A record company can but don't have to have their own publishing company. If they do it should be a separate business entity.
Who ever owns the copyright is the publisher and has the rights to control the licensing and collect royalties. This is not necessarily the writer. [Ref.]
To start a publishing company, first map out how all royalties are generated, who collects them, where they come from, who gets them, etc. Learn about royalties owed to record label, publisher, artist, composer.
How To Profit From Your Music Publishing Company In 2024
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From This:
...there are 4 buckets in the music industry when it comes to copyright/publishing:
Bucket 1: Writer/Composer/Lyricist
Bucket 2: Publisher
Bucket 3: Artist
Bucket 4: Master Owner/Record Company
Each of these buckets receive their OWN income streams, and most music rights organizations and royalty collection agencies will pay one or two of these buckets DIRECTLY based on the splits that you provide when you register the songs/tracks to the entities. This is why it is imperative to #1 have these splits spelled out and agreed upon on paper prior to release and #2 register the songs/tracks with ALL entities BEFORE release.
Obviously, TuneRegistry is the only product on the market designed to help you with this at an indie artist price point.
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Publishing royalties are collected by:
ASCAP/BMI (they keep a percentage)
Harry Fox Agency (they keep a percentage)
The MLC (pass-through, you get 100%)
MusicReports (pass-through, you get 100%)
It's not too overwhelming to do. A major publisher uses these same organizations!
[Ref.](video)
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Publishing Administrators
songtrust, 3Tone Publishing, TuneRegistry - publishing administrators
- set up fees and take a percent of royalties
-- songtrust (publishing administration $100 = 15-20%)
- they don't own the copyright, you do
- collects international publishing royalties
- songtrust is to be owned by Universal
[Ref.]
[Ref.]
TuneRegistry is a music rights administration platform that saves small to medium-sized rightsholders time and money by simplifying and streamlining music registrations and metadata delivery. Setup your catalog once and then deliver songs, recordings and releases to our growing network of partners, all in one place.
NMPA represents and litigates for all music publishers and songwriters
AIMP represents independent music publishers
Songwriters of North America. We defend songwriters.
How To Profit From Your Music Publishing Company (video): Document your metadata, tracking numbers (ISRC, UPC), splits, etc., use disco.ac for seeking sync placement, create social media accounts,
Important Reading
Songtrust Modern Guide to Music Publishing
References:
Music Publishing- Interview with 3Tone Publishing**
How Independent Music Publishing Works**
Everything You NEED To Know About Music Publishing
How To Set Up A Publishing Company For Music 2023
Become A Music Publisher
How To Set Up A Publishing Company For Music 2024
Music Publishing EASY Guide 2025
Publishing Rights vs Master Rights: Understanding the Key Differences