Spring is here! We hope the season is off to a great start for you. We’re excited to share this month’s updates with you.

In this newsletter, you’ll find key metrics from March’s royalty distribution, along with our latest enhancements to The MLC Portal. We also provide details about an upcoming webinar highlighting exclusive benefits available to Members.

The MLC completed its third royalty distribution of the year on March 16. March’s distribution primarily covered newly reported usage that took place in December 2025. The total of all royalty pools reported to The MLC for this cycle was approximately $81.0 million.

Every month, our team attempts to match the newly reported sound recording uses we receive to the musical works data in our public database, then distributes the resulting matched royalties to our Members. This month, we were able to match nearly 84 percent of the total royalty pools reported to us by DSPs for their December 2025 usage to songs registered in our database.

After deducting $2.0 million in royalties for usage covered by voluntary licenses maintained by DSPs with rightsholders, we collected approximately $78.9 million in royalties and distributed approximately $59.6 million to our Members.

We also continued to reprocess the remaining royalties from previous usage periods. As a result, we were able to distribute an additional $13.3 million in royalties from previously unmatched or unclaimed uses. (These are uses that we were able to match, through reprocessing, to data submitted to us after we completed the initial distribution cycle for that usage.) Thanks to reprocessing, our current average match rates for 2021 and 2022 now range between 93 and 95 percent, and our overall current match rate for all periods is nearly 92 percent.

To learn more about our March 2026 distribution, click here:

The March distribution included blanket royalty adjustments totaling $12 million, broken down as follows.

We continue to process adjustments to blanket royalties for usage originally reported during the last two years of the Phono 3 rate period (i.e., 2021 and 2022). These adjustments represent the difference between the royalties we initially processed for the usage periods from those two years at the Phono 2 rates and the royalties that are due at the final Phono 3 rates. In the March distribution, we processed Apple’s Phono 3 adjustments for two of the three months in Q1 2021 (January and March) and all three months in Q3 2021 (July, August, and September) totaling $11.7 million. We also processed all of Audiomack’s Phono 3 adjustments in the amount of $205k.

At the same time, we continue to process blanket royalty adjustments delivered to us by certain DSPs in connection with their 2023 Annual Reports of Usage (ARoU). In the March distribution, we processed blanket royalty adjustments for Spotify’s November and December 2023 usage in the amount of $22k. We also processed adjustments for all of Audiomack’s 2023 usage, which reflected a net overpayment of $82k.

Lastly, the March distribution also included reprocessing adjustments for 2021, 2022, and 2023 in the amount of $137k.

To the extent any of these adjustments pertained to works in your catalog, you will see them identified on your statement by the category type ["Adjustments"], along with the names of the specific DSP for which the adjustment was made.

Here is a tentative schedule showing when we are planning to process the remaining adjustments for 2021, 2022, and 2023.

For a clear, up-to-date view of blanket mechanical royalties reported to us by DSPs that operate under the blanket license we administer — including breakdowns of amounts collected, matched, distributed, and more — check out our Blanket Royalties Dashboard here.

Update on DSPs Operating Under The Blanket License

The blanket license The MLC administers is available to eligible DSPs in the U.S., and today, more than 50 DSPs operate under it. New DSPs may choose to obtain the blanket license, while existing licensees may stop operating under it either through a voluntary withdrawal or through termination if a DSP fails to comply with the terms of the license.

The following DSP(s) have obtained the blanket license:

• Mazeflower, P.B.C. obtained the blanket license on January 28 and has indicated a launch date of March 1.
• Audia, Inc. obtained the blanket license on February 7 and has indicated a launch date of March 2.

You can find more information by searching for each DSP’s Notice of License here.

Since April 2024, we have been distributing matched historical royalties for usage that took place during the Phono 3 rate period in sets. For each set of royalties from a given DSP (or DSPs), we first distribute matched historical royalties for previously unpaid uses reported by the DSP(s) concerned, then we aim to distribute matched historical royalties for previously partially paid uses from the same DSP(s) the following month. 

The March distribution did not include any historical royalties due to reprocessing being run on royalties that fall outside this period.

Overall, The MLC has been able to match and distribute over $229 million — nearly 58 percent — of the $397 million in previously unmatched historical royalties that DSPs transferred to us in 2021. To read more about the historical royalties we have distributed so far, click here:

We’re excited to share our latest updates to The MLC Portal. Here’s what’s new this month.

Member Hub – New Overclaim Flags in Registration History

We’ve made it easier for Members to see if a recently registered work is in overclaim. In the Registration History tab, Members will now see flags next to works in overclaim, providing increased visibility into works that may require their attention.

Songwriter Hub – New Match History Feature

Users of the Songwriter Hub can now easily track all of their match suggestions submitted through the Matching Tool in one convenient location. The new Match History tab provides a clear view of every match suggestion submitted and its current status. Users can also filter submissions by status and export the data for their records.

We hope you find these updates helpful. Keep an eye out for more enhancements coming soon!

As a Member of The MLC, you can access exclusive benefits and resources to help support your music career. We have a webinar series designed to highlight these opportunities and show you how to make the most of them. Our next webinar is coming up on April 14, when we’ll be joined by a representative from KOSIGN. To register, click here:

© 2026 Mechanical Licensing Collective. All rights reserved.