PROs

- Let's start with the folks who collect those performance royalties. They are referred to as Performing Rights Organizations or PROs as we like to say in the business. What is a performing rights organization? A PRO is a society responsible for collecting income on behalf of songwriters and music publishers when a song is publicly broadcast. They're the one's that track down all that money from television plays, radio plays, plays on the internet, inside those restaurants, at the concerts, or anywhere else you hear music. Those licensees pay fees to these PROs who in turn pay their registered songwriters and publishers. There are three main PROs here in the United States. First ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC. Let's talk about them individually and we can talk about some of the differences. ASCAP was started back in 1914. ASCAP has over 470,000 members composed of composers, songwriters, lyricists, and music publishers. It has offices in all the major music hubs around the world. It'll cost…