This blog was authored by the The Copyright Agency . The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views or position of IP Australia, and should not be taken as constituting advice. If you require guidance specific to your situation, you should consider seeking professional advice. For more information about Copyright in Australia, please see Attorney-General's Department Copyright(Opens in a new tab/window). 

What is Copyright licensing?

In Australia, copyright protection is automatic. Unlike patents and designs, copyright does not need to be registered. The moment a work is created — a novel, song, or painting — it is protected under the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth). Copyright is the framework that enables creators and rightsholders to earn a living from their work. In Australia, copyright laws protect literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works, as well as films, sound recordings, published editions and broadcast content. 

Copyright gives exclusive rights to rightsholders to set terms (including payment) when their work is used in one of the ways controlled by the copyright owner, such as reproduction or communication to the public. Rightsholders can license rights, including through Rights Management Organisations.

A copyright licence provides permission to use someone else’s work in a certain way. Without it, using a work outside the legal exceptions may result in copyright infringement.

Licences can be:

  • Exclusive: only the licensee can use the work in that way.
  • Non-exclusive: the rightsholder can license the same rights to multiple people.
  • Tailored: different rights in the copyright can be granted to different licensees.
  • Formal or informal: they can be in writing, in a contract, or even implied.

There are two types of licensing in Australia:

  1. Voluntary Licensing - where the rightsholder chooses to license their work. This can be done via:
  • Direct agreements: e.g., a photographer licenses a business to use his or her photograph in marketing material.
  • Rights Management Organisations: e.g., a photographer provides mandate to an organisation that manage licences on behalf of many creators to license businesses to use his or her photograph for specific purposes.
  1. Statutory Licensing - these are compulsory schemes built into the Copyright Act in Australia. They allow certain institutions to use copyright material without having to ask for permission each time so long as they pay fair compensation, usually via a Rights Management Organisation.

Examples of statutory licences include the Statutory Education Licence and Government Licence. These licences enable:

  • Education institutions such as schools and universities to copy and communicate materials for teaching
  • Government agencies to use material for official government purposes

The fees collected under these schemes are distributed back to rightsholders via Rights Management Organisations. This system ensures fair compensation to rightsholders and enables Education Institutions and Government to use a vast amount of copyright material and conduct business efficiently.​

What are Rights Management Organisations?

Rights Management Organisations (sometimes called Collecting Societies) are non-for-profit organisations that manage rights on behalf of creators and other rightsholders. They act as intermediaries between rightsholders (who own rights) and users (who need access to copyright material).

It would be impractical for every creator to negotiate directly with every school, business, broadcaster, or government department that wants to use their work. Rights Management Organisations:

  • Issue licences to organisations and individuals that need to use copyright material;
  • Enter into remuneration agreements with schools, governments and other users that are entitled to rely on statutory licences;
  • Simplify the use of copyright material so, instead of negotiating with individual rightsholders, users can operate under a single licence that covers a wide range of works;
  • Collect fees from these users and distribute royalties back to rightsholders, ensuring they are compensated for the use of their works.

Australia has several sector-specific Rights Management Organisations, each focused on particular types of works. Some examples of these are:

  • Copyright Agency:
    • Administers rights for text and images.
    • Operates the education and government statutory licences for the use of text and images.
    • Distributes royalties to authors, publishers, surveyors and visual artists.
  • Screenrights:
    • Manages the statutory licences for copying and communicating broadcast material (TV and radio) by educational institutions and governments.
    • Distributes royalties to producers, directors, and broadcasters.
  • APRA AMCOS:
    • Licenses music publishing rights (public performance, communication, reproduction).
    • Distributes royalties to songwriters and music publishers.
  • PPCA (Phonographic Performance Company of Australia):
    • Licenses the use of sound recordings (not the underlying song, but the recorded performance).
    • Represents record labels and recording artists.

Each organisation is subject to oversight mechanisms including the Code of Conduct for Copyright Collecting Societies and the Copyright Tribunal of Australia.

How can rightsholders work with Rights Management Organisations?

Rightsholders can apply to become members of Rights Management Organisations and this is often a requirement before royalties can be collected and distributed.

The following organisations are open for membership to relevant rightsholders:

  • Copyright Agency: Authors, publishers, journalists, surveyors and artists
  • Screenrights: Producers, directors, and broadcasters
  • APRA AMCOS: Songwriters, composers, and music publishers
  • PPCA: Record labels and recording artists

When joining, Rightsholders typically grant the organisation non-exclusive rights (meaning they can still license works directly, unless specifically agreed otherwise). This allows the organisations to issue licences to users like schools, businesses, or broadcasters.

Once fees are collected from licensees, the Rights Management Organisations analyse any usage data they may have collected – for e.g. broadcast playlists, educational copying surveys. They then allocate payments proportionally to rightsholders whose works were used. Members are usually paid annually or quarterly, depending on the organisation or the licence scheme.

There are many benefits for rightsholders joining these organisations, including:

  • Efficient royalty collection: Instead of dealing with multiple individual users, copyright owners get one source of payment.
  • Global reach: Many Australian Rights Management Organisations have reciprocal agreements with overseas counterparts (for e.g. Copyright Agency has reciprocal arrangements with overseas reprographic rights organisations such as Copyright Clearance Centre in the US and visual arts Rights Management Organisations) so royalties can be collected internationally.
  • Action against infringement: Rights Management Organisations can monitor use of works and may be able to take enforcement action where appropriate.
  • Professional support: They often provide member services, advocacy, grants, and career development initiatives.

Rightsholders can find out more about the relevant Rights Management Organisations at the following links:

Copyright Agency(Opens in a new tab/window) 

Screenrights(Opens in a new tab/window)

APRA AMCOS(Opens in a new tab/window)

PPCA(Opens in a new tab/window)

Authored by Sharon Maguchu, Head of Education and Government Licensing at Copyright Agency