ASCAP Posts Record High Revenues & Distributions For 2022

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ASCAP’s annual revenue surpassed $1.5 billion for the first time in 2022, which fueled record-high royalty distributions to songwriters, composers and music publisher members, the PRO reported. Collections totaled $1.522 billion in 2022, an increase of $187 million or 14% over the previous year.

ASCAP’s strategic growth plan launched in 2015 focused on revenue growth, technological innovation and operational efficiency, and resulted in a 6% compound annual growth rate for total revenues, and a 7% compound annual growth rate for total distributions to members.

In 2022, ASCAP grew every major category of licensing to drive ASCAP domestic revenue to $1.178 billion, up 16.5%, an increase of $167 million over 2021. General licensing revenue increased by 40%, radio by 32%, audio streaming by 16% and audio-visual by 7%. This was the second year that ASCAP domestic revenues from U.S.-licensed performances topped $1 billion.

Royalty distributions to ASCAP members also exceeded $1 billion for the sixth year in a row in 2022 and increased 10.7% over 2021, with a total of $1.388 billion available for distribution to ASCAP’s music creator and publisher members. In​ 2022, ASCAP ​delivered 90 cents of every dollar back to its ​members as royalties.

“It is our technical innovation coupled with an unparalleled work ethic that grew our domestic revenue 16.5% in 2022 and yielded a 6% compound annual growth rate since the inception of our strategic plan eight years ago. ASCAP is the only US PRO that operates on a not-for-profit basis which is a key differentiator among PROs. ASCAP creator and publisher members are the sole beneficiaries of this growth because we invested years ago in cloud computing, enabling us to address the challenges of digital streaming efficiently, and because we only pay songwriters and publishers, not private investors,” says ASCAP CEO Elizabeth Matthews.

“We are elated to share these historic financial revenue and distribution results for 2022 with our songwriter, composer and publisher members, who are the foundation of the music we all love,” shares ASCAP Chairman of the Board and President Paul Williams. “In the US, we have competition, meaning that creators have a choice, and that choice should be ASCAP. It is in ASCAP’s DNA to ensure that we operate in the best interest of all our members. Our financial success for over 100 years, and a singular commitment to nurture their careers and maximize the value of their music, prove that our not-for-profit model of collective licensing works.”

The full ASCAP 2022 Annual Report can be viewed at ascap.com/annualreport22.

Lorie Hollabaugh
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