| AFM | American Federation of Musicians | A labor union representing professional musicians in the United States and Canada. |
| AMFA | American Music Fairness Act | The American Music Fairness Act is a bill that aims to remedy this by granting sound recording copyrights a right of public performance over broadcast radio. |
| ASCAP | American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers | A U.S. nonprofit performing rights organization (PRO) that provides public performance licenses for musical works. Subject to a consent decree. |
| BIEM | Bureau International des Sociétés Gérant les Droits d’Enregistrement et de Reproduction Mécanique | An international organization representing member mechanical rights societies. Negotiates licensing agreements with IFPI, assists in technical collaboration between its member societies to solve problems that arise between individual members, and contributes to the defence and development of copyright protection in the domain of mechanical rights. |
| BMI | Broadcast Music, Inc. | A U.S. nonprofit performing rights organization (PRO) that provides public performance licenses for musical works. Subject to a consent decree. |
| CASE Act | Copyright Alternatives in Small-Claims Enforcement Act | The Copyright Alternative in Small-Claims Enforcement Act is a copyright law that created a small claims tribunal called the Copyright Claims Board within the U.S. Copyright Office to handle small copyright claims. |
| CIS | Common Information System | Common information system that uses a variety of international standard identifier codes for musical works (ISWC), audiovisual works (ISAN) and rights holders (IPI, ISNI), several tools and databases (CIS-Net, IPI System, AV Index, Agreements, etc.) and a set of standardized formats (CWR, AVR, UP, CRD) for information exchange. Launched by CISAC and used by all CISAC members. |
| CIS-Net | Common Information System Network | A network of databases for the use of CISAC members built upon the CIS standards. |
| CISAC | International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers | Worldwide organization of authors’ societies, representing more than
4 million creators from all geographic areas and all artistic repertoires (including musical compositions, audio visual, dramatic, literary, and visual works). CISAC launched its CIS system to streamline rights data management. The ISWC, ISNI, and IPI unique identifiers are part of CISAC’s CIS system. |
| CMI | Copyright Management Information | Copyright management information is information conveyed in connection with copies or phonorecords of a work. |
| CRB/CRJs | Copyright Royalty Board / Copyright Royalty Judges | Three-judge panel that makes determinations and adjustments of terms and rates of royalty payments for the U.S. statutory licenses. Part of the Copyright Office. |
| CWR | Common Works Registration | CISAC standard developed with publishers with a primary use to register works with collecting societies. However, the CWR has recently expanded and is used in other types of exchanges (e.g., publishers to DMPs). CWR employs data standards that have been developed for the Common Information System (CIS) project of CISAC. |
| DAW | Digital Audio Workstation | An electronic device or software application used for recording and producing music. Examples are ProTools and Logic Pro. |
| DLC | Digital Licensee Coordinator | A nonprofit, designated by the Copyright Office, that coordinates the activities of digital music providers under the blanket section 115 compulsory mechanical license. The DLC is authorized to participate in Copyright Royalty Board proceedings to establish the administrative assessment to be paid by digital music providers to operate the MLC. A DLC representative serves as a nonvoting member on the MLC’s board. |
| DMCA | Digital Millennium Copyright Act | The Digital Millennium Copyright Act is a law enacted in 1998 that implemented international copyright treaties and reformed the digital copyright landscape in the United States. |
| DMP | Digital Music Provider | Generally, services offering recorded music and other forms of digital entertainment to the public via streaming or download. |
| DSP | Digital Service Provider | In the music context, services offering recorded music and other forms of digital entertainment to the public via streaming or download, i.e., a DMP. |
| DSR | Digital Sales Report Message Suite Standard | DDEX standard that communicates information about sales, usage, or revenue generated on a digital music service. |
| EIDR | Entertainment Identifier Registry | A global unique identifier system for a broad array of audio visual objects, including motion pictures, television, and radio programs |
| ERN | Electronic Release Notification Message Suite Standard | DDEX standard that provides core metadata about sound recording and video releases to DMPs |
| FMC | Future of Music Coalition | A U.S. nonprofit that advocates for musicians. |
| GAO | Government Accountability Office | An independent, nonpartisan agency that provides analyses, options, recommendations, and other assistance to help Congress make effective oversight, policy, and funding decisions. |
