Breaking Down My Latest PRO Payment (Domestic Songwriter)

This past weekend was the domestic songwriter payment from my PRO. Although sometimes the statements are hard to understand, I'll do my best to break down the parts that I do understand. This was my 2nd best domestic payment, although at this point in my career, my international payments are always better.

Average TV Placement Amount: $39.40

Here is the info for my highest paying placement on this statement. This placement was from a major label exclusive library.

Show: Magnum P.I.

Channel: CBS

Track Duration: 0:27

Pay: $78.69

Network TV channels typically pay the best (CBS, NBC, ABC) and are treated as a separate category compared to local TV and "Cable TV". CBS was listed for the Magnum P.I. placement, but most other shows didn't list the channel. I do have other placements on Magnum P.I. so I'm looking forward to see how they do on the coming statements.

To get an idea of how streaming services compare to traditional broadcast, I'll share the information for how Magnum P.I. did on Amazon Video On Demand.

Number of Plays: 4,882

Pay: $0.04

Although it might be cool bragging rights to get music on streaming shows (Netflix, Amazon, Disney etc.) it rarely pays well. The big goal is always network TV channels on live TV.

Some other random info about my statement

- A track that isn't even live yet with one of my publishers has earned streaming royalties for the 2nd statement in a row. How this happened, I don't know.

- My highest earning audio streaming service was "Audible Magic" which beat out Pandora, Spotify, Apple, etc.

- From claiming my live performances at local venues, I earned about $2.92 per gig.

- My statements almost always have a category called "Reprocess". I have no idea what that is, but I got about $10 from it on this statement. If anyone knows what that means, please let me know!

I hope this info gives you some kind of scope as to how placements pay and what you might expect. My international royalties tend to always be more money because of the amount of placements, but placements in the US typically pay more individually. Still, my highest ever placements have been in the UK and Germany. This is why libraries that have a network of sub-publishers are essential in my opinion!

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