Former French Ambassador speaks on systems put in place to boost royalty collection in Ghana

Former French Ambassador to Ghana, Anne Sophie Ave has shared insights into the complexities of royalty collection in the music industry and has also shed some light on a project aimed at enhancing the system.

In a discussion with Andy Dosty on Hitz FM on August 31, she disclosed that a budget had indeed been negotiated with the French Ministry of Finance to support improvements in Ghana's royalty collection system. The project's primary focus was to address the challenge of clarifying music usage rights to the public.

“I've negotiated a budget with the French Ministry of Finance. It was for 500,000 Euros. The budget has not yet arrived, but my successor is running that project. It was to help with the system of royalty collection,” she revealed.

Citing the case of France, she stated that many people who purchase music feel that they have the right to do anything with it, she stated that more education on royalty collection would be needed.

“It's really difficult to explain to people that the fact that you buy music to listen to for consumption does not necessarily grant you permission to play at a venue to enhance the ambiance of the place without paying royalties. So royalties are complicated, the artiste has created a piece of art that you want to use for commercial purposes. You have to pay something,” she stated.

The ambassador revealed plans for a collaboration between the Ghana Music Rights Organization and SACEM, an international royalty collector to to facilitate efficient royalty collection.

“We have paired and merged GHAMRO with SACEM, it's one of the biggest royalty collectors in the world. They have tools for scanning the radios so anytime a song or jingle is placed, It's captured. So at the end of the year, we know how many minutes of your song are being played.

"In between the artist and SACEM, and in France, with just one banger, you can actually live comfortably for the rest of your life. Especially when it's played again and again,” she disclosed.

The French Ambassador's insights shed light on the intricate world of royalty collection in the music industry and the collaborative efforts between France and Ghana to enhance this system for the benefit of artists and creators.

ID/BB

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