NMPA & Twitch Reach Agreement
The National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA) and Twitch announced today (Sept. 21) that the organizations have reached an agreement that aims “to work together to build productive partnerships between the service and music publishers,” according to the release.
The purpose of the deal is to change the way the economics of new gaming models work to increase visibility and revenue for songwriters. This agreement comes after months of conflict between the organizations regarding the payment of songwriters.
Twitch will provide new opportunities to music publishers who will be offered an opt-in deal allowing for future collaborations to bring new facets to both the gaming experience and songwriter exposure. Additionally, Twitch has created a new process that participating music rights holders can opt into to report certain uses of their music, to address when creators inadvertently or incidentally use music in their streams.
NMPA President & CEO David Israelite says, “Both NMPA and Twitch are creator-focused and our respective communities will greatly benefit from this agreement, which respects the rights of songwriters and paves the way for future relationships between our publisher members, songwriters and the service. Through our discussions, Twitch has shown a commitment to valuing musicians and to creating new ways to connect them with fans in this burgeoning and exciting space.”
Twitch Head of Music Tracy Chan adds, “We are pleased to reach this agreement with the NMPA and excited about our shared commitment to empowering songwriters and other creators to share their work and passions while connecting with audiences. That’s what Twitch is all about, and we know that great music starts with a great song. We look forward to innovative collaborations that further unlock the incredible potential of our service and our community for music publishers and their songwriter partners.”
