SOCAN has agreed to acquire the Canadian Musical Reproduction Rights Agency (CMRRA) from SoundExchange.
The organizations announced the agreement on Wednesday (July 29), with the transaction subject to regulatory approval and other customary closing conditions.
SOCAN and SoundExchange did not disclose the financial terms and said details of the transaction are confidential.
The companies said the acquisition brings together SOCAN‘s performing rights leadership with CMRRA‘s more than 50 years in reproduction rights.
CMRRA licenses reproduction rights and administers royalties for musical works in Canada, and represents most music publishers operating in the country.
“Acquiring CMRRA is about strengthening Canada’s music rights landscape and building a more seamless experience for music publishers and creators.”
Jennifer Brown, SOCAN
“Acquiring CMRRA is about strengthening Canada’s music rights landscape and building a more seamless experience for music publishers and creators,” said Jennifer Brown, CEO of SOCAN.
“By bringing together CMRRA and SOCAN, we have an opportunity to harness our respective strengths and support long-term growth.”
“SoundExchange has been a strong and reliable home for CMRRA, ensuring continuity and care through a period of significant change in our industry,” Brown added.
“That foundation in reproduction rights and expertise will play a central role in advancing a more connected and effective music rights management system in Canada.”
“When SoundExchange acquired CMRRA nearly a decade ago, we saw an opportunity to strengthen its foundation, invest in its future, and enhance the services it provides to music publishers and songwriters,” said Michael Huppe, President and CEO of SoundExchange.
“This transaction benefits creators, publishers, and the broader music community while allowing SoundExchange to continue advancing our core mission of delivering value to artists and rights owners around the world.”
Michael Huppe, SoundExchange
“Together, SoundExchange and CMRRA have built a strong, innovative, and thriving organization.”
“We are proud of the progress achieved and believe SOCAN is the right organization to build on that success.”
“This transaction benefits creators, publishers, and the broader music community while allowing SoundExchange to continue advancing our core mission of delivering value to artists and rights owners around the world.”
SoundExchange acquired CMRRA in 2017.
The deal took the Washington, D.C.-based organization into reproduction rights, having built its business on sound recording royalties.
CMRRA was founded in 1975.
It distributed CAD $78 million (USD $57.8 million) in mechanical royalties in 2023, up 8.9% year-on-year.
Paul Shaver, who was named President of CMRRA in 2019, said: “CMRRA has benefited greatly from SoundExchange‘s investment, partnership, and commitment to our mission, and we are proud of the progress we have made together.”
“As we look ahead, this next chapter with SOCAN represents an exciting opportunity to build on that foundation, drive innovation, deepen our service to music publishers and self-published songwriters, and contribute to a more integrated and effective rights administration ecosystem in Canada.”
For 100 years, SOCAN has collected performance and reproduction royalties for music creators in Canada and around the world, the organization says.
It describes itself as Canada‘s largest member-owned music rights organization, and represents nearly 200,000 songwriters, composers, and music publishers.
SoundExchange describes itself as the largest global neighboring rights organization, and says it has distributed more than $13 billion in digital performance royalties to more than 800,000 music creators.
As the sole organization designated by the US government to administer the Section 114 sound recording license, SoundExchange collects royalties from platforms including Pandora, SiriusXM, and iHeartRadio.
Together, the two organizations have played significant roles in the collection and distribution of music royalties in their respective markets.
SOCAN distributed CAD $511.9 million (USD $366 million) to members in 2025, including CAD $11.8 million (USD $8.4 million) from reproduction rights.
InJuly , SOCAN named Musical AI as an attribution partner to credit and pay creators whose work is used by AI.Music Business Worldwide