| Course | BMB 515 Music Business Structure and Strategies |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 5 |
| Paper type | graduate assignment analyzing music publishing and licensing income for a placement |
| Length | About 1,040 words, 6 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Southern New Hampshire University |
| Program | MBA in Music Business |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for BMB 515 Module 5
Licensing Analysis: One Song in a Streaming Drama
[Student Name]
Southern New Hampshire University
BMB 515: Music Business Structure and Strategies
Module Five Assignment
[Instructor Name]
[Date]
The organization, setting and figures below are a composite written as a model document. No real employer, client, colleague or patient is described.
Licensing Analysis: One Song in a Streaming Drama
Introduction
In early 2025, a music supervisor for a streaming drama asked to use a song from the company's catalog in a scene where two characters drive across West Texas at dawn. The song was written by one of the company's artists and an outside cowriter, recorded by the artist and released by the label in 2019. The use was 45 seconds of background music in one episode. This paper explains the licenses the production needed, how the fees were set, how each dollar was divided among the owners and what further income followed.
Two Licenses for One Scene
The production needed two separate licenses. The first, a synchronization license, permits pairing the composition, the melody and lyrics, with images. It is issued by the publishers who own the song. The second, a master use license, permits use of the specific recording and is issued by the owner of the master, here the label. Passman (2023) notes that the two are negotiated separately but usually at the same price, because supervisors offer the same fee to both sides and each side insists on matching terms.
In this case the song is owned 50 percent by the artist and 50 percent by the cowriter. The artist's share is co-published by the label's publishing arm, which administers it. The cowriter's share is published by an independent Nashville publisher. Both publishers had to approve the sync license, and the label approved the master use.
How the Fees Were Set
The supervisor offered $15,000 for each license on most-favored-nations terms, meaning neither side could receive more than the other. The fee reflected the license terms: background rather than featured use, 45 seconds, one episode, worldwide rights, all media and in perpetuity, with an option for use in a trailer at an additional fee. A featured use, such as a song over closing credits, or an advertising license would have commanded considerably more. The company accepted because the show's audience matched the artist's and because the episode credit would appear on streaming services' song pages.
Two terms deserved more negotiation than they received. Perpetual, all-media rights mean the company will never be paid again for this use, even if the series is sold to broadcast networks abroad or released on physical media, and some publishers ask for a limited term or a step-up fee for additional media. The trailer option, priced at $10,000 per side, was sensible, because trailers reach far larger audiences than a single episode and are often where a song gains the most attention. The company also confirmed that the license did not allow the production to edit the lyrics or use the song in a different scene, which protected the artist's work and left room for a second license if the producers wanted one.
Dividing the Composition Fee
The $15,000 synchronization fee is divided first by ownership and then by each writer's publishing agreement. Under the artist's co-publishing deal, the label's publishing arm deducts a 10 percent administration fee, and the remaining income is split 75 percent to the artist and 25 percent to the label as co-publisher. The cowriter's publisher accounts to the cowriter under its own contract, which the company does not see.
Division of the $15,000 synchronization fee
| Recipient | Basis | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Cowriter's publisher | 50 percent ownership | $7,500 |
| Label's publishing arm, administration fee | 10 percent of the artist's $7,500 | $750 |
| Artist, as writer and co-owner | 75 percent of the remaining $6,750 | $5,063 |
| Label's publishing arm, as co-publisher | 25 percent of the remaining $6,750 | $1,687 |
| Total | $15,000 |
Dividing the Master Fee
The $15,000 master use fee is paid to the label. The artist's recording agreement gives the artist 50 percent of net licensing income, the same rate as streaming. The artist's 2019 album recouped its costs in 2022, so the artist's $7,500 is paid in cash on the next royalty statement rather than applied to an unrecouped balance. If the album had not recouped, the artist would have received nothing until the balance was cleared, a point Passman (2023) identifies as a frequent source of misunderstanding between artists and labels.
Total placement income by party
| Party | Composition | Master | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Artist | $5,063 | $7,500 | $12,563 |
| Label, including publishing arm | $2,437 | $7,500 | $9,937 |
| Cowriter's publisher and cowriter | $7,500 | $7,500 | |
| Total | $15,000 | $15,000 | $30,000 |
Income That Follows
The production filed a cue sheet with the performing rights organizations listing the song, its writers and publishers and the duration of the use. Performance royalties will be paid when the show is performed in media and territories where those organizations collect, including foreign broadcast. These amounts are uncertain and are likely to be small for a background use. More immediately, streams of the song rose from about 40,000 a month to about 1.4 million in the month after the episode was released, and settled near 300,000 a month. Over the first six months, the additional streams produced roughly $4,800 of master income for the label, half of it payable to the artist, plus mechanical and performance royalties on the composition collected by the Mechanical Licensing Collective and the performing rights organizations.
