PRS for Music will receive data from Soundtrack on the tracks actually played in about 7,000 venues. How it will work, and how music use is tracked in Ukraine.
In the UK, PRS for Music is launching a partnership with the background music service Soundtrack. PRS wants to know what actually plays in shops, bars and hotels, and to pay the people whose music is played there.
What has changed
Soundtrack will send PRS for Music data on the tracks played in about 7,000 venues. The data will be used in royalty distributions from December 2026.
Why it matters
For some venues there is no actual data on each track played. Part of the money is therefore distributed using indirect data, such as similar venues or general statistics. The new approach is simpler: payment follows what was actually played.
Who gets paid
The partnership covers songwriting royalties. PRS for Music represents rights in musical works: songwriters, composers and music publishers.
Rights in recordings are handled in the UK by a separate organisation, PPL, which collects for performers and record producers. Recordings are not mentioned in this partnership. A composition and a recording are different rights with different royalty streams.
What about Ukraine
For Ukraine, the UK scheme is only an example for now. It shows how technology helps distribute royalties more accurately when you know which tracks were played, in which venues, and who should be paid.
In Ukraine, venues pay collective management organisations (CMOs) for the music they play. But there is almost no data on what was actually played:
- The tariff is usually fixed. A venue pays monthly based on its size and location, not on what it played.
- Contracts may require music reports, but most venues do not submit them.
- CMO accreditation has been suspended for the duration of martial law. The EU is calling on Ukraine to restore it.
Without play data, it is hard to get the money to the people whose music was actually played. Ukraine's Ministry of Economy is now preparing changes to the collective management system, which we covered separately.
Who do you think should run this kind of tracking in Ukraine: CMOs, background music services or the state? Tell us on Instagram.
Source: PRS for Music, Record of the Day.