Streaming Royalties on Universal Media X

At Universal Media X, we believe in fairly compensating the creators who bring music to life. Our platform ensures that artists, songwriters, and producers earn royalties through two primary channels:

Types of Royalties

1. Recording Royalties

Recording royalties are the payments owed to rightsholders for recordings streamed on Universal Media X. These royalties are paid to artists through the licensor that delivered the music, which is typically their record label or distributor. This means that every time your track is played, you earn!

2. Publishing Royalties

Publishing royalties are payments owed to songwriters and owners of a composition. These royalties are issued to publishers, collecting societies, and mechanical agencies based on the territory of usage. If your song is played, your contributions are recognized and rewarded. When an eligible song gets played on Universal Media X, the rightsholders receive royalties, regardless of whether the listener is a Premium subscriber or using our ad-supported service.


How We Calculate and Process Royalties


Universal Media X distributes net revenue from Premium subscription fees and advertising to rightsholders. Here’s how we calculate it:

1. Calculating Net Revenue:

We start by determining our net revenue, which involves subtracting various costs we incur. These costs include:

Taxes
Credit card processing fees
Billing fees
Sales commissions


2. Determining Rightsholder Shares:

The rightsholder's share of net revenue is determined by streamshare.


3. Calculating Streamshare:

We calculate streamshare by tallying the total number of streams in a given month and assessing the proportion of those streams that came from music owned or controlled by a particular rightsholder.

It’s important to note that Universal Media X does not pay artist royalties based on a per-play or per-stream rate. The royalty payments artists receive may vary based on how their music is streamed and the agreements they have with individual artists, labels, or distributors.


Streaming Royalty System by Content Type


1. Music Streaming (Audio-only)

Base Royalty Rate: $0.0055 per stream
Territorial Multipliers:

North America: 1.0 (no adjustment)
Europe: 1.2
Asia: 0.8
South America: 0.9
Africa: 0.7
Australia: 1.1
Oceania Islands: 0.8
Caribbean Islands: 0.85
Middle East: 0.75

2. Music Video Streaming

Base Royalty Rate: $0.0075 per stream
Territorial Multipliers:

North America: 1.0
Europe: 1.3
Asia: 0.9
South America: 1.0
Africa: 0.8
Australia: 1.1
Oceania Islands: 0.9
Caribbean Islands: 0.95
Middle East: 0.85

3. Concert Streaming (Live or On-Demand)

Base Royalty Rate: $0.0090 per stream
Territorial Multipliers:

North America: 1.0
Europe: 1.4
Asia: 0.9
South America: 1.1
Africa: 0.8
Australia: 1.2
Oceania Islands: 0.95
Caribbean Islands: 1.0
Middle East: 0.85

4. Pay-Per-View (PPV) Events

Revenue Split:
65% of Ticket Sales to content creators
35% of Ticket Sales to Universal Media X 

Royalty payments to content creators will be processed at the end of each month, covering all events held that month, and payable 30 days from the end of the processing month.


Track Monetization Eligibility

Content must have reached a threshold of at least 500 streams in the previous 12 months to be included in the royalty pool calculation.

There's also a minimum number of unique listeners required for a track to become eligible to ensure users can’t manipulate the system by streaming the track hundreds of times in order to qualify.


Payout Structure:

Monthly Payouts:
Once an artist reaches 500 streams and the required 100 unique listeners, payouts will be made monthly.

Rollover System:
If the 500 streams or the 100 unique listeners requirement is not met within the given payout period, the earnings will roll over to the next period until the conditions are met.

12-Month Limit on Carryover:
If an artist does not meet the 500 streams requirement or has royalties below the threshold after 12 months, those royalties will expire and will not carry over. 

500 stream minimum ensures meaningful engagement before payouts.

100 unique listeners fosters a balance between audience growth and engagement, which is reasonable for independent and growing artists.

Rollover system ensures artists do not lose their accumulated earnings if they haven't met the payout conditions immediately.