This seems a positive notion for the self-publishing songwriter but is it the case? Also, Burnett (1996) points out that many independents rely on major worldwide publishers for administrative services. 2.4.6
The Self-Publishing Songwriter
If a songwriter doesn’t want a publishing deal, he can self-publish his own works and keep all of the rights for himself, and fully control the exploitation of them (Harrison, 2008; Lathrop, 2003; Sobel and Weissman, 2008). Harrison (2008) points out that a songwriter can easily do this by becoming a member of the relevant collection societies (such as PRS for Music), but says that a self-publisher must also do a lot of the administration works themselves, including notifying foreign collection societies and chasing up payments, and tracking down where their songs are being used and if they are being used legally. Lathrop (2003, p229) also argues that self-publishing works best “when the musician-songwriter isn’t especially interested in trying to convince others to record new versions of the songs”. Does this mean then that if a songwriter had the nous and business acumen, they could easily become self-published, but it is only worthwhile if they are a performing songwriter? Lathrop (2003, p229) goes further to say that an established music publisher is the best route to take “when you want active promotion of your songs in the music market but don’t have the time, energy, industry contacts, knowledge of money sources, and business expertise offered by a professional publisher”. Does such an argument lend itself to the idea then that a songwriter can effectively self-publish up to a certain extent, and anything beyond that is worth utilising the expertise of a professional publishing company? It will be interesting to see how this point informs the author’s general conclusions and recommendations. 2.4.7
Section Summary
Music publishing involves the exploitation of musical works’ copyright. Although relatively straightforward, music publishing requires the sustainment of several simultaneous relationships built on trust (Barrow and Newby, 1995; Bergamn, 2004;