VillaMusicRights

The world of music copyright is evolving. Monopolies of collecting societies are under pressure. Composers complain about a lack of benefit, users about non-transparent and high tariffs. Why should you as a composer pay a membership fee to such an organization, when you have to fill in a lot of forms and get nothing or little in return? Why should you as a user pay such high tariffs? This can change… (villamusicrights.com, 2011)

Even though artists are free to manage their own rights, most artists choose to transfer their rights to collecting societies. Best know society in the Netherlands is Buma/Stemra who takes over the right for existing works as well future works. Another platform to manage your rights is Creative Commons. Creative Commons focuses fully on the online area, trying mainly to stimulate the legal use of music (and other creative works), but also their free use. And now there is VillaMusicRights. VillaMusicRights a worldwide operating website for music authors (composers) and users of their musical works, provide a database on which music authors and lyricists make their works available together with the necessary licences. VillaMusicRights is founded by Koos Kalkman and Jan Smits.