SAMRO Fact Sheet - a 10 year review
The Southern African Music Rights Organisation is a Society of composers, lyric writers and publishers. It licences the usage of their music for broadcast, public performances and diffusion services; computes the royalties due, and pays them over to the various rights-holders concerned.
OUR MANDATE
This can be divided into several functions:
- to administer the rights of broadcasting, performance in public, and transmission in a diffusion service, the works of our own members – and the members of our affiliated societies all over the world -- here in South Africa;
- to issue licences to anyone wishing to broadcast, perform in public, or otherwise transmit music to the public;
- to collect the appropriate licence fees from the hundreds of thousands of premises using music legitimately all over South Africa;
- to distribute the computed royalties to the composers, lyricists and publishers -- thousands of them, spread over many countries of the world -- whose music is actually used here; and
- to take appropriate legal steps against anyone infringing on any of those rights we administer.
OVERVIEW
During the first ten years of our new democracy, SAMRO has seen significant progress being made, with growth in revenues and in distributions by the society to its members and affiliates as well as transformation taking place within the society itself.
Actual growth in licence fees and other royalty income collected by the SAMRO Group rose from ZAR 62,9 million in 1996 to ZAR 183,1 million in 2005. Half year results for 2006 indicate an improvement of the order of 14% on the figures for 2005. Over the past five years SAMRO has distributed just under R 500 million to our members and members of our affiliates.
SAMRO continues to make progress in what history may well record as the most dynamic period in the music business worldwide. These are defining times faced by the music business, especially with the convergence of technologies in the fields of transmission and digitisation of musical works.
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS
In the last three to four years, wide ranging changes have occurred within SAMRO to position the society for a sustainable future. These have been guided by a clear vision for the society. SAMRO is committed to represent and develop the interests of all its stakeholders in a manner so as to maximise returns for our members and affiliates and to take our rightful place as a leader in the wider music business. In the field of collective management of rights, SAMRO is undoubtedly still the leader on the African continent. This, however we believe, should not lead to complacency or presumption and much work remains to be done. Our management should be in harmony with the social, political, economic and technological environment in which we operate.
Significant progress has been made with the organisational change currently under way at the society. In our endeavour to ensure that rights holders receive their fair economic rewards due from all music users, we have undergone a realignment of the executive and management teams. We have introduced a new management system as well as reviewed our business processes and procedures. The planned changes are anticipated to be fully implemented by the end of the 2006/2007 financial year.
ORGANISATIONAL CHANGE
During the past year, SAMRO commenced changes across the organisation and the benefits of wide ranging initiatives are beginning to flow through to the society’s operational performance and members. The first phase of the strategy involving structural changes and other areas mentioned above is well underway. The objective of optimising SAMRO’s operating base is included in the next phase and it is here where members can expect to experience greater benefits of the changes currently being implemented.
Also, during the past year SAMRO’s bold new Corporate Identity was unveiled signifying the organisation’s transformation at different levels, designed to take us into this 21st century. It is one of the most visible components of the organisation’s transformation. SAMRO has now been structured into four main divisions namely;
- Marketing
- Operations
- Corporate Services and ;
- International Affairs
In the field of human capital, we are excited about the acquisition of some great and talented people who will certainly assist SAMRO in delivering on its brand values of CONVENIENCE, EXCELLENCE, RELATIONSHIPS and TRUST.
CULTURAL & SOCIAL INVESTMENT
As a corporate citizen SAMRO recognises that it cannot exist in isolation from the community in which it operates. For this reason SAMRO runs a number of programmes in the fields of Culture and Social Support , which contribute to the development and regeneration of South African society in those activities surrounding its purpose. In the past five years alone SAMRO has invested approximately R 37,5 million in its cultural and social programmes.
On the cultural front, our involvement in the encouragement and development of music creation, study, performance and related activities is well known. SAMRO is also acknowledged for its interest in and commitment to the promotion of the principles of collective management and improved copyright legislation as it affects the rights it administers.
Our social programmes involve support for writer-members in two areas which affect their socio-economic circumstances, namely, a retirement annuity fund and a funeral benefit scheme.
PARTNERSHIPS
In line with our views on SAMRO playing a more meaningful role in the wider South African music business, the society became involved in the launch of the South African Music Industry Co-operation Initiative (SAMICI), a broad-based initiative involving many stakeholders including music publishers, composers’ associations, collective management organisations, record companies, musicians’ groups, broadcasters, concert promoters, regulatory authorities and various government departments.
We believe that this initiative will add impetus to the transformation of the South African music business as well as the promotion of South African music across a wide spectrum. Initial projects include the hosting of an annual music conference and exhibition for all stakeholders in the music business (Moshito Conference and Exhibition), regular visits by independent music publishers and record labels to the MIDEM international music fair in France to market their music, as well as the establishment of a South African Music Exports Council (SAMEX).
AFRICAN INITIATIVES
SAMRO, together with other partners has, over the past ten years, become involved in assisting with the establishment of new collective management societies in Africa. Its staff and resources are used for the training and development of staff from other societies on our continent.
Support is also rendered to SADC member initiatives involving the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers (CISAC), BIEM (Bureau International des Sociétés Gérant les Droits d'Enregistrement et de Reproduction Mécanique) and UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation) with the object of ensuring an effective level of authors’ rights administration in the SADC. On a wider African front, SAMRO participates in the multifarious activities of CISAC's African Committee (having held the chair for two consecutive terms). For the past ten years we have also served on the board of directors/administrative council of CISAC and continue to serve on its various technical committees.
About five years ago SAMRO together with other African societies’ leaders embarked upon a bold initiative, known as Partnership for Progress, to improve the collections, distributions and corporate governance of continental societies. Between the years 2000 and 2004, this initiative has seen a growth in collections on the continent of over 23 % in Euro terms.
PERSONAL NOTE
It has been a most interesting, wonderful and rewarding experience to work on behalf of Southern African creators and publishers over the past 20+ years. Having known and worked with Nicholas Motsatse over the past six or seven years, I believe that SAMRO could not have made a better appointment. Nick’s understanding of the music business and his empathy with our membership makes him the most appropriate candidate to take over the reigns at SAMRO.
I look forward to keeping close contact with the SAMRO family.
ROB HOOIJER
