The Music Business
Copyright Societies: IPRS and PPL
How collecting societies license music to thousands of users like restaurants and radio stations and distribute royalties, and the debates about how they operate in India.
Imagine every café negotiating with every songwriter. Collecting societies solve this.
What they do
- License music to users like radio stations, restaurants, malls and event organisers.
- Collect fees.
- Distribute royalties to members.
Why they exist
They reduce transaction costs: one licence covers huge catalogues.
India’s societies
- IPRS (Indian Performing Right Society): for composers, lyricists and publishers.
- PPL (Phonographic Performance Limited): for sound recordings owned by labels.
- ISRA (Indian Singers’ Rights Association): for singers’ performer rights.
2012 amendment
The Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012 gave lyricists and composers an inalienable right to royalties from uses beyond films, a win led by Javed Akhtar.
Debates
- Transparency in distribution.
- Disputes over tariffs charged to events and restaurants.
- Registration requirements under the Copyright Act.
Economic view
Collective licensing is efficient but creates market power, needing oversight.
A café buys one licence to play background music from vast catalogues, instead of contacting thousands of rights holders.
Cafés and events need licences for recorded music.
- Collecting societies license music and distribute royalties.
- They reduce transaction costs.
- IPRS, PPL and ISRA operate in India.
- The 2012 amendment secured royalties for lyricists and composers.
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