SABAM and Google Sign Innovative Digital Licensing Agreement for Music

SABAM has just concluded an important agreement with GOOGLE. Thanks to this agreement,

Google is now licensed for the music repertoire represented directly by SABAM and will pay

SABAM directly the royalties for its digital music service of songs in the whole of Europe, and

even beyond the European Union’s borders.

Why is this contract innovative?

Until today, digital licences for the online uses of SABAM’s repertoire have been granted for use in

Belgium. SABAM entrusted its sister societies with royalties’ management when the online use of its

repertoire occurred abroad.

The agreement concluded allows Google to obtain a licence, via a one-stop shop, for the online

multi-territorial use of SABAM’s repertoire on Google Play, Google’s digital entertainment destination.

Which are the advantages of such a contract?

A faster payment for the authors represented by SABAM. An intermediary, i.e. an authors’ society

abroad, shall no longer intervene in the management of their royalties. This will also lead to a

reduction of the running costs. For Google, there is an obvious administrative simplification and one

single interlocutor as regards SABAM’s repertoire.

A world first for a medium-sized authors’ society:

After the large European authors’ societies, SABAM is glad to be the first medium-sized authors’

society inside EU to offer a one-stop shop for the multi-territorial online use of its repertoire.

Christophe DEPRETER, SABAM CEO: “This agreement anticipates the objectives of transparency

and greater efficiency decreed by the European Commission in its proposal of directive concerning the

collective management societies”.

Sami VALKONEN, Head of International Music Licensing, Google Play: "We are thrilled to have

SABAM join the growing number of societies licensing Google Play on a pan-territorial basis. The

progressive approach to licensing taken by SABAM serves as an example to societies across the

European Union and promotes licensed innovative services such as Google Play to be provided to

consumers Community wide, and beyond."

About SABAM

SABAM was founded in 1922 by authors and for authors. As a private company, SABAM manages and distributes the royalties that come to the authors. It is the intermediary between the creative artist and the user of the works. SABAM guarantees a fair remuneration of the authors for the use of their works outside the family circle.

Being the largest cultural company in Belgium, it represents 36,000 authors and more than 4 million creations. SABAM is playing an active role in the distribution of cultural products in Belgium and abroad by way of the support it grants to authors and of the network that it puts at disposal. SABAM represents the Belgian as well as the international musical repertoire.

SABAM is a multidisciplinary society and is made up of composers, lyricists, publishers, playwrights, choreographers, directors, scriptwriters, writers of dialogues, radio makers, authors of subtitles, translators, novelists, poets, comic strip authors, illustrators, journalists, sculptors, painters, video makers, drawers, photographers, graphic artists...