Digital music retailing has just gotten a lot simpler. A memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between the recording labels and music publishers on Friday has streamlined the process of acquiring digital music rights.
Sandy Monteiro, Recording Industry Association of Malaysia (RIM) chairman said: “It is a blanket agreement between the publishers and labels to simplify the rights process.
“Prior to this MoU, a digital music retailer would have to sign about 15 different contracts with various labels and publishers from 27 different countries for the rights to a song. Now they just have to sign one,” he said.
Monteiro explained that the old way of digital retailing could take up to months on end and run up a digital retailer's legal fees. “If one legal contract is RM1,000, this could add up to quite a substantial sum,” he said.
The MoU is a step towards creating a one-stop centre for digital rights, said Monteiro.
“A bricks-and-mortar music retailer does not have to worry about whether he has the necessary rights to sell a CD. We’re trying to transfer this (kind of) simplicity into the digital world,” he said.
According to him, the record labels and publishers have been in discussion for five years and have decided to put aside all the agendas for the good of the business.
Monteiro claimed that Malaysia is the first country in South-East Asia to come up with such an initiative. “Other countries are watching us closely. The publishers and labels in Malaysia have been discussing this for years, where else most other countries haven’t even started,” he said.
This MoU not only solves the problems of the past but also opens up new frontiers for the future, Monteiro said.
According to RIM, digital music sales amounts to 25% of the music industry, with a value of RM20mil. The three major recording labels, Warner, Song BMG and Warner, are among those that signed the MoU.
Get Your Free eBooks Here!!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment