Catch Point Launches Program to Buy Performing Rights Royalties From Working Songwriters

Catch Point Rights Partners, the private-equity backed music rights acquisition firm that has purchased the publishing of such artists/songwriters and/or producers as Brantley Gilbert, Yelawolf and All Time Low, is now offering a program through which it will buy performance rights income streams from songwriters while allowing them to retain ownership and control of all of their other publishing royalties.

Since doing due diligence when acquiring music assets is a research-intensive, time-consuming process, buyers typically like to look at catalogs that generate substantial income streams, leaving out songwriters and artists whose incomes don’t attain significant earning levels. But with this move, Catch Point is setting a minimum level of $50,000 in annual royalties from a songwriter’s performance rights organization (PRO).

“Catch Point’s Songwriter PRO program helps writers unlock value and generate liquidity from their performing rights royalties,” Catch Point co-founder/partner Richard Conlon said in a statement. “The process is simple and transparent. This new offering complements our success in acquiring dozens of catalogs in the music rights space to date. We are delighted to expand our service to the songwriting community with this new program.”

Moreover, just as “streaming has helped level the playing field and access to audience for music creators… we want to do the same with regard to access to financing,” Conlon added. Catch Point’s new PRO program makes it easier for more working songwriters, not just the top 10% or 15% of earners, to unlock the liquidity in their public performance royalties, according to the company.

While the four-year-old firm typically looks at catalogs with an annual income level of at least $200,000, the company says through a combination of its proprietary internal analytical systems and its deep knowledge of the music publishing ecosystem, the firm can now efficiently do transactions at the lower $50,000 annual PRO royalties for musical works commercially released in 2017 or earlier. The program uses an online interface coupled with a standard form agreement to make the process easy. The final valuation paid to songwriters who take advantage of the program would be determined by Catch Point.