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FYI

Mercuriadis's 'Hot Seat' Interview Hits On An Uncomfortable Truth

In the most recent Celebrity Access feature, In the Hot Seat with Larry LeBlanc, global music titan Merck Mercuriadis tackles a thorny and often unspoken issue that plays into creators getting

Mercuriadis's 'Hot Seat' Interview Hits On An Uncomfortable Truth

By External Source

In the most recent Celebrity Access feature, In the Hot Seat with Larry LeBlanc, global music titan Merck Mercuriadis tackles a thorny and often unspoken issue that plays into creators getting the short end of the stick in the so-called ‘value gap’ chain in a lengthy interview that offers a fresh perspective on the bankability of copyrights. 


… Here’s what is not being said. When we look at the past 5 years of reporting, it would be fair to summarize it as neither Spotify nor Apple pay enough. That, to the greatest respect to the music industry, is not the full truth. Of course, we believe what Spotify pays currently or what Apple pays currently (for songs) is anemic to where we want it to be. But that’s not the truth.

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In terms of the songwriting community, the truth is that Spotify and Apple are keeping 30% of the money in exchange for the service that they provide. That is not a bad price to pay for the service that they provide. What is not fair is the split between recorded music and songs. And what is not fair is the influence that Sony, Universal, and Warner, as the three big recorded music companies, have over (their affiliated publishing companies).

Sony, Universal, and Warner which should be the three biggest advocates for songs because they are the three biggest song companies, but they cannot advocate to the degree that they should because they are owned by recorded music.

With recorded music (companies), you have 4/5th of the money going that way. They make a huge margin and, in general, they own the act (their recorded catalogs) in perpetuity; and then on the song side of the business, you’ve got 1/5th of the money going that way. They (affiliated major publishers) make a small margin in relative terms, and they don’t own the assets in perpetuity.

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– The complete interview can be found online here.

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Cowboys Fringants
Cowboys Fringants
Cowboys Fringants
Chart Beat

Les Cowboys Fringants Debut ‘Merci ben!’ on the Billboard Canada AC Airplay Chart

The track from the Quebec band enters at No. 30 over a year after its release, picking up steam on the radio airwaves. Ariane Moffatt's “Jouer” also reaches a new peak, marking the second consecutive week with two charting French songs.

French-language music makes its mark on the Canadian charts this week.

Les Cowboys Fringants have made their latest Billboard debut with their song “Merci ben!” which arrives at No. 30 on the Canada AC chart for May 10. The country-folk track finds the band thanking its fans while reminiscing on its beginnings and milestones, from playing small bars to sold-out arenas. The track’s title is Quebec jargon for “Thank you very much!”

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