APRA and Agreement Clause of Original Song?

[Music Man]

Hi,

I have an original song that has been shortlisted by a client for a possible sync licensing deal. I wrote, performed and paid for the recording in question and so own the masters. And I am self-published so the publishing is under 'Control'. I am a member of APRA so all back end royalties will be collected by them.

There is a clause in the contract which seems standard enough (or not?), though I am not too sure, since it mentions "sides" something I have not heard before, thus why I wanted to get second opinion. Here is the clause:

"This agreement requires you to grant a non–exclusive licence for the rights to the recording and the rights to the composition. These are also called “sides”, the master–side and publishing–side. It is a standard industry practice that this will be split 50/50 between the owners of the master and the owners of the publishing."

 

[Therese]

Hi Music Man,

Unfortunately I am not familiar with the standard industry practice however a 50/50 split seems a bit much.

My understanding is that contract are normally able to be negotiated on both sides prior to it being signed.

On The Arts Law Centre of Australia website I was unable to locate the exact answer, but it has some useful sources.

My suggestion would be to get in contact with an expert organisation or body. Perhaps even a legal aid centre or a lawyer would be able to provide some advice prior to entering into the contract.