On the this episode of the Artist Rights Watch, Nik and David sit down to talk about the MLC with Entertainment Lawyer, Stephen Carlisle. The MLC administers blanket mechanical licenses to eligible streaming and download services in the United States. The MLC will then collect the royalties due under those licenses from the DSPs and pay songwriters, composers, lyricists, and music publishers. In the simplest terms, it acts like a performance rights organisation, but just administers mechanical licenses instead of public performance licenses. Streaming services are for the MLC because it possibly covers them from any potential lawsuits. If a songwriter doesn’t get paid, well, that songwriter didn’t sign up for the MLC which is why they didn’t get paid which means it’s their responsibility.. not the DSPs. Registering with the MLC has become a standard process for songwriters establishing their claim much like it is registering with a PRO.   Below are some links for further reading on Stephen Carlisle: http://copyright.nova.edu http://copyright.nova.edu/mechanical-licensing-collective/        Below are our social links and terms of use: Chris: http://www.christiancastle.com/chris-castle David: https://twitter.com/davidclowery?s=20 https://www.instagram.com/davidclowery/ Nik: https://www.instagram.com/nikpatelmusic/ www.nikpatelmusic.com Website: https://artistrightswatch.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/artistrightswatch Twitter: https://twitter.com/ArtistRights?s=20 Terms of Use: https://artistrightswatchdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2021/01/arw-podcast-terms-of-use-v-1-i-1.pdf