MUMBAI: Music company BMG and the German collective society- GEMA, announced a three- year digital licensing deal to maximise income collected from 38 European countries for BMG’s US and UK songwriters. The statement issued by the companies stated that it means that in a single agreement digital services can secure licences to reach out to 531 million people across 38 countries.

GEMA’s subsidiary -ARESA will continue to license BMG’s Anglo-American repertoire to digital services across Europe, through GEMA subsidiary ARESA. BMG's association with ARESA started in July 2012. Since then, BMG has licensed more than 40 significant digital services across Europe to download retailer (iTunes), subscription streaming (Spotify) and ad-supported streaming operator (YouTube).

ARESA currently represents rights to works of artistes like John Legend, Busbee, Ben West, Bruno Mars, Nigel Harrison, Deborah Harry, George Ezra and Joel Pott among others.

BMG CEO Hartwig Masuch said, “BMG is determined to ensure songwriters are able to make the most of the revenue opportunities of the digital age. That means having a lean and efficient licensing operation and a state-of-the art administrative back-end. The combination of ARESA’s nimble licensing team and GEMA’s significant infrastructure is a significant benefit to our writers, and the ability to license access to more than half a billion people in a single deal is a big plus for licensees.”

BMG SVP business and legal affairs Goetz von Einem said that there are significant benefits in aggregating rights through ARESA.

GEMA director broadcasting and online Thomas Theune said, “We are delighted to extend our successful collaboration with BMG, delivering value for their songwriter clients, simplifying the licensing process and helping support the development of the digital music business in Europe.”

ARESA (is a so-called option 3 vehicle) is designed to increase competition among collection societies. It represents rights of over 9 lakh songs by Anglo-American writers.