The company also learned something about timing. The supervisor's request came on a Thursday with a Monday deadline. Because the label controlled the master and administered the artist's half of the song, it needed only one outside approval, from the cowriter's publisher, which came on Friday. A song with three writers on three publishers might have missed the deadline, and supervisors remember which catalogs are easy to clear. Towse (2017) describes how publishers' income has shifted toward licensing and away from sales, and this placement shows why: one negotiation produced more than the song's entire streaming income in the previous two years. Hesmondhalgh (2021) cautions that the attention economy of streaming concentrates rewards, and a placement is one of the few ways a catalog song can break out.
Conclusion
One 45-second placement required two licenses, generated $30,000 in fees divided under three different contracts and lifted the song's streaming income for months. The artist received about $12,560, the label about $9,940 and the cowriter's side $7,500, with performance royalties still to come. The analysis shows why owning both master and publishing gives the company an advantage in licensing, a point Milestone Two will build into its revenue strategy.
References
Hesmondhalgh, D. (2021). Is music streaming bad for musicians? Problems of evidence and argument. New Media & Society, 23(12), 3593-3615. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444820953541
Passman, D. S. (2023). All you need to know about the music business (11th ed.). Simon & Schuster.
Towse, R. (2017). Economics of music publishing: Copyright and the market. Journal of Cultural Economics, 41(4), 403-420. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10824-016-9268-7
What the BMB 515 Module 5 instructions ask for
The Module Five assignment in BMB 515 focuses on music publishing and licensing. You are typically asked to explain the rights involved in a specific use of music, identify the licenses required, describe how fees or royalties are set and calculate how income is divided among songwriters, publishers, labels and artists. Common scenarios include synchronization in film, television or advertising, a cover recording requiring a mechanical license, or public performance. A strong paper keeps the composition and the master separate throughout, applies the actual contract terms in the case and shows the arithmetic. Graders reward accuracy about who issues each license and who collects each payment, and they notice when the arithmetic adds back to the original fees.
How this BMB 515 Module 5 publishing and licensing assignment example is built
The paper analyzes a 45-second background use of a song in one episode of a streaming drama. The production needed a synchronization license for the composition and a master use license for the recording, and both were quoted at $15,000 on matching terms. Half the composition fee goes to the cowriter's publisher. The artist's half passes through the label's publishing arm under a co-publishing deal with a 10 percent administration fee and a 75 to 25 division, leaving the artist about $5,060 and the label's publishing arm about $2,440. The label keeps half the master fee and pays the artist the other half. The paper adds performance royalties from cue sheets and a streaming lift worth about $4,800.
Where the BMB 515 Module 5 rubric puts the points
Rubrics for this assignment usually score identification of rights and licenses, explanation of how fees and royalties are set, accurate calculation of shares, application of contract terms, discussion of related income and writing. High-scoring papers name the licensor for each right, explain terms such as scope, duration and most-favored-nations clauses, and show each split step by step in a table. They also recognize income that follows the placement, such as performance royalties and higher streams. Papers lose credit for treating the sync and master fees as one payment, for ignoring the cowriter, for applying a generic split instead of the case's contracts and for leaving out the arithmetic.
BMB 515 Module 5 help: the mistakes that cost points
The biggest trap in licensing papers is forgetting that a song with two writers has two sets of owners, each with its own publisher and deal. Divide the composition fee by ownership first, then apply each writer's publishing contract. Another frequent problem is skipping the terms of the license, such as how long it lasts, where it applies and in what media, even though those terms largely set the price. Show the master side separately and apply the artist's contract, including whether licensing income is used to recoup advances. Finally, add the income that follows, but label estimates as estimates and say where each figure came from.
Get BMB 515 Module 5 written to your instructions
Send the BMB 515 Module 5 assignment with your song or scenario. The paper will name each license, explain the terms behind the fees, split every dollar among writers, publishers, label and artist and add the royalties that follow. Usually two days; a first paper is free. The paper above is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Southern New Hampshire University document.
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BMB 515 Module 5 questions, answered
Where can I find a free BMB 515 Module 5 Publishing and Licensing sample?
This page includes a complete BMB 515 Module 5 assignment tracing a television placement through sync, master and royalty income.
What licenses are needed to use a song in a TV show?
A synchronization license from the publishers of the composition and a master use license from the owner of the recording, usually the label.
What is a most-favored-nations clause in music licensing?
A term that guarantees one rights holder, often the master or the publisher, a fee and terms no worse than those given to the other, so the two fees usually match.
How does a co-publishing deal divide income?
The songwriter keeps the writer's share and part of the publisher's share, typically receiving about 75 percent of income, while the co-publisher receives about 25 percent, often after an administration fee.
Does a TV placement earn performance royalties?
It can; the production files a cue sheet listing the music, and performing rights organizations pay royalties when the show is broadcast or performed in territories and media where they collect.