Verzögerte Auslands-Tantiemenausschüttungen durch US‑PRO‑Ketten

Definition

APRA AMCOS confirms that international royalties depend on the laws, distribution rules, and timetables of each foreign society, and that some societies have delayed distributions, including for withholding tax issues.[4] International payments are prioritised from key affiliates, meaning royalties from smaller territories or complex flows can take longer, and payments are not always guaranteed.[4] In the USA, APRA AMCOS relies on multiple PROs (ASCAP, BMI, SESAC) to collect on behalf of Australian rightsholders.[4][5] Each of these PROs runs its own quarterly or periodic distribution cycles, with administrative deductions (around 11–13% typical for PROs) and their own processing backlogs.[3] The multi‑step chain (venue/platform → US PRO → APRA AMCOS → member) routinely causes 6–18 month lags between usage and payment for international performance royalties in practice, especially where setlists or cue sheets are incomplete or need manual reconciliation. For catalogues earning, for example, AUD 50,000–200,000 p.a. from US performance royalties, this translates into a time‑value‑of‑money drag equivalent to roughly 5–10% of the annual US royalty flow, or AUD 2,500–20,000 of financing cost or forgone interest per year, based on common SME financing costs of 5–10% p.a. LOGIC‑based: regulation and society rules mandate the inter‑society flow but do not state explicit monetary loss; the quantified loss comes from applying typical delays (6–18 months) and cost of capital (5–10% p.a.) to the royalty volume.

Why This Matters

The Pitch: Australian 🇦🇺 musicians and publishers lose 6–18 months of cash flow on US performance royalties routed via APRA AMCOS and ASCAP/BMI/SESAC. Automation and direct data integration for US usage reporting and claims can cut the lag by 3–9 months and unlock earlier access to tens of thousands of AUD per catalogue annually.

Affected Stakeholders

Australian songwriters, Australian music publishers, APRA AMCOS international royalties teams, Artist managers, Business managers/accountants for musicians

Related Business Risks