U.S. Copyright Office Redesignates MLC For Another 5-Year Term

The Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) and the Digital Licensee Coordinator (DLC) have both been re-designated by the U.S. Copyright Office. This means that the two organizations have finished a government-mandated evaluation, which occurs every five years, to assess whether they are effective in their roles. In being re-designated, both are approved to continue for the next five years. The Office noted in its assessment, released Wednesday (June 3), that “the administration of the MMA’s blanket mechanical license has been a great success for publishers, songwriters, and [digital music platforms.]”

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The evaluation kicked off in January 2024 and marked the first-ever re-designation process for both organizations. The mandate and instructions for the re-designation are laid out in the Music Modernization Act (MMA), which was passed in 2018. The MMA is a pivotal piece of legislation for the music industry, replacing the old song-by-song licensing system for digital streaming services with a new blanket license for musical work mechanicals. To administer the new blanket license, the MMA called for a mechanical licensing collective and digital licensee coordinator to be established, and the re-designations were designed to keep them in check.

The process also allowed key stakeholders from the music and streaming industries to weigh in on how they felt the MLC and DLC were doing by submitting comments to the Office and detailing what’s working and not working about the organizations. Many commenters expressed the belief that re-designation should occur for both, although several key stakeholders had suggestions for how these organizations should improve moving forward.

The Copyright Office, in its re-designation of the MLC, praised the organization for overcoming “the formidable task of ensuring that it had all administrative and technological capabilities in place to open for business” by January 2021. The Office also wrote: “One of the MLC’s most important success metrics is its distribution of approximately $3.9 billion in royalties, constituting a reliable and significant income source for songwriters and publishers….The MLC has demonstrated that it continues to meet each of its statutory criteria for re-designation.”

Beginning in 2024, the discourse around the re-designation also spilled out into public blog posts . In a March 2024 post, the Digital Media Association (DIMA) called the five-year anniversary of the Music Modernization Act (MMA) a “key moment to course-correct.” The organization then suggested the Mechanical Licensing Collective has “gone beyond its remit” in collecting and administering the blanket mechanical license in the United States, but that it “remains committed to the success of the MMA and the mechanical licensing collective it established.”

The National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA) at the time fired back at DIMA with a reply in defense of the MLC, saying “DIMA [is] using [the] copyright office[‘s] MMA review as opportunity to re-write history and undermine MLC’s progress… [the MLC] is currently the most efficient, transparent, and cost-effective licensing collective in the world.” It added that streamers “do not want what is in the best interests of music publishers or songwriters.”

In recent months, however, chatter about the re-designation had become quiet as the Copyright Office worked to complete its review of comments and its total assessment.

In a statement about the re-designation, The MLC’s CEO Kris Arend said: “We are honored that the Register of Copyrights has continued The MLC’s designation and appreciate the Register’s thoughtful and thorough review. This continued designation validates our success in carrying out our statutory responsibilities, and it reflects the overwhelming support we have received from songwriters, publishers, and the broader music community over the past six and a half years. We are humbled to be able to continue serving this community, and we remain committed to ensuring that every rightsholder receives the mechanical royalties they have earned.”

“On behalf of the Board, I am proud of the organization’s progress and grateful to the songwriters and publishers whose engagement and feedback help ensure The MLC remains effective, efficient, and focused on serving the music community,” added Alisa Coleman, board chair of The MLC . “The Register’s decision affirms that The MLC’s governance, operations, and performance continue to meet the standards established by Congress.”

Graham Davies , president and CEO of DIMA, also provided a statement to Billboard , saying: “DIMA welcomes the re-designation of the MLC and DLC and the opportunity to further engage through the Copyright Office on any forthcoming regulatory proceedings. This is an important moment to recognize the continued success of the Music Modernization Act and the milestone of streaming services having invested a quarter of a billion dollars in the establishment and ongoing operations of the MLC. This funding is in addition to the $4BN in royalty payments that streaming services have delivered to the MLC, of which over $3.5BN has been distributed to rights owners. The streaming service community has delivered on their fundamental role enabling substantial royalties to get into songwriter and publisher hands in quick time. The MMA envisaged streaming services working in partnership with rights owners through the MLC, to benefit all stakeholders. We look forward to strengthening these partnerships.”

_Originally reported by [Billboard](https://www.billboard.com/pro/the-mlc-re-designated-us-copyright-office/)._