NEW YORK & OAKLAND, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Pandora (NYSE:P), the world's most powerful music discovery platform, and SONGS Music Publishing, the No. 1 independent co-publisher by market share, today announced a multi-year licensing agreement for SONGS catalog of musical works. This direct publishing deal creates business benefits for Pandora, while modernizing and equalizing compensation for SONGS and its songwriters in the U.S.
"Now is the time to move past the over-regulation of songwriter rights and towards a market-based approach to streaming music,” said SONGS founder and CEO Matt Pincus. “This agreement is a big step forward in a long conversation about fair and equitable compensation for all songwriters and publishers. I value Pandora's commitment to treating all songwriters and publishers equally and look forward to a new chapter with them."
"Pandora has a long-standing commitment to independent songwriters," said Brian McAndrews, chief executive officer of Pandora. "This agreement with SONGS underscores that commitment and demonstrates our shared belief that all publishers and songwriters should receive equal treatment. Pandora is a leader in the space and we continue to improve value to music publishers and songwriters – a positive step for the entire industry.”
While specific terms of the multi-year agreement are confidential, the companies worked together to build an innovative approach to publisher economics. The deal allows SONGS to obtain its goal of delivering improved performance royalties for its songwriters while Pandora will benefit from greater rate certainty and the ability to add new flexibility to the company's product offering over time. The public performance royalties Pandora also pays to rights holders of master recordings are not affected by this agreement.
ABOUT PANDORA
Pandora is the world's most powerful music discovery platform - a place where artists find their fans and listeners find music they love. We are driven by a single purpose: unleashing the infinite power of music by connecting artists and fans, whether through earbuds, car speakers, live on stage or anywhere fans want to experience it. Our team of highly trained musicologists analyze hundreds of attributes for each recording which powers our proprietary Music Genome Project®, delivering billions of hours of personalized music tailored to the tastes of each music listener, full of discovery, making artist/fan connections at unprecedented scale. Founded by musicians, Pandora empowers artists with valuable data and tools to help grow their careers and connect with their fans.
www.pandora.com | Pandora Blog | Pandora LinkedIn | @PandoraPulse
ABOUT SONGS MUSIC PUBLISHING
SONGS Music Publishing is the world’s leading contemporary independent music publishing company. Its roster of contemporary songwriters includes such acclaimed artists as The Weeknd, Lorde, Diplo, and DJ Mustard. Regarded as the songwriter’s publisher, SONGS creates unique opportunities for its writers via innovative deals with content buyers and a deep commitment to both A&R and Creative Licensing. With its headquarters in New York City and Los Angeles, SONGS also has offices in London and Nashville.
www.songspub.com | @songspublishing (Twitter) | @mpinc
