Aussie Music Creators Received More Royalties Than Ever Before This Past Year

Music creators around the country have seen a significant rise in revenue over the past year, according to APRA AMCOS’ annual financial report.

The comprehensive report shows $410.9m in royalties paid out to songwriters, publishers and affiliated societies during the 2018-19 financial year, which was an increase of 13.2% on the year previous, with digital revenue accounting for $175.4m of that, marking a 30.4% year on year growth.

To highlight just how significant audio streaming has become to Australian creators and publishers, its revenue has increased 4,275% since 2013.

Meanwhile, live music revenue also saw a boost, increasing by 19% and surpassing $30m for the first time ever. The report also showed that live music revenue has grown by 81% over the past decade.

Overall, APRA AMCOS reported a record-breaking $471.8m in total revenue for the 2018-19 financial year, with 44,892 APRA members earning royalties in Australia and 16,720 members earning overseas royalties.

APRA AMCOS group revenue has more than doubled since the 2009-10 financial year in which it was $221.1m.

“This year, APRA AMCOS firmly laid the groundwork for how we will better serve our 103,000 members and over 150,000 licensees into the future – by listening to our members, by making life simpler for our licensees and by ensuring a world’s best service culture that is focused on efficiency and transparency,” APRA AMCOS Chief Executive Dean Ormston said.

“Australian and New Zealand composers, songwriters and artists are pushing new boundaries and kicking goals in a globally competitive environment and at a time when there is more music content than ever before.

“It’s so vitally important to support and connect our members to new opportunities and acknowledge their achievements — both locally and globally.”

Check out the below for a full revenue breakdown and head to the APRA AMCOS website for more details.