Performance Rights Organizations vs. Sync Licensing: Understanding the Confusion

Music licensing involves multiple rights types managed by different entities, creating widespread confusion among businesses, content creators, and even experienced professionals. Performance Rights Organizations and synchronization licensing represent two distinct but complementary copyright management systems that are frequently misunderstood. Clarifying the differences between PROs and sync licensing helps brands avoid costly mistakes when using music in marketing, advertising, and digital content.

Performance Rights Organizations are entities managing performance rights of songwriters, composers, and publishers (https://www.trackclub.com/resources/types-of-music-licenses/). PROs license music and collect royalties for songwriters, ensuring artists receive payment whenever their music is publicly performed. In the United States, major PROs include ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC (invite-only). Internationally, prominent PROs include SOCAN and CMRRA in Canada, PRS for Music and PPL in the United Kingdom, and APRA AMCOS in Australia.

PROs operate through five key steps: membership, licensing, tracking, royalty collection, and royalty distribution (https://www.musicbed.com/articles/resources/understanding-performing-rights-organizations-pros/). Artists, songwriters, and publishers join PROs. PROs issue licenses to businesses, broadcasters, and venues to use music. They monitor when and where music is played through tracking technologies and reports. PROs collect fees from licensees based on music usage. Finally, collected royalties are distributed to members whose music was used.

Public performance rights cover music played in restaurants, bars, retail stores, radio broadcasts, television programming, streaming services, and live venues. Any business playing music publicly—even background music from streaming services—technically requires PRO licenses. This requirement catches many business owners off-guard who assume consumer streaming accounts suffice for commercial environments. Personal streaming services are strictly for personal, non-commercial use (https://sxmbusiness.com/music-licensing-litigation-for-business-copyright/). Using these in business environments without securing necessary public performance licenses violates music copyright infringement laws.

PROs issue different license types catering to varied music usage scenarios. Blanket licenses allow licensees to use entire catalogs of music represented by the PRO, typically used by radio stations, TV networks, streaming services, and venues (https://www.musicbed.com/articles/resources/understanding-performing-rights-organizations-pros/). Per-program licenses cover music for specific programs or events rather than all content, offering cost-effectiveness for users needing music only for certain programming parts. These licensing structures provide flexibility but require understanding which type suits specific business needs.

Synchronization licensing operates completely differently from performance rights. Sync licenses permit using music in synchronization with visual media such as films, TV shows, commercials, and video games (https://www.musicbed.com/articles/resources/understanding-performing-rights-organizations-pros/). Filmmakers, advertisers, and video game developers are typical sync license users. Unlike performance royalties paid through PROs, sync royalties are paid directly through licensing agreements negotiated between music users and rights holders (https://copyrightalliance.org/music-licenses-and-royalties/).

Sync licensing requires separate negotiations with both master recording copyright holders (typically record labels) and musical composition copyright holders (typically music publishers). This dual-clearance requirement creates complexity because both parties must agree to terms. If the label quotes $100,000 for use and publishers quote lower, Most Favored Nations clauses might require all parties receive the highest fee unless negotiations reduce it (https://www.tunecore.com/guides/sync-licensing-101).

Musicbed clarifies that it is a sync licensing company, not a PRO (https://www.musicbed.com/articles/resources/understanding-performing-rights-organizations-pros/). They license music to be synced with motion pictures. Ninety-nine percent of the time PRO fees are handled by platforms, networks, or entities that clients may use, but sync licensees are not responsible for paying performance royalties—those remain platform or broadcaster obligations.

The confusion between PROs and sync licensing stems from fundamental misunderstandings about copyright's divisibility. Music copyrights separate into multiple exclusive rights including reproduction rights, distribution rights, performance rights, and synchronization rights. Each right can be licensed separately, by different entities, for different uses. A sync license for using music in a commercial does not include performance rights for broadcasting that commercial. Conversely, a PRO blanket license for playing music in a restaurant does not authorize recording that music in promotional videos.

Social media amplifies PRO versus sync licensing confusion. Platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook have negotiated licenses with PROs and record labels allowing personal users to add music to content. However, these platform licenses explicitly exclude commercial uses (https://www.musicologize.com/brands-need-to-be-careful-about-unlicensed-music-in-tiktok-videos/). Business accounts, sponsored content, product promotion, and advertising require separate sync licenses regardless of platform-negotiated performance rights.

TikTok's Terms of Service clarify that "No rights are licensed with respect to sound recordings" (https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/sony-music-sues-1bn-valued-fitness-brand-gymshark-for-infringing-297-recordings-in-ads/) beyond platform-authorized personal use. Instagram's Music Guidelines state: "Use of music for commercial or nonpersonal purposes in particular is prohibited unless you have obtained appropriate licenses." These restrictions mean businesses need sync licenses for social media marketing content, not PRO performance licenses.

One-stop licensing simplifies the process when available. "One-stop" means all rights—100% of master and 100% of publishing—are represented by one entity (https://www.tunecore.com/guides/sync-licensing-101). This makes licensing very easy for both parties as they can clear the entire song through one person without tracking down and clearing rights with multiple different rights holders. One-stop also allows more flexibility on pricing and deal terms. However, one-stop licensing is relatively rare for popular commercial music with multiple rights holders.

Recent enforcement actions target businesses confusing performance rights and sync rights. Sony Music sued Marriott for allegedly using 931 songs in social media posts (https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/sony-music-ends-us-legal-battle-with-marriott-over-song-use-ads-2024-10-08/), claiming Marriott misappropriated recordings in Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok advertisements. Marriott likely had PRO licenses for playing music in hotel properties but lacked sync licenses for video content. This distinction between performance and synchronization rights explains the lawsuit despite Marriott's sophisticated licensing history.

Understanding that PROs handle performance rights while sync licensing covers audiovisual uses is essential for compliance. Businesses playing background music need PRO licenses. Brands creating marketing videos, commercials, social media content, YouTube videos, or any audiovisual content need sync licenses. Most commercial music uses require both—sync licenses for creating content and performance licenses for distribution. This dual-licensing requirement means navigating both PRO systems and direct rights holder negotiations, creating complexity that explains why music licensing remains one of the most challenging aspects of content creation in 2025.