Music Distribution with Publishing Admin: Why You Need Both

Understanding the Two Sides of Music Royalties

Every song has two copyright halves:

1. Master recording (sound recording): The actual recording of the song. Your distributor collects royalties for this from Spotify, Apple Music, etc.
2. Musical composition (publishing): The melody, lyrics, and arrangement. A publisher or publishing administrator collects royalties for this from PROs, mechanical rights organizations, and sync deals.

If you only have a distributor, you're only collecting half of what you're owed. Learn the difference between mechanical and performance royalties →

What Publishing Admin Collects

• Mechanical royalties: Owed every time your song is streamed or downloaded. In the US, this is ~$0.0009/stream on Spotify. Across millions of streams, this adds up significantly. How royalties work →
• Performance royalties: Collected when your song is played on radio, in venues, or on TV. Through PROs like ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC — plus international collection societies.
• Sync licensing fees: When your song is placed in TV, film, or ads, there are separate publishing fees. How sync licensing works →
• International royalties: Foreign sub-publishing royalties often go uncollected without a publishing administrator working on your behalf.

Why Most Distributors Don't Include Publishing

Publishing administration requires relationships with collection societies worldwide, complex rights registration, and ongoing royalty tracking. It's operationally expensive. That's why most distributors either:

• Don't offer it: DistroKid, Amuse, and RouteNote have no publishing service
• Charge extra: CD Baby Pro charges $29.95/single for publishing (and takes 15% of publishing royalties). TuneCore Publishing is a separate subscription.
• Include it free: Only OneSync includes full publishing administration at zero cost with zero commission.

How Much Money Are You Missing?

Estimates vary, but publishing royalties typically represent 20–30% of an artist's total income. If you earn $1,000/month from streaming through your distributor, you could be missing an additional $250–$350/month in publishing royalties.

Over a year: $3,000–$4,200 left on the table.

How OneSync's Publishing Admin Works

1. Register your songs: When you upload to OneSync, your compositions are automatically registered with relevant collection societies worldwide.
2. Royalties are collected: OneSync's publishing administration collects mechanical, performance, and sync royalties from every territory.
3. You get paid: All publishing royalties are deposited to your account alongside your streaming royalties. One dashboard, one payout.
4. Zero commission: OneSync takes 0% of your publishing royalties. Unlike CD Baby (15%) or traditional publishers (15–25%).

Distribution + Publishing: Comparing Your Options

Do You Need Publishing Admin?

If you answer "yes" to any of these, you need publishing administration:

• Do you write your own songs? → Yes, you need it.
• Do you co-write with other songwriters? → Yes, you need it.
• Has your music been played on radio or in a public venue? → Yes, you need it.
• Would you like your music placed in TV, film, or ads? → Yes, you need it.

The only artists who don't need publishing admin are those who exclusively perform cover songs and don't write original music. Full guide: What is publishing admin? →