Music Publishers Association (UK)

Not to be confused with Music Publishers' Association.
Music Publishers Association (UK)
Industry Music
Founded 1881 (1881)
Headquarters London, United Kingdom
Website http://www.mpaonline.org.uk

The Music Publishers Association (MPA) is a non-profit organization representing music publishers in the United Kingdom since 1881.[1] It "exists to safeguard and promote the interests of music publishers and the writers signed to them; represent these interests to government, the music industry, the media and the public, provide publishers with a forum, a collective voice and a wide range of benefits, services and training courses; promote an understanding of the value of music and the importance of copyright; and provide information and guidance to members of the public".[2] The MPA is a member of the music industry umbrella organisation UK Music.[3]

History

History The MPA was founded in 1881 as a way to protect and safeguard the interests of sheet music publishers. The founding members were:

  • Thomas Patey Chappell & Frank Chappell (Chappell & Co)
  • Emile Enoch (Enoch & Sons)
  • George Jeffreys (G F Jeffreys)
  • Henry Littleton
  • W Morley Jr
  • C H Purday (J B Cramer & Co)
  • Stroud L Cocks (R. Cocks & Co.)
  • Barnard Lucas

They were soon joined by Charles Boosey, Edwin Ashdown and George Patey.[4]

By 1887 the MPA had its own offices in Air Street, London. Over the years the offices have been situated in several London locations, most recently moving to British Music House in December 2005.

By 1905 the MPA had grown to 19 members and would continue to expand its membership to the present total of over 270 publishers handling over three thousand subsidiary companies, dealing in most musical genres.

In the fifties the MPA became involved in the introduction of the Ivor Novello Awards in 1956. A few years earlier in 1951 the MPA became a founder member of the British Joint Copyright Council (which would later become the British Copyright Council in 1965).

In 1976 the association acquired ownership of the Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society (MCPS).

The MPA was a founder member of British Music Rights (formed in 1996) together with the British Academy of Composers, Songwriters and Authors (BASCA), the Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society and the Performing Right Society. In 2008 British Music Rights grew into an expanded body called UK Music.[5]

MPA Group

In October 2015 Jane Dyball was named CEO of MPA Group of Companies bringing together the MPA, Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society (MCPS), Independent Music Publishers e-Licensing and Printed Music Licensing Limited (PMLL) under one umbrella.[6]

Conduct

International Music Score Library Project

In April 2011, the MPA issued a DMCA takedown notice against the International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP), a publisher of public domain sheet music. Go Daddy, the domain name registrar for the IMSLP, removed the domain name "imslp.org", leaving it inaccessible. The MPA's argument was similar to that made in 2007 by Universal Edition. In particular, the MPA claimed that Rachmaninoff's 1913 choral symphony The Bells violated US and EU copyright.[7] According to IMSLP, the action is without any merit.[8] Almost 24 hours later, the MPA announced on Twitter that they had asked Go Daddy to reinstate the domain name.[9]

Hargreaves Review

The Hargreaves Review has made recommendations that include exemptions of copyright such as 'format shifting', where music users would be allowed to copy music from one format to another legally; for example, copying from CD to MP3 - an act that is technically illegal under UK law. The MPA has taken a firm stance against these recommendations. The MPA claims that this could cost publishers up to £40 million a year.[10] An explanation of why the customers of their members should pay an extra £40 million has not been given.

The Hargreaves Review also proposes an exemption for parodied works. This has also been fiercely opposed by the MPA.

Operation Creative

In August 2016 the MPA joined the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit's Operation Creative initiative in the fight against online music piracy.[11] [12]

The MPA Richard Toeman Scholarship

The Richard Toeman Scholarship was founded in 2006 and is designed to help individuals starting their careers in the music publishing industry.[13]

References

  1. ↑ http://www.mpaonline.org.uk/History-of-Music-Publishing
  2. ↑ About the MPA
  3. ↑ http://www.ukmusic.org/our-members/
  4. ↑ http://www.mpaonline.org.uk/History-of-Music-Publishing
  5. ↑ http://www.mpaonline.org.uk/History-of-Music-Publishing
  6. ↑ http://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/jane-dyball-named-permanent-ceo-of-mpa-group-of-companies/
  7. ↑ Text of the MPA's letter to Go Daddy
  8. ↑ "IMSLP Under Attack" by Carolus, IMSLP Forum (21 April 2011)
  9. ↑ Tweet by Will Lines, Music Publishers Association (UK) (22 April 2011)
  10. ↑ Music Week (2012) 'MPA weighs in on Copyright proposals'. 6 April 2012, p. 4.
  11. ↑ http://www.worldipreview.com/news/music-publishers-association-joins-pipcu-s-operation-creative-12070
  12. ↑ http://www.completemusicupdate.com/article/mpa-joins-pipcus-operation-creative/
  13. ↑ http://www.musicweek.com/story.asp?storyCode=1034667&sectioncode=1
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