Daniel Lang has been promoted to the new role of VP, International Digital Licensing & Society Relations at Warner Chappell Music, the music publishing arm of Warner Music Group.

In this position, Lang will continue to be based in London and report to Guy Moot, Co-Chair and Chief Executive of Warner Chappell Music. He will also work closely with the publisher’s local Managing Directors and Financial Directors in territories worldwide, as well as Natalie Madaj, Warner Chappell Music’s SVP, Global Digital.

The hugely respected Jo Smith will be stepping down as Warner Chappell Music’s International Director of Society and Industry Affairs in December, leaving the company to pursue new opportunities.

The publisher has taken the opportunity to directly harness its digital expertise in its relationship with collection societies internationally, as the vast majority of revenue for its songwriters now comes from online services. It will leverage both areas to achieve the best results for its writers and pursue a more commercial approach to society relations, especially in regards to distribution policies, including the handling of residual royalties.

Daniel Lang says : “I’m excited to be stepping up into this new role. I look forward to working with the collection societies to further speed up payments to our writers and make the whole ecosystem more transparent and efficient. I’m so grateful to Jo for taking the time to work with me through this transition; I’ve learned a lot from her that I’ll certainly be putting to good use. And, of course, alongside Natalie and the brilliant Digital team at WCM, I’ll be continuing to focus on how we can tap new opportunities to connect our writers’ songs with fans around the world.”

Guy Moot adds: “Daniel actually pitched the idea of this combined role and we were delighted to take him up on it. Our writers have benefited hugely from the innovative approach he’s taken to digital licensing and they’re now set to reap the rewards from him taking charge of our relationship with the societies.

“I also want to pay tribute to the amazing Jo Smith, who is moving on to take up new challenges. She’s been a key member of our team for many years and we wish her all the best for the future.”

Lang moves into his new role after serving as Vice President, Digital Licensing, EMEIA for Warner Chappell Music. During his time at the publisher, he’s expanded the scope of its multi-territory licensing strategy and strengthened relationships with key partners such as Amazon, Deezer, Facebook, Spotify and YouTube, in addition to executing a more proactive strategy in emerging markets to open up new opportunities for Warner Chappell writers.

He joined Warner Chappell Music in 2017, moving over from PRS for Music, where he’d also specialised in digital licensing.

Lang holds a master’s degree from the University of Warwick.