SOCAN–CBC Internet Royalties (2014–2018)

Summary#

This Canada Gazette item publishes SOCAN Tariff 22.E (2014–2018) from the Copyright Board. It sets how much the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation / Société Radio-Canada (CBC) must pay SOCAN for music used on CBC internet services between 2014 and 2018. The notice was published on December 7, 2024.

What it does#

• Sets royalty formulas for three categories of CBC internet services:
  • Online audiovisual services (examples: tou.tv, Gem): royalty = 1.9% of Internet-related revenues multiplied by the share of audio page impressions (or 1.0 if that share is not available).
  • Online music services (examples: cbcmusic.ca, espace.mu): royalty = 5.3% of Internet-related revenues.
  • Other online programming: royalty = $72,128.91 multiplied by the share of audio page impressions (or 0.15 if that share is not available).
• Defines key terms and data that CBC must track and report, such as what counts as Internet-related revenues, what a “play” or “stream” is, and detailed identifiers and metadata for each file where available.
• Requires monthly payment of royalties on the first day of each month, with late payments accruing interest at 1% above the Bank Rate published by the Bank of Canada.
• Requires monthly reports from CBC no later than 20 days after each month, with specific metadata and subscriber/revenue breakdowns for the applicable services.
• Requires CBC to keep records for six years and allows SOCAN to audit those records on reasonable notice. Some confidentiality protections are included, with listed exceptions.
• Limits one kind of detailed disclosure to no more than 14 days of transmissions per year on request.

Who's affected#

• Canadian Broadcasting Corporation / Société Radio-Canada (CBC) — the tariff applies to its Internet transmissions and named services.
• SOCAN and the songwriters, composers, music publishers and performers it represents — they are the recipients of these royalties.
• Users of CBC online services and advertisers could be indirectly affected if CBC changes how it offers music to manage costs.
• The impact on other companies or services is unclear from this notice; it specifically covers CBC for 2014–2018.

Why it matters#

• This decides how much the CBC owes for using copyrighted music online for a multi‑year period. That affects how much music creators and rights-holders get paid for CBC streams.
• The rules require detailed tracking and reporting, which increases transparency about which works were streamed and how royalties were calculated.
• Because the tariff covers past years (2014–2018), it may resolve or formalize payments for those periods and affect accounting or settlements between CBC and rights-holders.