28/11/2021
Sat, 27 Nov 2021 08:59:43 GMT
For most people around the world, the music industry represents glamour, fame, riches and influence. On the inside though it is famously opaque, litigious and corrupt. If South Africa is to create a vibrant local industry that will benefit aspirant musicians, then far more transparency is needed.
Whoever controls the money, controls the industry. And part of the reason why the local music industry has declined over the last decade, is because of the confused and contradictory reporting and lack of accountability around the money that is being made.
The music industry, globally, is regulated by the quaintly-named International Federation of Phonographic Industries (IFPI), established in 1933 and based in Switzerland. It administers music performance royalties across Africa, except in South Africa, where the music royalties are administered mostly by Recording Industry South Africa (RISA).
South Africa has ended up with a number of different reporting and collecting agencies: SAMPRA collects royalties for music performance; RISA/RAV collects royalties for videos; SAMRO collects royalties for published music, such as composers and publishers.
The sources of music royalties include TV and radio, live performances, online streaming, and restaurants and pubs that play music. This complex reporting and collecting network leads to duplication and a lot of confusion.
“The Department of Trade and Industry has come up with new proposals,” says copyright lawyer Owen Dean, “but they do not understand the music industry and therefore all that these will do is add another layer of bureaucracy to an already over-bureaucratised field. There are a number of collection agencies, all doing the same job and charging high fees. Why this is necessary, is a mystery.”
A few statistics will show just how bad things are:
SAMPRA is holding onto more than R460 million of undistributed revenue (according to its latest financial statements). These are royalti
