Jamaica Music Society to invest in costly software
Jamaica Music Society (JAMMS) wants to invest in software costing some US$100,000 next year to better monitor radio so its members can annually earn J$10 million by 2012.
They want to invest in an automatic airplay monitoring system versus the written playlists produced by many radio stations which JAMMS said is fallible. This will “significantly” reduce the time to collect and distribute to JAMMS members.
“The technology exists and we are going to take advantage of it so our members’ works can be more fairly dealt with,” said JAMMS general manager Evon Mullings in an Observer interview, adding that it would enhance accuracy. “As it stands now we have to rely on paper based playlists and that can result in errors along the way. Some songs are not captured at the radio stations and some written playlists are (illegible), so it is prone to error.”
JAMMS represents professionals which own music masters including producers, sound system and record label owners. There are currently some 165 members including large labels such as Taxi, GeeJam Studios, Arrows Recording, Di Genius Records, Steeley and Clevie Productions, Krush Proof Music, Main Street Records. JAMMS, incorporated in 2006, made its first payment this month but declined to say the total funds to be distributed, arguing that in “2012 the society will come into its own…and we expect to distribute $10 million a year.”
Mullings said that performance rights organisations generally commence royalty distribution three to four years after setting up operations. JAMMS will also make overseas payments for foreign songs played on radio. However, this year, payments will not exceed 50 per cent for overseas rights holders he said.
“We have achieved what we set out to achieve and what all performance rights organisations are established to do, and that is to collect and distribute royalties, and continue to further solidify operations,” he said.
For the future, JAMMS wants to increase its membership to include all the major local record labels and producers.
“This will allow us to operate more effectively within the market place by commanding greater presence and bargaining power to ensure that music users are being compliant in the use of repertoire under our control,” he said.
Prior to JAMMS the owners of masters would register with PPL in the UK or Soundexchange in the US to administer their rights.
“But what we found is that very few had become members of these societies,” Mullings said. “Many producers and owners have been forgoing this line of income for years, probably because of lack of awareness.”
JAMMS greatest challenge is non-compliance as bars and events are either unaware or unwilling to pay for usage of music. He said that small bars could be charged some $7,200 annually whilst events charged roughly four per cent of revenues. “(But) it must be noted that the four per cent is baseline, invariably what is actually charged is a lower amount, as the fee is normally negotiated,” he added.
JAMMS said it continues to negotiate with promoters and bar owners for royalties.
“We are operating in a highly non-compliant society, at a time when performance royalty has become more important to record companies and labels due to a major and consistent downturn in traditional record sales, which has been the lifeblood of record labels historically. With this change in the global music market and business model of record labels, performance rights income will continue to grow in importance as a supplement to the income streams of record labels,” he added.