Australia's APRA AMCOS feels the impact of Covid-19

By Emmanuel Legrand

Australia's music rights society APRA AMCOS has reported A$474.5 million (€286.6 million) in revenues for the 2019-2020 fiscal year, slightly downgraded from original projections due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the impact of bushfires on the country's economic activity. The society distributed A$407.3m to songwriters, publishers, affiliated societies and rights holders, down 0.9% year-on-year.

  "Individual and collective resilience has been tested and we’ve had to adapt quickly,” said APRA AMCOS CEO Dean Ormston. "As the bushfires devastated enormous areas of Australia, and then Covid-19 spread across the globe, we moved quickly to provide direct support and advocate to government the plight of those that live and work in the original gig economy."

Take a hit in 2020-21

  The society said the 0.6% increase in revenues from the year prior "was down A$14.4m on the budgeted figure of A$488.9m," and that music royalties are expected to "take a more substantial hit in 2020-21" due to on-going restrictions on live music, concerts and touring. "Diverse revenue streams from the licensing side of APRA AMCOS’ business, bolstered by the continued strength of digital, helped to weather the ongoing storm," said the society.

  Public performance income (including live music and concerts) was the hardest hit revenue category with A$73m of income, down from the previous year’s A$92.4m. Digital revenue reached A$206m, up 17.4% year-on-year, and accounted for 43.4% of APRA AMCOS income. "Multi-territory digital licensing saw phenomenal growth in the Asian market as more than one trillion music uses were processed on behalf of rights holders," said APRA AMCOS.

International success

  International income reached A$54.4m, the society's highest annual amount ever, on the back of the of the global success of homegrown artists such as Tones And I, Jawsh 685, Joel Little, Sia, 5 Seconds of Summer and Kevin Parker’s Tame Impala. "The natural timing in international earnings means that the revenue impact of the pandemic – which has been mirrored across the world – will not be felt until FY2021," said the society.

  Looking at the year ahead, Ormston said music will be a critical part of the social, cultural and economic recovery of both Australia and New Zealand" and called for the government "to fully realise the economic, cultural and social return of the music sector. Our music industry is, by definition, a fast-moving, dynamic, agile, locally invested and globally facing industry. Now more than ever there is an opportunity to redefine and build the local and international opportunity for the local music industry, based on an integrated whole-of-government approach that fully reflects music’s impact across society."

> This year’s APRA and AMCOS annual general meetings (AGMs) will be held virtually on Wednesday 18 November 2020, due to on-going Covid-19 restrictions. Voting for the election of directors to the APRA and AMCOS Boards will once again be conducted prior to the AGMs and will close at 5pm on Wednesday 11 November. The results of the election will be announced at the virtual AGMs on Wednesday 18 November 2020 and published on the APRA AMCOS website.