Monetize › Rights & royalties admin
Songtrust
Global publishing administration service that registers songs with collection societies worldwide for a one-time $100 per-writer fee without taking ownership, keeping 15% of performance and 20% of mechanical collections; part of Downtown Music, acquired by Universal's Virgin Music Group.
- Best for
- Global publishing collection without surrendering ownership. Independent songwriters, producers, publishers and catalog managers generating meaningful royalties across multiple countries who want centralized administration without surrendering copyright ownership.
- Skip if
- Your royalties are too small to beat the fee. Your catalog generates little publishing income, you only need US mechanical collection available directly through The MLC, or you expect hands-on creative development and sync pitching. It is an administrative service, not a traditional publisher.
- First move
- Estimate uncollected royalties, then weigh the setup fee.
- Watch out
- Keep your own works database and budget 1-2 royalty cycles of patience; note the mechanical commission rose to 20% in Q1 2025.
- Reach
- Established
- When
- Worth it once you have releases out.
- Based in
- United States