Samro celebrates achievements over six decades

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Samro’s primary role is to administer performing rights on behalf of its members, which it does by licensing music users through the collection of licence fees which are then distributed as royalties.

“As we celebrate 60 years since the establishment of Samro in December 1961, we must also reflect on the significant milestone of successfully collecting and distributing R7bn in royalties to our members,” says Samro chairperson, Nicholas Maweni. “If nothing else, this figure should demonstrate that Samro has consistently created value for South African artists over the years. We pride ourselves as being a progressive and innovative organisation that always strives to maximise value for our members.”

Maweni notes that Samro has ambitious goals for the future, aiming to position itself as a technology-savvy, innovative and creative organisation that hopes to create even more value for its members and the South African music industry as a whole.

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“We have recognised the need to digitally transform and embrace technologies that will streamline and accelerate the process of royalty collection on behalf of our members, who are mainly music creators, writers and publishers,” he explains.

Earlier this year, Samro introduced a technology system aimed to enhance its ability to collect royalties on behalf of its members. The solution enables monitoring of airplay across platforms such as the internet, television and radio. It is meant to improve the accuracy, efficiency and speed with which Samro is able to collect and pay over royalties to its registered members.

Maweni points out that the organisation also unveiled an online registration process in June for music users who wish to apply for a Music Usage Licence to play music in the course of doing business. The online registration portal simplifies and streamlines the entire process for the purpose of efficiency and effectiveness.

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“This simplified process will not only ensure that our members can earn royalties faster through the quicker onboarding of registered music users, but will also enhance the experience for music users, who can now enjoy the use of their music at the click of a button,” he says.

In an attempt to assist artists who have been hard hit by the Covid-19 lockdown in March last year, Samro recently appealed to big corporates to book exclusive online performances for staff working from home.

“Looking back at the past 60 years of Samro’s existence, it is clear that the organisation has grown significantly, and continues to transform to be more innovative and member-centric. We are clearly responding to the needs of our primary stakeholders, which are our members,” he says. “We will continue to rollout initiatives to assist our members to earn a decent living. As an innovative and progressive organisation, Samro is constantly seeking ways to create value for our artists.”