around, and make it work for you at some point in your career..
As for me, I have a “Bar” that I have set as to what I will do; and what I will not do. If someone is ok with making “Literally Pennies” that’s on them. I don’t need to have all the gigs. Quality for me, is NOT just about how my product sounds. It is how I do My Business!!
I have to agree with Mark. If you are offering $1000 a track and then the writer sends “writers share of the performance royalties” to the buyer too, Not a chance! You absolutely never know when a track in your personal catalog will get picked up into a big job and not only generate big license fees in the the 5K to 10K to 20K range, but then go on and generate tens of thousands in performance royalties. If you have $2,000,000, I’ll give you my entire catalog, my copyrights, my writers share, and my publishers share.
Mark, a big spot or trailer can EASILY pay you 50K (over time say 3 or 4 years) in performance royalties if it is a big brand, and runs in heavy rotation for a long period of time. It’s not all about that one juicy sync fee. I am not blowing smoke, I am involved in a couple situations like this right now. The numbers are not lying to me. P.S. I feel very fortunate and lucky.
@Daniel – Millions of teens doing edm in the bedroom is not at all a threat to mature and experienced composers writing at a high level for film, TV, and advertising.
@LA Writer, BMI is offering information. See the bold below.
The company’s total domestic revenue, encompassing digital, media, and general licensing, came in at a record $836 million, a $52 million or 7% increase over last year. Digital revenue saw its highest performance to date, up 7% to $163 million, helped in part by new long term agreements with Netflix and Hulu, among others. Media Licensing came in at $524 million, a $32 million increase over last year driven by growth in the terrestrial radio, cable and satellite radio categories.
General Licensing, which includes fees from businesses like restaurants, bars, hotels, shopping centers and fitness facilities, along with other income, grew a solid 7% to $149 million. The category added 13,000 new businesses to its growing portfolio.
International revenues grew to $294 million, an increase of $18 million or 7% over the prior year. These results are particularly impressive given the continued strengthening of the dollar against foreign currencies. BMI would have seen an additional $10 million in international revenue if not for the unfavorable exchange rates.
And here is the link to the report on BMI’s site. This is a September 7, 2017 post so this is breaking news and data:
https://www.bmi.com/news/entry/bmi-tops-revenue-records-for-third-straight-year-with-1.130-billion
@Daniel – Millions of teens doing edm in the bedroom is not at all a threat to mature and experienced composers writing at a high level for film, TV, and advertising.
Music1234,
I don’t believe the OP mentioned high end libraries specifically.
He even goes on to mention the floods of new composers entering the market.Don’t high end libraries have TV placements? Well, so does run of the mill, RF libraries. I am not comparing the quality of the 2 libraries. I am Merely saying that a TV que can be created on an iPad and we know darn well that there are some questionable ques all over TV.
This is no insult to “High end” composers. I am only pointing out that to a business, saving money is usually the top priority. I hope one day I can be considered “High end”
Writing to spec is a completely different story and I don’t believe that was an initial part of the OP’s statement.
I am Merely saying that a TV que can be created on an iPad and we know darn well that there are some questionable cues all over TV.
I have too created music on I-pad as an experiment. Ha Ha!…. Incredibly, they were used, but they have not become real, consistent money makers. I still had to have intelligent knowledge of how to craft a chord progression, orchestrate, and arrange (even using garage band). I also have learned to never say never. It would not shock me one bit if an I-pad garage band tune made it on a super bowl spot.
Well, you would never see me write on on ipad or Garage Band but we both know that kids are doing this now and can easily get some music on a Bravo show. That was basically my point.
Thanks for the info @Music1234. I’ve seen that. I suppose that’s a start, but not very transparent in terms of how those incomes get distributed. For instance –
BMI states foreign revenues to be $294M, and streaming / digital to be $163M.
Let’s round up foreign to 300 million, and round digital revenues down to 150 million for easy math. Essentially, digital is providing 1/2 the revenue that foreign is. Right? (I know this is not scientific, but this is an INDICATOR pointing to a huge discrepancy.)
OK, assuming the above, why is my foreign royalty more than 20X’s greater than my digital royalties this qtr? That’s a fair question, no? My placements are pretty well distributed across all venues. And BTW, that was for a very poor foreign quarter, and a very “good” (makes me wanna barf to even type that) digital royalty quarter. Normally it would be closer to 50X’s more.
Here’s the double headed problem IMO — 1.) BMI is moving money around where it doesn’t belong, AND, 2.) Netflix, et al are not paying their fair share. Put the two together and we have a serious problem as shows start to move over.
Solutions? Who knows, but SESAC is looking pretty good to me now. I would already have changed over, but missed my date by a couple of months.
Well, even with the libraries getting several placements on reality/streaming shows, I can’t imagine that is exactly a cash cow for libraries either. Seems like a lot of work even with several placements to make it worth their while, so we composers are not the only ones taking the hit. Or am I wrong. That said I know where my music sits for now and keep aspiring to hopefully bigger and better things.
Composers who I feel bad for are the guys doing the orchestral type scores that seems to require more planning/time then some minimal rock or tension cues. Beside really trying to make my stuff sound as good as I possibly can (really I do) I am asking myself what can I do within a track that makes it stand out/special.
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