Germany’s performance rights organization, GEMA, plans to reduce its commission on all “on-demand music distribution” to 7% from 10% by 2027, a move that is expected to increase annual payouts to music creators by more than EUR €6 million (USD $7 million).
The PRO will implement the cut in stages, beginning with a reduction to 9% in January 2026 before reaching the target rate the following year. The commission applies to streaming and download platforms including Spotify, Apple Music, Deezer and YouTube.
GEMA says the cut reflects its growing digital collections, which reached €310 million ($366m) in 2024, representing about 23% of the organization’s total revenue. Even the initial reduction to 9% will generate an additional €2 million ($2.4m) annually for GEMA members.
The organization claims it will be the first to reduce administrative expenses below 8% in the online sector, potentially pressuring peers to follow suit. Organizations similar to GEMA include France’s SACEM, the UK’s PRS for Music and BMI and ASCAP in the US.
GEMA represents over 100,000 German members including composers, lyricists and music publishers, plus more than 2 million copyright owners globally.
“Reducing our online commission provides further proof of our high-value licensing contracts and our operational performance.”
Thomas Theune, GEMA
The reduction in commission stems from GEMA’s investment in automated systems that handle licensing and distribution processes, said Thomas Theune, GEMA’s Director of Broadcasting/Online responsible for digital intellectual property rights.
Theune said: “The measure of a successful collecting society is the amount of money it pays out to its members. Reducing our online commission provides further proof of our high-value licensing contracts and our operational performance.”
“Thanks to our digital processes and fully automated IT systems, we’re already able to license and distribute more efficiently than ever. In turn, this means we can pass on even more money to our members. This is our mission as a modern collecting society – to place technology at the service of creatives.”
“Thanks to our digital processes and fully automated IT systems, we’re already able to license and distribute more efficiently than ever.”
Thomas Theune, GEMA
GEMA has also invested in a licensing model for AI providers, a move aimed at addressing the use of copyrighted music in AI training and the creation of AI-generated songs.
GEMA’s latest move comes as streaming continues to dominate music consumption globally. According to data from the IFPI, streaming was the main driver of growth in global music revenue last year, with total streaming revenues growing 7.3% YoY, and accounting for 69% of total recorded music revenues. Subscription streaming revenues reached $15.15 billion in 2024.
The PRO has actively pursued legal actions against AI companies over the illegal use of copyrighted music. In November 2024, GEMA sued OpenAI, developer of ChatGPT, over allegedly reproducing protected song lyrics by German authors “without having acquired licenses or paid the authors in question.”
Most recently, in January, GEMA also took legal action against AI music generator Suno for copyright infringement, accusing it of “processing protected recordings of world-famous songs” without permission or remuneration.
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