Does (Canadian) campus/community radio airplay earn royalties via SOCAN?

August 30, 2012 3:13 PM

If I release a new album to CANADIAN campus/community radio stations for airplay, and it is played, can I potentially earn royalties if the album is registered with SOCAN?

I am in the process of submitting a new album to Canadian campus/community radio stations across the country - but before I do, I am wondering if it would be worth registering the album with SOCAN. I had assumed, last time I put out a record, that there are no royalties associated with airplay from campus/community stations, but a friend tells me that this is not the case. Can anyone tell me if having SOCAN-registered music will earn royalties for the artists if they are played on non-commercial radio? And, if so, where does the money for these royalties come from? Do the license fees that a station pays to SOCAN come directly from listener donations etc.?

posted by CarrotAdventure to Media & Arts (2 answers total)

These guys are the people to ask. They're a not for profit legal group devoted to giving legal advice to Canadian artists of all stripes. Free 30 minute appointments if you live in Toronto.
posted by modernnomad at 3:31 PM on August 30, 2012

The National Campus and Community Radio Association page indicates that campus stations pay 1.9% of gross operating costs to SOCAN every year. Many years ago when I was on campus radio, we'd have a SOCAN week once a year where we would write our playlists on special paper forms, which would be sent in to SOCAN for the purpose of dividing the royalty money. During that week we'd make sure to play lots of local bands, or anyone we wanted to make sure got a few bucks. I'm guessing these days the process is more automated, as most stations keep playlists online.
posted by Gortuk at 5:38 PM on August 30, 2012