While The International Alliance of Composers is working hard to enhance composers' lives on many levels. Often the root of problems we face today come down to politics, legislation and the effect that the massive influx of technology in the last 15 years has had on a slow moving juggernaut of an industry. So it seems only fitting that one of the central lines of motion and energy for the IAC is Composer Rights Advocacy. There are enough offenses to the modern composer that we can (and probably will!) spend a lifetime combating the myriad of issues we are forced to confront. The IAC will be making ongoing changes to its primary campaigns and adding new projects as issues arise, but here is our starting list of the main Composer Rights Issues that we will be researching and specifying, creating a position on, creating action plans for bringing about change, and supporting those plans on all levels and on a local, national and international arena.

For more specific information about our Composer Rights Advocacy policy or issues, to volunteer, or to make an advocacy-specific donation, please contact us today

Here is a breakdown of the current advocacy campaigns that the IAC is considering:

• Composer DVD Royalties - While writers, directors, actors and producers can receive royalties from the sale of DVDs of films and television shows, composers receive none. The IAC will work with members and the industry to reverse this negative business precedent and provide a voice for composers in industry negotiations.
• Movie Theater Performance Royalties for Composers - Composers receive performance royalties when a film is exhibited in a movie theater in most countries worldwide, with the US being a notable exception. The IAC will work to overturn the infamous "Alden Rochelle v. ASCAP" exception so that composers once again will receive royalties for these profitable performances of their music.
• Cue Sheet Fraud and Accountability - Composers who write for libraries, TV or film face consistent issues with cue sheets, whether:
  1. having their information and credits left off cue sheets;
  2. not having their cue sheets filed correctly, if at all with their PRO;
  3. having their information and credits removed from cue sheets;
  4. having employers credit themselves on cue sheets as creators, though they have had no part of writing or arranging the music cues that were created.
  IAC will prepare a public position and recommend actions to lessen or eliminate the possibilities of these scenarios taking place, whether on a local, national, or international level. We will also take into consideration the unique "in the same room" writing situation for songwriters in Nashville.
• Royalty Payment Equality for Song v. Score - PROs in the United States currently pay different rates for different kinds of music used in the same way. For instance in a show where two pieces of music are being used, if one minute of song (music with lyrics) used as background currently gets paid $1.00 in that show, one minute of instrumental score being used in the same way only gets paid $0.20. IAC plans to create situations to bring about the change of this rule adopted by all of the US PROs.
• The ASCAP Composers Bill of Rights - The IAC is working on a document which outlines ways that ASCAP can improve composer royalties, including better tracking, payment rates on par with songs, and more. We are framing this in the same way they put together the ASCAP Bill of Rights. We think ASCAP did a really good job and the concept is spot on, and so in the same energy we want to address our issues with PROs
• Work for Hire - Work for Hire has always posed a serious threat to the livelihood of composers since the time in the early 1940s when anti trust law suits drove the music industry to become outsourced specialists rather than employees of the film companies. Today work for hire runs rampant especially in the advertising music and promo music arenas, as well as others. IAC plans to address the work for hire world by suggesting new legislation forcing modern work for hire situations to enforce the writers' retention of copyrights and mandatory placement of the writers on cue sheets, as well as new and modernized methods for filing for music often overlooked.
• Composer Minimum Scale Suggestions - In an ever declining market where technology has left our industry nearly barren of quality work, one of the ways we will combat it is by creating detailed and extensive payment suggestions for rate and salary for music composition.
• Music Libraries and how to work with them - Music libraries have undergone such a tremendous change in the last few years. The danger lingers that without a unified position and a way to educate composers on how to deal with libraries, that our industry will become like the photographers who are left now putting away their cameras and working day jobs. IAC will help its members decipher the quagmire of libraries and library concepts and terminology. And we will create programs to educate the library owners as well as the composers.
• DRM, digital downloads and Piracy in the new digital millennium - 13 years later the world is still waiting to find out how the music industry, computing industry and the government will finally deal with digital downloading and proliferation of music and media files. IAC plans to create a stance and suggestions on plans to help the industry find a real working direction instead of ignoring the gaping hole in the money bag.
• Tracking Technology, a ubiquitous plan to track and pay every performance - Imagine if every piece of music performed anywhere was tracked and recorded and then actually paid without second guessing of sample or proxy surveys. IAC plans to offer real and meaningful guidance to create a plan to track music and media and take the guessing out of music performance and payments.

The Composers Rights Committee (CRC) consists of 12 appointed composers representing diverse composer interests. They are tasked with identifying the real composer rights issues, creating the IAC position on those issues, and creating an IAC plan of action for those issues.

The Composers Rights Committee is currently researching and deliberating our long list of Composer Rights Advocacy fronts. This is where the CRC will make updates on its findings and positions to issues.

Check back soon for updated information and news.