Global creators’ royalties down by €1bn – CISAC report

This is according to the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers (CISAC) 2021 Global Collections Report published today.

Total collections fell as lockdown measures saw live and public performance revenue shrink by nearly half (45.4%) globally. The decline in collections was partially offset by a hike in digital royalties, which saw increases in audio and video streaming consumption around the globe, as well as strong licensing activity by a number of CISAC member societies globally.

In Africa, royalty collections by CISAC member societies dropped to €63.9m in 2020, indicating a 20.1% decrease in all repertoires. The live and public performance sector suffered the biggest losses with collections falling by 28.3%, followed by TV and radio, which dropped 6.3%.

South Africa is still the biggest contributor of total collections in the region with 57%, while Algeria, Morocco and Côte d’Ivoire collectively contributed 27.7%. Algeria, however, reported a significant fall in royalties of 62.4%.

Digital and multimedia collections in the region decreased by 35.3% due to a sharp decrease in collections for ringtones in Algeria. The rest of Africa grew 15.3%. In South Africa, a 39.9% rise in digital alongside a 13.6% increase in broadcast royalties boosted total collections to €39m, representing a 10.5% spike.

CISAC says the improvement in digital collections in South Africa was partly driven by local collections society the Composers, Authors and Publishers Association (CAPASSO), which has been actively negotiating new digital mechanical licensing and reciprocal agreements with neighbouring societies such as COSBOTS in Botswana, as well as several smaller digital success stories in Malawi, Kenya and Guinea.

Private copying levies in Africa decreased by 16%, primarily due to a drastic decline in Algeria. Private copying continues to be a valuable and widely untapped collections stream for creators in the region, with nine countries having both remuneration and distribution structures in place. Malawi saw collections soar by 33.1% in 2020 following a change in legislation a year earlier.

Meanwhile, live and public performance collections in Africa decreased by 28.3%, with the survivial of many collective management organisations in smaller countries threatened by the impact of the pandemic. Revenue decreased by 80% in Madagascar and by more than 70% in Mauritius, Cameroon and Cape Verde. Globally, live and public performance collection fell by 45%, or €1.2bn.

Revenues from the use of musical works dropped by 10.7%, with 80% of this near-€1bn contraction experienced in Europe. Music collections in Asia-Pacific and North America, supported by higher digital shares, were able to better withstand the pandemic compared to other regions. Most of the bigger collecting countries saw significant drops in revenue, with Italy falling to €309m (35.1%), while the UK and France cumulatively dropped €274m.

Societies report that the decline in live music, in particular, has had a disproportionately negative impact on local member collections, while increased digital income tends to boost international revenues. Broadcast remains the largest source of music collections, despite falling by 4.4%. The decline of CD and video revenue continued with a 4.8% drop. Digital is the second-highest income stream, with digital collections growing 16.6% to €2.4bn.

Download the full CISAC report here.