Indie Labels Team Up "Fair Digital Deals Declaration" Initiative

Over 700 indie labels have united for an initiative to promote fair and transparent accounting of digital revenues to artists. As Billboard points out, the “Fair Digital Deals Declaration” encompasses 700-plus signatories, assuring their firm commitment to treat artists fairly in relation to the digital exploitation of recorded works with third parties. This involves representatives of Domino, Cooking Vinyl, Epitaph, Because Music, Glassnote, Mushroom Group, Nettwerk, Ninja Tune, Secretly Canadian, Saddle Creek, Sub Pop, Tommy Boy, XL Recordings and the Beggars Group, representing 4AD, Matador and Rough Trade, among others.

The initiative has been coordinated by the Worldwide Independent Network (WIN) and will officially launch Wednesday, July 16 with a ‘Worldwide Declaration Signing Day.’ You can follow it on Twitter with the @winformusic and receive updates from trade associations and participating labels from across the world. Be on the lookout for the hashtag #fairdigitaldeal4artists.

These are the five key points that signees must adhere to:

1. Ensure that artists’ share of download and streaming revenues is clearly explained in recording agreements and royalty statements in reasonable summary form.
2. Account to artists a good-faith pro-rata share of any revenues and other compensation from digital services that stem from the monetization of recordings but are not attributed to specific recordings or performances.
3. Encourage better standards of information from digital services on the usage and monetization of music.
4. Support artists who choose to oppose, including publicly, unauthorized uses of their music.
5. Support the collective position of the global independent record company sector.

Point two deserves a special highlight as it opposes the standard practice of large rights holders and some major labels receiving favorable deals with digital services, which include guaranteed payment amounts or an equity share in the company.

Additionally, the Worldwide Independent Network has also issued a “Global Independent Manifesto,” which argues that independent record companies “deserve equal market access and parity of terms with Universal, Sony and Warner, and an independent copyright should be valued and remunerated at the same level as a major company copyright.”