Rights Management

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SOCAN administers and protects the performing and reproduction rights of more than 160,000 songwriters, music publishers, composers, and visual artists. We offer an integrated approach to rights management and compelling solutions for our rights holders’ reproduction and performing rights. Through reciprocal agreements with more than 100 copyright collectives in 214 countries, we collect and distribute royalties internationally for the use of copyrighted works, connecting millions of creators worldwide.

Performing Rights

The performing right is the right to perform a song or composition in public – such as in a live concert, background music, a radio or TV broadcast, a streaming playlist at a bar, or any other type of public performance. The performing right gives copyright owners of songs the sole right to perform, or authorize the performance in public, of their songs. SOCAN administers these performing rights on behalf of its members by collecting and distributing royalties when songs are publicly performed.

To have SOCAN manage your performing rights, sign up here.

Reproduction Rights

Music

The reproduction right gives rights holders of a song the sole right to authorize the reproduction of their work on various media, including CDs, records, and digital media. SOCAN administers these reproduction rights on behalf of the rights holders we represent by issuing licenses for the reproduction to such organizations as music labels and digital service providers.

Visual Arts and Crafts

The Canadian Copyright Act gives creators and rights holders of artistic works, including paintings, drawings, sculptures, architectural works, engraving, photographs, the sole right to authorize their use, whether it be for their presentation at a public exhibition, for their reproduction on various analog or digital medias (cards, posters, books, derivative products, etc.), or for their public communication (websites, social medias, TV shows, films, etc.).

SOCAN administers all these copyrights on behalf of its visual arts and crafts members by issuing licenses for the use of their works.

To learn more about rights of use of artistic works, visit our Reproduction Rights Services page.

Co-publishing Agreement: A type of publishing agreement whereby two or more publishers will share in the ownership of a copyright for a specific work or body of works Typically, one publisher will have full administration rights. This type of publishing agreement often applies in cases where the composer is a recording artist or producer.

Cristobal Tapia de Veer

TV series lovers in Québec, and all over the world, have gobbled up BBC America’s Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency, Série noire (SRC), and the British series National Treasure and Utopia – all of which were brilliantly scored by SOCAN member Cristobal Tapia de Veer. He’s a singular composer who doesn’t play by the rules, and the first screen composer to ever win the SOCAN International Award during the 2017 Gala in Montréal. He’s also won three other international awards for his work: the FIPA d’Or and BAFTA Award for Best Original Score for National Treasure, and the Best Original Score Award at the Festival de Film Gérardmer, in France, for The Girl with all the Gifts. His phone has rung off the hook since then.