Evolution in music publishing: economic strategies, business models and copyright.
Lead Research Organisation:
Bournemouth University
Department Name: Faculty of Management
Abstract
Every enterprise in the creative industries has concerns and aspirations about the impact of new technologies, what business models it should adopt and what protection can and should be offered by copyright law. Music publishing is an old established industry that has adapted to successive technological and institutional changes, especially copyright law, by adopting different strategies and business models. While producing essentially the same product - namely services for access to composed music - it moved from one form of exploitation to another: from selling sheet music to securing performances, to licensing sound recordings, to syndication through radio and TV broadcasting, to advertising licensing, and to the assembly and exploitation of back catalogue. How it has survived and what historical and economic factors can explain those adaptations make for an exemplary case study to understand the future of creative industries in the digital age.
The research focuses on the economic history of the publishing industry over a period of time of two centuries. Its objective is to understand the process of adaptation to many-sided changes (technological, institutional and economic). The purpose is to shed light on how to react to the opportunities and threats posed by digitisation and what combination of market-based strategies and public policies seems appropriate to achieve sustained growth.
Our research method consists of selecting a number of long lasting works/titles and tracing their product cycle according to certain key variables. The sample includes a large number of works that have been exploited over a long period of time in different technological and institutional contexts and across different jurisdictions. The research traces the product cycle of each musical work by using a series of parameters, such as form of publication, changes of ownership, marketing strategies, performance history, business model, and so on. It then tries to explain the changes in the forms of exploitation by applying a multivariate analysis which takes into account a series of factors, like costs and revenues, impact of technological change, complementarity and substitutability between product forms (eg. live performance vs. sound recording), and the impact of legislative change (eg. extension of copyright terms). The research aims at responding to a straightforward question: What factors explain the economic survival of the music publishing industry across technological, economic and institutional changes?
The project addresses this question by adopting an inter-disciplinary approach which combines cultural economics and copyright law specialists with particular expertise in the historical development of the music industry.
The research focuses on the economic history of the publishing industry over a period of time of two centuries. Its objective is to understand the process of adaptation to many-sided changes (technological, institutional and economic). The purpose is to shed light on how to react to the opportunities and threats posed by digitisation and what combination of market-based strategies and public policies seems appropriate to achieve sustained growth.
Our research method consists of selecting a number of long lasting works/titles and tracing their product cycle according to certain key variables. The sample includes a large number of works that have been exploited over a long period of time in different technological and institutional contexts and across different jurisdictions. The research traces the product cycle of each musical work by using a series of parameters, such as form of publication, changes of ownership, marketing strategies, performance history, business model, and so on. It then tries to explain the changes in the forms of exploitation by applying a multivariate analysis which takes into account a series of factors, like costs and revenues, impact of technological change, complementarity and substitutability between product forms (eg. live performance vs. sound recording), and the impact of legislative change (eg. extension of copyright terms). The research aims at responding to a straightforward question: What factors explain the economic survival of the music publishing industry across technological, economic and institutional changes?
The project addresses this question by adopting an inter-disciplinary approach which combines cultural economics and copyright law specialists with particular expertise in the historical development of the music industry.
Planned Impact
The major academic impact of the project will be to open a series of new perspectives on the economic history of copyright. The shift to study the music publishing industry's survival strategies will show how significantly important for the development of creative industries has been the adaptation to new challenges and different ways to exploit music. In other words, the project will re-frame - broaden and deepen - the current intellectual property debate.
The project is also expected to have a significant impact beyond the academic community. Music industry is a crucial element of today's UK cultural industry, and of UK economy in general. To understand the long-run dynamics and 'survival strategies' adopted across two centuries will indirectly help identify pathways beyond the current 'digital crisis' of the UK music industry.
The project is also expected to have a significant impact beyond the academic community. Music industry is a crucial element of today's UK cultural industry, and of UK economy in general. To understand the long-run dynamics and 'survival strategies' adopted across two centuries will indirectly help identify pathways beyond the current 'digital crisis' of the UK music industry.
Publications

Bellido J
(2016)
Forensic Technologies in Music Copyright
in Social & Legal Studies

Bellido J
(2017)
Landmark Cases in Intellectual Property Law

Bellido, J.
'Music Copyright after Collectivisation'
in Journal of Law and Society

Borghi M
(2018)
Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Literature

Jose Bellido
(2016)
Music copyright after collectivisation
in Intellectual Property Quarterly

Ruth Towse
(2016)
Copyright Auctions and the Asset Value of a Copyright Work
in Review of Economic Research on Copyright Issues

Ruth Towse
(2016)
Copyright auctions and the asset value of copyright works
in Review of Economic Research on Copyright Issues

Towse R
(2017)
Economics of music publishing: copyright and the market
in Journal of Cultural Economics

Towse R
(2018)
Copyright Reversion in The Creative Industries: Economics and Fair Remuneration
in The Columbia Journal of Law & the Arts

Towse R
(2016)
Economics of music publishing: copyright and the market
in Journal of Cultural Economics
Title | Going for a song |
Description | Video animation and text for CopyrightUser.org, the online resource aimed at making UK copyright law accessible to creators, media professionals, entrepreneurs, students, and members of the public. The video animation tells the story of Tina and Ben, a music composer and a lyricist who create an original song and discuss how to market it. |
Type Of Art | Film/Video/Animation |
Year Produced | 2017 |
Impact | Too early to quantify the impact of this product. Copyrightuser.org has been supported by RCUK and is widely acclaimed by industry as a resource which is reliable, accurate and up-to-date. The contribution made to it by leading Copyright experts also accounts for its impact. |
URL | http://copyrightuser.org/going-for-a-song/ |
Description | There had been almost no previous work directly on the law and economics of publishing, though there is a small literature on musical composition and composers' relationships with publishers as well as histories of related organisations, such as the Performing Right Society. Our research added to this in two ways: by analysing the switch in business models from sales to rights management from an economic point of view and by exploring the legal aspects of the change to collectivisation of royalty collection. These changes were triggered by the advent of mass media - sound recording, radio etc - to which copyright law responded with the 1911 Copyright Act - and music publishers began to collect royalties from mechanical and performing rights. In terms of business models, a major change was in the adoption of royalty contracts, replacing the previous buy-out of copyright deals that had been the norm, particularly for song-writers, from the beginnings of music publishing. |
Exploitation Route | The Working Paper on Product Cycles in Music Publishing is intended as a resource (and a warning) for future researchers. More broadly, however, the underlying motive for the research is that historical experience of changes in technologies and copyright has resonance for our own times. We analysed the period in music publishing, namely, the turn of the 20th century, during which fundamental (exogenous) technological changes took place that profoundly affected the industry but which were beyond their control. There is a clear parallel with the impact of digitisation on other creative industries taking place now. Our research clearly showed that changes to business models were fundamental in the survival of music publishing as an industry. Those changes were in the changes to contracts with creators on the one hand and in collectivization of rights management on the other. As remuneration rights are a current topic in copyright for the creative industries, our research provides a solid basis for discussing them. |
Sectors | Creative Economy |
URL | https://microsites.bournemouth.ac.uk/cippm/2014/06/13/evolution-of-the-music-publishing-industry/ |
Description | The findings of this project have been used to contribute to the online resource "CopyrightUser.org", the RCUK-funded resource to make UK copyright law accessible to creators, media professionals, entrepreneurs, students, and members of the public. Specifically, the PI of this project has co-authored a video animation on music copyright contracts, as well as the accompanying text addressing how UK copyright law regulates different aspects of the journey of a song, from its creation to its distribution. |
Sector | Creative Economy |
Impact Types | Cultural Societal Economic |
Description | Copyrightuser.org |
Geographic Reach | National |
Policy Influence Type | Participation in a guidance/advisory committee |
Impact | Participation of Ruth Towse and Maurizio Borghi in the advisory committee of the educational tool "Copyright user" has made copyright more accessible to users. |
URL | http://copyrightuser.org |
Description | IP Kat |
Geographic Reach | National |
Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
URL | http://ipkitten.blogspot.co.uk/2015/12/cmon-cmon-music-publishing.html |
Title | British Library list of song titles 1880-1960 |
Description | List of song titles, publishers and prices made available in digital form by the Music Collections at the British Library. Data are analyzed by year in graph form. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Provided To Others? | No |
Impact | The database allows researchers to see the numbers of song titles deposited at the British Library. This is a resource open to any researchers via the British Library. |
Title | Database on Music Copyright Litigation (PRS) |
Description | We have produced a database comprising cases reported/unreported from the PRS archives. |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Provided To Others? | No |
Impact | The most immediate impact resulting from this database is one of the outputs that Bellido and Macmillan have submitted to the Journal of Law and Society (2016). |
Title | Primary Sources for a history of Music Copyright in the Twentieth-Century |
Description | This is a comprehensive list of locations of primary sources (archives, libraries, etc.) |
Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
Provided To Others? | No |
Impact | The database has assisted the researchers in carrying out analysis of case lasw |
Description | Collaboration with ASK research centre, Bocconi University |
Organisation | Bocconi University |
Country | Italy |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Analysis of data |
Collaborator Contribution | Archival information and data |
Impact | Working paper |
Start Year | 2014 |
