In its Q4 distribution today, UK music licensing company PPL will make a payment of £41.8 million (-2.1% from £42.7 million in 2020) to 124,000 performers and recording rightsholders (+11% from 112,000 in 2020), either as direct members of PPL or indirectly through other collective management organisations (CMOs). These monies were collected by PPL for the use of recorded music in the UK and internationally. Across all distributions made in 2021, of both international and UK revenue, PPL has paid out £228.7 million (-12.1% from £260.2 million in 2020) to 147,000 performers and recording rightsholders (+9% from 135,000 in 2020), the highest annual total to date of direct and indirect members receiving a payment.

This record total reflects the important technological and operational investments made by PPL and the neighbouring rights industry over the last decade. PPL has one of the most comprehensive repertoire databases in the world, holding detailed performer and recording rightsholder information on more than 20 million recordings, supporting PPL in maximising the royalty revenue it collects and distributes.

Also included in this Q4 payment is £0.3 million from PPL’s sister company VPL which licenses music videos when they are played in public or broadcast on TV.

This is also the seventh year that non-featured performers active in the 1960s have received supplementary remuneration administered by PPL for Copyright Term Extension (see notes below). Over 8,000 performers from the UK and around the world received supplementary remuneration allocations in this distribution.

Peter Leathem, PPL Chief Executive Officer, said: “It is fantastic to see PPL pay so many performers and recording rightsholders in a calendar year. For years we have constantly improved our systems and technology, ensuring royalty payments to our members are maximised. Today’s announcement is a testament to this hard work and the industry-leading operation we have here at PPL. As we continue to navigate the pandemic and its impacts, we will keep on representing and fighting for the rights of those that create recorded music, helping them to get paid when their music is played.”