We conduct licencing and royalty reviews and investigations across the music, film, sports and technology industries.
Look at it this way –
A royalty audit requested by an artist, producer or songwriter on for example their publisher or record company is not an allegation that there has been negligence or dishonesty; to the contrary it is good business practice and should be standard practice of any serious player in the industry.
New technology is moving at such a speed that contracts that were entered into just a few years ago have not contemplated some current newly developed revenue streams.
Of course the stories are well known of rights holders being forced to sue many years later for unpaid royalties. Unfortunately this is also the source of some our work. In some circumstances you may have provided a licence your work to someone who has in turn sold or transferred it to another (and in turn to yet any other) over the years and along the way your interest lost or diminished. Because copyright last longer that the developers life it is the surviving family that may be required to investigate and to recover unaccounted royalties. In 2004 the New York Attorney General published a re report estimating that approximately $50m of unpaid royalties was held in record company accounts and not paid simply because of outdated contact details of songwriters.
What we do
Look at it this way –
- Are you are entitled to royalties for your work – yes?
- Do you accept that you are receiving all and proper entitlements;
- possible,
- unlikely; or
- certain,
- that some royalties streams are not filtering to you;
- in full; or
- correctly, or
- at all,
- whether by
- oversight; or
- by design.
A royalty audit requested by an artist, producer or songwriter on for example their publisher or record company is not an allegation that there has been negligence or dishonesty; to the contrary it is good business practice and should be standard practice of any serious player in the industry.
New technology is moving at such a speed that contracts that were entered into just a few years ago have not contemplated some current newly developed revenue streams.
Of course the stories are well known of rights holders being forced to sue many years later for unpaid royalties. Unfortunately this is also the source of some our work. In some circumstances you may have provided a licence your work to someone who has in turn sold or transferred it to another (and in turn to yet any other) over the years and along the way your interest lost or diminished. Because copyright last longer that the developers life it is the surviving family that may be required to investigate and to recover unaccounted royalties. In 2004 the New York Attorney General published a re report estimating that approximately $50m of unpaid royalties was held in record company accounts and not paid simply because of outdated contact details of songwriters.
What we do
- Licencing and royalty desk top reviews
- Agreement reviews
- Co-coordinating and briefing of Auditors in full audits
- Royalty summaries
- Royalty Litigation
- Class action claim analysis
- Negotiations of back-payment
- Royalty, Commissions and Recoupment clause interpretation and advice
