In 2021, $220 billion was spent on global content, a 14% increase from the previous year, with streaming platforms investing heavily in exclusive programming.
Composers and songwriters face unsustainable terms with companies like Netflix, who offer buyout contracts in the form of direct licenses, often forfeiting future royalties and rights to their work.
Composers typically earn more revenue from performance royalties than upfront fees, but the cost of recording a score can often exceed initial earnings.
Streaming royalties impact more than just film score creators, with movie and TV producers licensing more compositions and recordings than ever before.
Composers have been raising concerns over low royalty earnings, with even high-profile composers like Hans Zimmer expressing worries about the future of revenue in the streaming era.
The collective power of composer organizations has successfully defused similar plans by companies like Discovery Networks, ensuring that U.S. channels will remain operating under the traditional PRO performing rights model.