| GMR | Global Music Rights | A U.S. for-profit performing rights organization (PRO) that provides public performance licenses for musical works. Not subject to a consent decree. |
| GRD | Global Repertoire Database | An earlier, EU-initiated attempt to create a comprehensive and authoritative database for ownership and administration of musical works throughout the world. The GRD was not developed. |
| GRid | Global Release Identifiers | A unique identifier for sound recordings developed by MI3P. |
| HFA | Harry Fox Agency | U.S. provider of music rights administration services, especially for mechanical rights for musical works. Owned by SESAC. |
| ICE | International Copyright Enterprise | A joint venture between PRS, STIM and GEMA to actively encourage collaboration between other CMOs, music publishers, and digital service providers to ensure composers and songwriters are compensated accurately and fairly for the use of their works. |
| IFPI | International Federation of the Phonographic Industry | A nonprofit trade organization that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. |
| IMJV | International Music Joint Venture | An early effort by PROs to develop a comprehensive and authoritative worldwide musical work ownership database. Ultimately never developed. |
| IMPALA | Independent Music Companies Association | A nonprofit organization representing independent music companies. |
| IMR | International Music Registry | WIPO’s project to develop a database, intended to be a single access point for rights management systems around the world, to provide the rights status of musical works and sound recordings. Ultimately dissolved. |
| IPI | Interested Parties Information | A unique identifier assigned to rights holders with an interest in an artistic work, including natural persons or legal entities, made known to the IPI Centre. The IPI System is an international registry used by CISAC and BIEM societies. The collation and presentation of IPI information is standardized according to the CIS business rules. The IPI serves the documentation, distribution, and accounting processes of the societies that use the IPI System. The IPI system is administered by the Swiss copyright society SUISA. |
| ISNI | International Standard Name Identifier | A unique identifier for identifying the public identities of contributors to creative works, regardless their legal or natural status, and those active in their distribution. These may include researchers, inventors, writers, artists, visual creators, performers, producers, publishers, aggregators, and more. A different ISNI is assigned for each name used. ISNI is not widely in use across the music industry. |
| ISO | International Standards Organization | An international standard-setting body that promotes worldwide standards. |
| ISRC | International Standard Recording Code | A unique identifier assigned to sound recordings and music videos (assigned at the track level rather than by album) and created in conjunction with ISO. Managed by IFPI and regional agents (U.S. agent is RIAA). |
| ISWC | International Standard Musical Work Code | A unique identifier assigned to musical works and used in exchanges of information between PROs, publishers, record companies, and other interested parties on an international level. The system was developed by CISAC member societies. Managed by CISAC and regional agents (U.S. agent is ASCAP). |
| MDX | Music Data Exchange | A software application developed by SoundExchange in cooperation with RIAA and NMPA to facilitate the exchange of sound recording and publishing data between record labels and music publishers. Provides a central database of metadata and publisher rights and claiming capabilities. |
| MEAD | Media Enrichment and Description | DDEX standard that provides more than the core information delivered in an ERN message. |
| MI3P | Music Industry Integrated Identifiers Project | Project to develop a global infrastructure for the music industry to facilitate uses by online music services through a system of standardized data exchange. Governed by DDEX. |
| MLC | Mechanical Licensing Collective | The Mechanical Licensing Collective was set up by the Music Modernization Act. It is a government-commissioned entity that collects mechanical license royalties from music services and pays them to copyright owners. |
| MMA | Music Modernization Act | The Music Modernization Act updates the music licensing landscape to better facilitate legal licensing of music by digital services. It creates a blanket license for DMPs using the compulsory license for making and distributing musical works (the section 115 mechanical license). It also provides certain protections (and exceptions to those protections) to pre-1972 sound recordings and addresses the distribution of certain producers’ royalties. |
| MWN | Musical Works Notification Message Suite Standard | DDEX standard designed to allow parties to obtain licenses or statements of rights claims from musical work rights owners. |
