A Glastonbury performance from The Last Dinner Party, one of the acts for which PPL collects international royalties. Photo Credit: Raph_PH
The U.K.’s Phonographic Performance Limited (PPL) has announced a nearly $22 million Q3 2024 international royalties distribution, which it says is the largest third-quarter payout since 2020.
PPL just recently disclosed the details of its latest payment, which went out on September 30th and, as noted, encompassed compensation from the public use of recordings in non-domestic markets. Previously, though, June saw the entity make a payment of over $132.64 million/£100 million (for U.K. and global usages alike) for the first time.
Shifting back to the newer payout, the £16.5 million (currently $21.88 million) at hand marks an approximately 30% year-over-year increase and includes $3.05 million (£2.3 million) from the music-video-focused VPL. 55 global CMOs contributed to the sum, and the Indian Singers’ and Musicians’ Rights Association-partnered PPL pointed to particular growth throughout Asia.
Elaborating on the third-quarter results, PPL director of international Laurence Oxenbury touted the global agreements his organization has in place.
“We are proud to make this record payment to our members who invest so much of their talent, creativity, and time into recording music to be enjoyed by people around the world,” relayed the longtime PPL higher-up.
“Through our collaboration with over 110 collective management organisations globally, we are helping ensure performers and recording rightsholders get paid for their music when it is played in markets where public performance rights exist,” Oxenbury concluded.
Looking ahead to the remainder of 2024, PPL is set to make its final distribution of the year, encompassing international and domestic revenue alike, on December 17th. On the compositional side, PRS for Music is expected to send out its second-to-last member payment of the year on October 15th, per the appropriate website.
Beyond that forthcoming distribution, 2024 headlines haven’t been entirely positive for PRS, which was over the summer named in a lawsuit filed by Pace Rights Management, King Crimson founder Robert Fripp, and The Jesus and Mary Chain’s Jim and William Reid over alleged transparency shortcomings, admin rates, and more.
The legal dispute quickly devolved into a public war of words, with PRS firing back against the claims in a detail-oriented open letter and then receiving a separate open letter in response. While litigation from across the pond is comparatively difficult to track, it’ll be worth keeping an eye out for updates (and a possible resolution) across the final quarter of 2024.
