Exploration Weekly - YouTube Shorts Creators, Rights Holders Monetized / US On-Demand Streams Up 12.2% in 2022 / 350+ Artists Write Letter to USCO

The team here at Exploration is looking back at some of our accomplishments in 2022. Watch a recap of last year and some exciting things we have for 2023 in a message recorded by CEO/Co-Founder of Exploration, Aaron Davis, below:

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In this newsletter:

• YouTube Shorts to Split Share of Ad Revenue Between Music Rights Holders and Creators from February 1
• U.S. On-Demand Streams Jumped by 12.2% in 2022 as Catalog Releases’ Listenership Share Continued to Grow, Report Shows
• Hundreds of Artists Push for Copyright Rule Change on Streaming Royalties: “We Stand Together”
• Apple Subscriptions Surpassed 900 Million in 2022, Per Execs, As Over 80% of Apple Music Subscribers Listened in Spatial Audio
• PRS Sues LIVENow Over Unlicensed Livestreams
• John Fogerty Regains Control Over Creedence Clearwater Revival Songs After Half-Century Fight

In a recent update by Alphabet, YouTube Shorts ad revenue will now be split between music rights holders and creators, starting February 1, based on the number of tracks used.

Domestic on-demand song streams (for audio as well as video) increased by 12.2% year over year in 2022 to hit 1.3 trillion, says a newly released 2022 year-end report from Luminate.

In a letter organized by the Music Artists Coalition, more than 350 artists, songwriters, managers and music lawyers urged the Copyright Office to grant final approval on a proposed termination rights rule that will allow songwriters to get paid their streaming royalties after regaining control of their music.

Now, the details...

Exploration Weekly - January 13, 2023
Compiled by Heidi Seo

YouTube Shorts to Split Share of Ad Revenue Between Music Rights Holders and Creators from February 1

YouTube parent Alphabet reported in a recent update that starting next month, music rights holders and creators will be able to receive a revenue share from advertisements on YouTube Shorts. The change, which takes effect on February 1, will split the revenue from views on Shorts between the Creator Pool and music partners based on the number of tracks used. The “music” eligible for a revenue share includes actual music audio or tracks, music videos, or other music content such as artist interviews. If a creator uploads a Short with one track, half of the revenue from the views will be allocated to the Creator Pool, while the other half will cover the costs of music licensing, YouTube explains.

U.S. On-Demand Streams Jumped by 12.2% in 2022 as Catalog Releases’ Listenership Share Continued to Grow, Report Shows

Global on-demand music streams (for audio as well as video) hiked by 25.6 percent to crack 5.3 trillion during 2022, according to the 2022 year-end report from Luminate. Domestic on-demand song streams (audio and video) increased by 12.2 percent year over year (YoY) in 2022 to hit 1.3 trillion, the document shows. Approximately 1.14 trillion of these streams derived from audio platforms (Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music among them), for a 12.1 percent YoY boost. Meanwhile, video’s global on-demand music streaming jumped by 31.2 percent YoY to account for the remaining 1.9 trillion, per the analysis.

Hundreds of Artists Push for Copyright Rule Change on Streaming Royalties: “We Stand Together”

Don Henley, Sheryl Crow, Sting and a slew of other musicians are throwing their support behind a new federal copyright rule aimed at making sure that songwriters who regain control of their music actually start getting paid their streaming royalties after they do so. The U.S. Copyright Office wants to overturn a policy adopted by the MLC that critics fear might lead to a bizarre outcome: Even after a writer uses their so-called termination right to take back control of their songs, royalties may continue to flow in perpetuity to the old publishers that no longer own them. In a letter Thursday organized by the Music Artists Coalition, more than 350 artists, songwriters, managers and music lawyers urged the Copyright Office to grant final approval for the proposed rule, warning that “music creators must not be deprived of the rights afforded to them by copyright law.”

Apple Subscriptions Surpassed 900 Million in 2022, Per Execs, As Over 80% of Apple Music Subscribers Listened in Spatial Audio

Apple’s services boasted approximately 900 million paid subscriptions at 2022’s end, according to the company, and specifically on Apple Music, 80 percent of users are said to have listened in spatial audio last year. These and other noteworthy stats came to light in a recently published year-end recap, as Apple prepares to unveil its Q1 FY 2023 earnings report in early February.

PRS Sues LIVENow Over Unlicensed Livestreams

UK collecting society PRS is suing livestreaming platform LIVENow over allegations it delivered a number of livestreamed shows without having the right licenses in place. According to Law360, in a lawsuit filed last month and just made public, PRS cites in particular the big Dua Lipa livestream in November 2020 which LIVENow delivered. It reckons that one show – which was also available on-demand for a time after the initial airing – was viewed in over 150 countries and attracted 285,000 ticket sales. To that end, it is also seeking an injunction ordering the livestreaming outfit to provide that data. And another injunction ordering LIVENow to refrain from livestreaming any future shows containing performances of songs PRS represents.

John Fogerty Regains Control Over Creedence Clearwater Revival Songs After Half-Century Fight

John Fogerty has gained worldwide control of his Creedence Clearwater Revival publishing rights after a half-century struggle. At a time when Fogerty’s peers such as Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan and Neil Young are selling their copyrights for hundreds of millions of dollars, the iconic Rock & Roll Hall of Famer has done the opposite: He recently bought a majority interest in the global publishing rights to his historic CCR song catalog from Concord for an undisclosed sum. Concord has owned the rights since 2004 when the company bought Saul Zaentz’s Fantasy Records. One of the first moves Concord made was to reinstate and increase Fogerty’s artist royalties, which Fogerty had relinquished to Zaentz in 1980 to get out of his Fantasy deal and had not received in 25 years.

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