| NMPA | National Music Publishers Association | A nonprofit trade organization that represents part of the music publishing industry in the United States. |
| NOI | Notice of Intention to Obtain a Compulsory License | Prior to the MMA, users had to file a notice of intention with the copyright owner to obtain a compulsory license under the section 115 compulsory mechanical license (or if the copyright owner could not be identified or located from the Copyright Office’s public records, the NOI had to be filed with the Copyright Office). The NOI system remains in place for non-digital uses (e.g., CDs, vinyl, etc.) and during the current transition period to the blanket license (except that the Office no longer accepts NOIs). But after the License Availability Date (January 1, 2021), DMPs wishing to use the section 115 compulsory license will need a blanket license from the MLC. |
| NSAI | Nashville Songwriters Association International | A nonprofit trade association that represents songwriters in all genres of music. |
| OMI | Open Music Initiative | Nonprofit initiative creating an open-source protocol for the uniform identification of music rights holders and creators. |
| PLine | Phonogram Line | DDEX field signifying a rights statement for musical works. |
| PRO | Performing Rights Organization | Responsible for licensing public performance rights of musical works for affiliated songwriters and publishers and collecting and distributing royalties from those licenses (e.g., ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, GMR). |
| RIAA | Recording Industry Association of America | A nonprofit trade organization that represents part of the U.S. recorded music industry. |
| RDx | Repertoire Data Exchange | Centralized data exchange gateway under development by IFPI and WIN to allow record companies and music licensing companies to submit and access authoritative recording data via a single point. |
| RIN | Recording Information Notification | DDEX standard incorporated into recording studio equipment and DAWs that allows for producers and other users to store metadata associated with a recording project. |
| SAG-AFTRA | Screen Actors Guild- American Federation of Television and Radio Artists | A nonprofit labor union that represents actors, journalists, radio personalities, recording artists, singers, voice actors, and other media professionals. |
| SCAPR | Societies Council for the Collective Management of Performers’ Rights | A nonprofit organization representing performers’ collective management organizations (CMOs). |
| SCL | The Society of Composers and Lyricists | A nonprofit trade association that represents songwriters and composers working in all forms of visual media. |
| SESAC | Society of European Stage Authors and Composers | A U.S. for-profit performing rights organization (PRO) that provides public performance licenses for musical works. Owns HFA. Also operates certain services outside the United States. Not subject to a consent decree. |
| SFTP | Secure File Transfer Protocol | A network protocol that provides secure file access, transfer, and management over any reliable data stream. |
| SGA | Songwriters Guild of America | A nonprofit trade association that represents songwriters. |
| SONA | Songwriters Of North America | A nonprofit trade association that represents composers and lyricists. |
| SRDB | Sound Recording Database | RIAA database of sound recording ownership information. |
| STM | Standard Technical Measures | Standard technical measures are standardized tools that copyright owners, platforms, and other stakeholders can use to identify or protect against infringement of their copyrighted content. |
| SX | SoundExchange | A nonprofit organization designated by the U.S. Copyright Royalty Judges to collect and distribute digital performance royalties for sound recordings under the section 114 statutory license. Also operates SXWorks, its music publisher services arm. |
| USCO | United States Copyright Office | |
| USPTO | United States Patent and Trademark Office | |
| USTR | United States Trade Representative | The Office of the United States Trade Representative is an agency of the United States federal government responsible for developing and promoting American trade policy. The current Trade Representative is Katherine Tai. |
| WFH | Work For Hire or Work Made for Hire (WMFH) | A work made for hire is a type of copyrighted work that was made at the instance and expense of a hiring party. This is usually an employer or someone who commissions a work. When a work is a work made for hire, the author of the copyrighted work, and thus the works initial owner, is legally the party that did the hiring, e.g., an employer or the commissioner of a work. |
| WIN | Worldwide Indie Network of Independent Labels | A coalition of independent music labels around the world. |
| WIPO | World Intellectual Property Organization | An agency of the United Nations that administers international treaties on a wide range of intellectual property areas, including copyright. |
| XML | Extensible Markup Language | A file format used to create common information formats and share both the format and the data using standard text. |