Description | Bournemouth Workshop: Music Publishing, copyright and business models |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | A Workshop was organized at Bournemouth University on 4 June 2015. The purpose of the Workshop was to present the results of the research carried out so far and to discuss them with people from the relevant creative industries in order to determine the future development of the project. People from PRS, Music Publishing Association, the publishing industry attended the event. Programme 10.30 Welcome and Introduction to the aims and methods of the research project (Ruth Towse) 10.45 Maurizio Borghi (CIPPM) Brief history of copyright in music publishing 11.15 Fiona Macmillan (Birckbeck, University of London) and Jose Bellido (University of Kent): Novello and Boosey: Music Copyright and the PRS 12.15 Laura Forti (Bocconi University, Milan): Sull'ali dorate. History and geography of Verdi's earnings 13.15 Lunch 14.30 Hyojung Sun (CIPPM and University of Edimburgh) Impacts of changes in technology on music consumption 15 00 Ruth Towse (CIPPM and CREATe, University of Glasgow) Strategies, business models and copyright in UK publishing in the 20th century 16.00 Tea 16.15 Panel discussion: What can music publishing learn from its history? Chair: Georg von Graevenitz (Queen Mary, University of London). Participants: Graham Davies (PRS for Music), Harriet Finney (Music Publishers Association) and Nathalie Du Bois (6 Degrees Entertainment Group). 17.30 Wrap up and implications for further research 17.45 Drinks |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
URL | https://microsites.bournemouth.ac.uk/cippm/2015/06/04/music-publishing-copyright-and-business-method... |
Description | Conference on Copyright and the Circulation of Knowledge, Paris, 7 and 8 October 2016 by Prof. Fiona Macmillan: Paper entitled Copyright, musical labour and the regulation of public space |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | This conference seeks to bring together specialists of Great Britain from the eighteenth century to the present to explore the complex relationship between copyright and the circulation of knowledge. We welcome case studies that focus on a particular time period as well as papers that show how attitudes and practices have changed over time. Papers that bring past and present concerns into dialogue are especially welcome. Potential topics may include: - the economics of publishing in a given period or sector, and its effects on the circulation of knowledge; - the political, cultural, or philosophical underpinnings of public access to knowledge; - the strategies developed by authors or publishers to protect their intellectual property; - the perceived boundaries between legitimate and piratical publications; - the consequences of specific laws or institutional arrangements for the circulation of knowledge in different domains; - the use of historical examples in arguments about copyright and the public domain; - the different forms of publication developed to republish or recirculate existing works, whether authorized or not. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
URL | http://www.univ-paris3.fr/copyright-and-the-circulation-of-knowledge-358583.kjsp |
Description | EPIP Conference, Glasgow |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
Results and Impact | Presentation at EPIP (European Policy for Intellectual Property) Conference, University of Glasgow, 2 September 2015 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
URL | http://www.epip2015.org/ |
Description | London Workshop: Copyright and Business Models in Music Publishing |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | The Workshop was held on Wednesday 9 December 2015 at Birkbeck College, University of London. Programme 10.45 Coffee 10.55 Introduction to the research project and the Workshop 11.00 Chair: Ruth Towse Jose Bellido (University of Kent) and Fiona Macmillan (Birkbeck College, University of London). 'Music Copyright After Collectivisation'. 11.45 Chair: Fiona Macmillan Dennis Collopy (University of Herts) 'Digital Disruption and Disintermediation in the Music Publishing Industry'. 12.30 Lunch 13.30 Chair: Fiona Macmillan Kenny Barr (CREATe, University of Glasgow) and Ruth Towse (Bournemouth University and CREATe) 'Going for a Song: Copyright and Contracts in Music Publishing'. 14.15 Chair: Maurizio Borghi Richard Osborne (Middlesex University) 'That's the Joint: The Harmonisation of Words and Music in EU Law'. 15.00 Tea break 15.15 Chair: Jose Bellido Hyojung Sun and Ruth Towse (Bournemouth University) 'Researching Product Cycles in Published Music'. 16.00 Chair: Maurizio Borghi Panel discussion: 'Future research in music publishing. What does the industry want? What can academic researchers do?' Panellists: Chris Carey (MediaInsight), Martin Cloonan (University of Glasgow), Stephanie Dales (IPO), Jane Dyball (MPA), David Safir (AKM and formerly ASCAP), Jeremy Silver (Mediaclarity, MusicGlue and SupaPass). 16.45 Close. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2015 |
URL | https://microsites.bournemouth.ac.uk/cippm/2015/12/09/copyright-and-business-models-in-music-publish... |
Description | Presentation at Bournemouth University Business School |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
Results and Impact | Useful feedback from colleagues from the Business School Colleagues offered to follow up |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
URL | http://business.bournemouth.ac.uk/ |
Description | Presentation at CREATe All Hands Workshop, University of Glasgow, 15 September 2014 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
Results and Impact | Response from the audience was very favourable. We received valuable feedback from industry people. A further meeting was arranged with a collecting society. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
URL | http://www.create.ac.uk/blog/2014/07/02/create-all-hands-conference-glasgow-september-15-16th-2014/ |
Description | Working in Music Conference (University of Glasgow, 14-15 January 2016): Bellido and Macmillan presented the paper entitled Copyright and the Amalgamated Musicians' Union: 1914-1924 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | The conference was part of another research project, funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), on the social history of the Musicians' Union. Prof. Macmillan and Dr Bellido presented a paper on the particular conflict between the Performing Rights Society and the Union. This conflict, - we argued- which focussed on the PRS practice of "fixing fees" for the performance of musical works according to the size of the orchestra hired to play a musical work in a particular venue, was critical in shaping the emerging collective licensing regime for musical works. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2016 |
URL | http://www.muhistory.com/wp-content/uploads/Working-in-Music-programme.pdf |