ICE and SoundCloud reach a multi-territory licensing agreement
ICE and SoundCloud reach a multi-territory licensing agreement for GEMA, STIM and PRS for Music repertoire.
ICE and SoundCloud are pleased to announce that they have reached an agreement for a new multi-territory licence.
This follows the previous agreement reached between SoundCloud and PRS for Music which covered the use of its repertoire since SoundCloud’s launch.
In 2015, the launch of the ICE processing and licensing hub brought together online rights for the combined repertoires of GEMA (Germany), STIM (Sweden) and PRS for Music (UK) under one company.
This new ICE agreement covers SoundCloud services available across Europe including the recently launched SoundCloud Go subscription and ad-supported offerings available in the UK, Ireland and France. The agreement also brings together the combined repertories of the ICE partners with state of the art processing and matching capabilities and the most comprehensive copyright database in Europe which will, for the first time, allow ICE partners to receive royalties when their combined 250,000 songwriter, composer and publisher members’ works are used by SoundCloud.
The rights covered under this new agreement will help accelerate SoundCloud’s continued development and further launch of its subscription and ad funded services across more territories in Europe to the benefit of all creators.
Working in partnership with ICE, SoundCloud continues to make significant strides towards improving the quality of data delivered to rightsholders. It now offers its users the functionality to add a wide range of industry recognised metadata to uploaded content, thus driving accuracy and enabling the ICE processing hub to maximize the royalties it passes back to PRS for Music, GEMA, STIM, and their members.
The deal with SoundCloud marks another significant step forward as ICE continues to work to simplify multi-territory licensing for the benefit of rightsholders and digital music service providers alike; we are delighted to welcome SoundCloud as a licensee.
We’re pleased to have reached yet another agreement that enables us to continue to build a place for voracious lovers of music and all forms of creative audio content, whilst ensuring rights holders’ work is rewarded and respected. The agreement with ICE adds to the growing number of deals that expand our already expansive catalogue of unique content, and strengthen our connected community of creators, listeners and curators who are fuelled by their genuine passion for music and creativity.
About SoundCloud
SoundCloud, launched in 2008 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, is the leading audio platform that gives users unprecedented access to the world’s largest community of music & audio creators. With its continued ambition to unmute the web, SoundCloud allows everyone to discover original music & audio, connect with each other and share the sounds they hear. In addition, sound creators can use the platform to instantly record, upload and share sounds across the internet, as well as receive detailed stats and feedback from the SoundCloud community. For more information, go to: SoundCloud.com
About ICE
ICE, launched in 2015, offers a flexible suite of services and has been developed from best-in-class technologies that delivers unparalleled economies of scale, speed, efficiency, accuracy and business intelligence reporting. It is the fruition of a partnership between Gema, Stim and PRS for Music, that harnesses years of combined experience in collective management, servicing and which is shaping the digital market from the outset.
The benefits are far reaching, offering solutions to all European rightsholders. The economies of scale and increased efficiencies will deliver cost saving benefits to all. The hub offers transformative benefits to new and smaller music repertoires as inclusion into the core licence enables the potential for greater access to DSPs.
About PRS for Music
PRS for Music is a world-leading music collective management organisation representing the rights of more than 165,000 talented songwriters, composers and music publishers around the globe. Headquartered in the UK, it works diligently on behalf of its members to grow and protect the value of their rights. With a focus on innovation and integrity, PRS for Music is redefining the global standard for music royalties to ensure creators are paid whenever their musical compositions and songs are streamed, downloaded, broadcast, performed and played in public. In 2022, PRS for Music collected £964m and paid out £836.2m in royalties. prsformusic.com
