Neighboring rights royalties are a fast growing revenue stream and too many artists are unaware of what they are and how to claim them. This may be as the United States does not currently recognize neighboring rights for recordings created in the US.
These rights refer to the ability to publicly perform or broadcast a sound recording as opposed to a performing right. PROs such as ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC collect performing rights to compensate the publisher and composers/writers, but not neighbouring rights which compensate the master owner and the performers on a master recording.
| Neighboring Rights | Publishing Rights | |
| Who Owns | Neighboring rights deal with sound recordings. Record labels and performing artists own the rights to sound recordings. | Publishing rights deal with musical compositions and songwriting. Publishers and composers/songwriters own those rights. |
| Who Collects | Record labels and performing artists collect neighboring rights royalties. | Composers/songwriters and publishers collect (performance royalties, mechanical royalties, etc.). |
| How | Neighbouring rights collection societies | PROs such as ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC |
| Examples | Radio outside the US Internet radio Satellite radio e.g. Sirius XM Cable TV music channels TV Clubs restaurants | Broadcast radio TV stations Cable radio Nightclubs, hotels, discos, and other establishments |
In the next post on the topic we will cover how to collect neighboring rights royalties.
