"It's important that composers are equipped with the relevant information in order to achieve the best and fairest deal for their work.” Image credit: Shutterstock.
As part of the Fair Score campaign, The MU and the Ivors Academy have created a new specimen commissioning agreement for TV, accompanied by explanatory notes.
This resource will help composers understand what a comprehensive commissioning agreement looks like, leading to more effective negotiations and fairer deals.
As media composers work at all levels of the industry, the agreement will prove useful for those being commissioned by both small independent production companies and also global broadcasters.
The Fair Score campaign and how the new specimen agreement fits into this
Three years ago the MU and the Ivors Academy launched a campaign (initially called Composers Against Buyouts) in order to raise awareness about, and to tackle, unfair royalty buyouts in media commissioning contracts.
As our work in this space developed, we became increasingly aware of other problems in the commissioning process, including a general lack of transparency, package deals incorporating low fees, coercion, and in some cases a complete lack of contracts or confirmation of agreed terms.
In addition to our efforts behind the scenes, we have identified the growing need to provide resources for composers to ensure that they feel equipped and empowered to negotiate fair deals, which involves understanding the expected clauses within an agreement, and the appropriate terminology.
In order to help composers understand what a comprehensive commissioning agreement looks like, we have worked with lawyers to draw up a specimen agreement for use within the TV commissioning process.
The agreement is accompanied by a notes document to provide additional information in relation to the clauses and information within.
We’re delighted to launch this agreement
MU National Organiser for Live, Theatre & Music Writers, Kelly Wood says:
“We're delighted to launch this agreement, which we know will help composers both generally in terms of understanding fair commissioning, and also as a useful reference when they've been offered a commissioning contract.
“Negotiations with commissioners can be particularly tough, and it's important that composers are equipped with the relevant information in order to achieve the best and fairest deal for their work.”
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