Publishing Houses and Royalties in Velveteen
Updated June 11, 2026
Publishing royalties come in two types: mechanical (from streams and downloads) and performance (from broadcast and public performance). Velveteen delivers the songwriter and publishing house metadata to DSPs via FUGA. Collection societies use that metadata, specifically the IPI, to route royalties to the correct publishing house.
Two publishing royalty types
Mechanical royalties
Generated every time a composition is reproduced: a stream, download, or physical copy. Collected by mechanical licensing organisations (e.g. MCPS in the UK, MLC in the USA, Songtrust for international administration) and paid to the publishing house.
Performance royalties
Generated when a composition is publicly performed or broadcast: radio, TV, live shows, sync licensing. Collected by PROs (SOCAN, ASCAP, BMI, PRS) and paid to both the songwriter and the publishing house.
How metadata flows from Velveteen to royalty collection
When Velveteen delivers a release, it includes the publisher credits for each track in the FUGA payload. FUGA forwards this to DSPs. DSPs report composition usage (streams, downloads) to collection societies, matching by IPI number where available. Societies then route royalties to the registered publishing house.
Velveteen's role ends at metadata delivery. Collecting the money requires PRO and mechanical licensing registration on your end.
Heads up
Frequently asked questions
Does Velveteen collect publishing royalties on my behalf?+
No. Velveteen collects and distributes master recording royalties (the label's share). Publishing royalties are collected by PROs and mechanical licensing organisations and paid directly to your publishing house. You need to register with a PRO to receive them.
What happens if I leave publisher fields blank?+
If no songwriter or publishing house is linked on a track, the delivery payload contains no composition metadata. DSPs report the composition usage to collection societies as unknown rights holder. The royalties may go into a pool that is distributed to other registered publishers, or simply not collected.
Which PRO should I join?+
Join the PRO in your country of residence. Common ones: SOCAN (Canada), ASCAP or BMI (USA), PRS (UK), APRA AMCOS (Australia/NZ), GEMA (Germany), SACEM (France). You can only be a member of one PRO for a given territory.
What is the difference between mechanical and performance royalties?+
Mechanical royalties are generated when a composition is reproduced. Every stream, download, or physical copy triggers a mechanical royalty payment to the publishing house. Performance royalties are generated when a composition is publicly performed or broadcast: radio airplay, live performance, TV sync, and so on.
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