YouTube extended its path towards becoming a hub for musicians to publish new material Tuesday. The video-sharing site announced that it has reached deals with nine different music publishing houses that will make it easier for content providers to profit when videos using their compositions are posted on the site.
The deals—reached with BMG Rights Management, Christian Copyright Solutions, ABKCO Music, Inc., Songs Music Publishing, Words & Music, Copyright Administration, Music Services, Reservoir Media Management, and Songs of Virtual—will allow users to post videos that feature a significantly greater number of songs than previously permissible.
In turn, YouTube will redirect a portion of the profits (believed to be 15 percent, as per last August’s settlement between YouTube and the National Music Publishers Association) made from advertising on those videos to the rights holders of the songs.
Elizabeth Moody, the head of strategic partner development at YouTube Music, wrote that the deals will allow for Google—YouTube’s parent company—to monetize nearly all of the user-generated videos with music on YouTube.
“When these publishers allow YouTube to run ads alongside user generated videos that incorporate their compositions, the publishers, the songwriters they represent, and the record labels and artists using their compositions all make money,” Moody added. “[Those artists] can reinvest in their careers and keep making great music, and the music industry can thrive.”
Most of the material made available through these deals will come from artists that aren’t exactly household names, though Moody did stress that the deal with BMG Rights Management allows for users to include songs from artists like Adele, Cee Lo Green, Foo Fighters, and the Rolling Stones.
Photo via YouTube
