What is the difference between mechanical and performance royalties?

Mechanical royalties are paid when a composition is reproduced — such as when it is streamed on demand, downloaded, or pressed onto a CD. Performance royalties are paid when a composition is publicly performed or broadcast — on radio, TV, in a venue, or via streaming. Both flow to songwriters and their publishers, but they are collected by different organizations: The MLC for digital mechanicals, PROs (ASCAP/BMI/SESAC/GMR) for performance royalties.

Does Spotify pay both mechanical and performance royalties?

Yes. An on-demand Spotify stream triggers both a mechanical royalty (the reproduction of the composition, collected by The MLC in the US) and a performance royalty (the public broadcast of the composition, collected by your PRO). These are separate payments distributed through separate channels. Spotify also pays a master royalty to whoever owns the sound recording, which flows through your distributor.

Do recording artists earn performance royalties from FM radio?

Not in the United States. US law does not provide a statutory performance right for sound recordings on AM/FM terrestrial radio, so recording artists and labels receive nothing when their records are played on over-the-air radio. The songwriter, however, earns a composition performance royalty collected by their PRO. Most other countries pay recording artists a radio performance royalty through their national collecting society.

機械版税 vs. 表演版税：有什麼区別以及如何收取

AI 快速回答

機械版稅 vs. 表演版稅：有什麼區別以及如何收取:For Mechanical 對比 Performance Royalties: Producer 檢查清單, treat hardware and pricing notes as country-specific: street prices, bundles, stock, warranties, return windows, voltage/power/cables, regional model names/SKUs, taxes/import fees, and local used-market alternatives vary by country. Use local retailer and manufacturer pages before buying; this guide does not guarantee global pricing.

Use this article as an operational checklist, not as legal advice.

Separate composition rights, master rights, publishing administration, neighboring rights, and platform policy before making a rights decision.
Confirm local collection society rules, payout access, tax paperwork, and dispute routes in the country where the right is exploited.
When money, exclusivity, samples, brand placements, or catalogue ownership are involved, route the final language through qualified counsel.

The safer workflow is to document assumptions, keep rights evidence, and verify the local rule before release or sync delivery.

Localization note

Legal, tax, privacy, rights, royalty, and contract guidance changes by jurisdiction. Treat this article as an editorial starting point, not legal or accounting advice.

For Traditional Chinese readers in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau, verify local payment rails, tax paperwork, platform access, rights administration, and consumer rules instead of reusing mainland or US defaults.

快速解答

表演版稅在你的作品被公開播放時產生（廣播、現場、流媒體廣播），由 PRO 收取。機械版稅在你的作品被複製時產生（點播流媒體、下載、實體），由 The MLC（美國）或海外機械協會收取。兩者都是詞曲作者的收入——遺漏任何一個就是丟錢。

每首歌曲有兩種版權

機械版稅 vs. 表演版稅對比

Localization cautions

United States: separate copyright registration, PRO affiliation, MLC-style mechanical collection, SoundExchange-style neighboring-right collection, DMCA takedown workflow, and state contract rules. Registration can matter for litigation posture, but this article is not legal advice.

EU/EEA and UK: copyright is generally automatic, but collection, moral rights, neighboring rights, private-copying rules, and cross-border licensing are handled through local law and societies. Do not copy a US-only registration or DMCA workflow into Europe without review.

Brazil: public performance collection commonly runs through ECAD-linked society workflows; keep Portuguese metadata, society affiliation, and local tax/payment paperwork aligned before expecting payouts.

Russia, China, Japan/Korea, Turkey, and Indonesia: platform access, local societies, banking rails, censorship/content rules, and enforcement routes can differ sharply. Verify availability and local administration before promising a takedown, payout, or license clearance timeline.

Spanish and Arabic audiences: localize by country or region. Spain is not Latin America, and Arabic markets differ across GCC, Egypt, North Africa, and the Levant for societies, payments, venue licensing, and platform access.

When to escalate

Sync placement: get the publisher, master owner, territory, term, media, and cue-sheet duties reviewed before delivery.
Cover song: mechanical licensing can be routine in some markets and manual in others; verify local process.
Disputed split: pause registration changes until the written split is resolved.

Explore tutorials on music licensing, music business, and copyright to build your full royalty knowledge.

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常見問題

What is the difference between mechanical and performance royalties?: <strong>Mechanical royalties</strong> are paid when a composition is reproduced — such as when it is streamed on demand, downloaded, or pressed onto a CD. <strong>Performance royalties</strong> are paid when a composition is publicly performed or broadcast — on radio, TV, in a venue, or via streaming. Both flow to songwriters and their publishers, but they are collected by different organizations: The MLC for digital mechanicals, PROs (ASCAP/BMI/SESAC/GMR) for performance royalties.
Does Spotify pay both mechanical and performance royalties?: Yes. An on-demand Spotify stream triggers both a mechanical royalty (the reproduction of the composition, collected by The MLC in the US) and a performance royalty (the public broadcast of the composition, collected by your PRO). These are separate payments distributed through separate channels. Spotify also pays a master royalty to whoever owns the sound recording, which flows through your distributor.
Do recording artists earn performance royalties from FM radio?: Not in the United States. US law does not provide a statutory performance right for sound recordings on AM/FM terrestrial radio, so recording artists and labels receive nothing when their records are played on over-the-air radio. The songwriter, however, earns a composition performance royalty collected by their PRO. Most other countries pay recording artists a radio performance royalty through their national collecting society.