Société des Auteurs, Compositeurs et Editeurs de Musique

SACEM (Société des Auteurs, Compositeurs et Editeurs de Musique) is a French non-profit cooperative performing rights organization founded in 1851 that represents over 251,000 authors, composers, and publishers. It collects royalties from public performances, broadcasting, streaming, and reproduction of its members' works across nearly 180 countries and distributes them based on usage data.

How SACEM Works

SACEM operates as a cooperative (société civile) owned and managed by its members. It is the oldest collecting society in the world and the largest in Europe. Members include authors, composers, publishers, author-directors, poets, and humorists. In 2025, 13,500 new members joined SACEM, 27% of whom were under 25 years old. The total membership now exceeds 251,000, with 12% from foreign markets.

SACEM issues blanket licenses to radio stations, television networks, streaming platforms, concert venues, restaurants, retail stores, cinemas, and any business that plays music publicly. It collects royalties across six revenue streams: concerts and live performances (EUR 451 million), TV and radio (EUR 312 million), online including music and VOD/SVOD (EUR 730 million), private copying (EUR 73 million), international sources (EUR 115 million), and physical media reproduction (EUR 22 million).

In 2025, SACEM distributed EUR 1.502 billion to 663,000 creators and publishers worldwide, a 9% increase from 2024. Revenue collected in France reached EUR 859 million, broadly stable compared to 2024. International collections reached EUR 845 million, up 13% from 2024 and up 30% over the past two years, driven largely by digital platforms and global streaming growth.

SACEM maintains an expense-to-revenue ratio of 9.8%, one of the lowest among collecting societies globally. This means approximately 90 cents of every euro collected goes to creators. Starting in January 2026, SACEM reduced its online royalty management fee to 7%, down from previous rates, making it one of the most competitive organizations for collecting and distributing digital royalties.

Membership costs EUR 100 for creators (including EUR 10 share capital) and EUR 300 for publishers (including EUR 10 share capital), paid once. Creators can join online in approximately 10 minutes. Once accepted, members declare their works, provide bank details for royalty payments, and report setlists for live performances through the SACEM member portal.

SACEM has become the European leader in CD and vinyl rights management. In 2025, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group, and BMG joined Universal Music Group by partnering with SACEM to manage their rights across the entire European market. The organization also migrated its URights platform to a cloud-based solution, increasing data processing capacity tenfold while reducing operating costs by a factor of 5.

In February 2026, SACEM signed a landmark representation agreement with EMRA (Emirates Arts and Music Rights Association), the first collective management organization in the UAE. SACEM represents the largest Arabic-language repertoire in the world and has been expanding its presence in the Gulf region alongside IFPI and PPL.

Real-World Example

A French songwriter joins SACEM for EUR 100 and registers 20 songs. A Paris radio station plays 5 of those songs in a given quarter, Deezer reports 300,000 streams of 10 songs, and a concert venue holds a SACEM license for a live performance where the songwriter performed 8 songs.

SACEM collects royalties from all three sources. The songwriter receives distributions based on radio airplay logs, streaming usage reports, and the live performance setlist they submitted through their member account. If the same songs are played on radio in Germany, SACEM's reciprocal agreement with GEMA means GEMA collects those royalties and transfers them to SACEM, which distributes them to the songwriter.

With SACEM's 9.8% expense ratio, if EUR 10,000 in royalties is collected for a songwriter's works, approximately EUR 9,020 is paid to the writer and publisher (split according to registered shares) and EUR 980 covers administrative costs. For online streaming royalties, the management fee drops to 7% from January 2026, meaning EUR 9,300 would reach the creator on EUR 10,000 collected.

A French composer with 50 registered works receiving regular airplay on national radio, significant streaming activity across European platforms, and live performances at licensed venues might earn anywhere from EUR 5,000 to EUR 120,000+ annually in SACEM royalties.

Why It Matters for Independent Artists

If you are a French-speaking songwriter, composer, or publisher, SACEM is the primary organization for collecting your performance and mechanical royalties in France. It is the oldest and largest collecting society in Europe, with one of the lowest management fee rates in the world.

Join SACEM before your music is publicly released. You can sign up online in about 10 minutes for a one-time fee of EUR 100. Once accepted, register every composition with complete metadata: title, writers, publishers, ownership splits, ISRC codes, and ISWC numbers. SACEM processes over 6.8 million new work registrations annually, so accurate metadata directly impacts how quickly and completely you get paid.

SACEM's international reach is a significant advantage. The organization collects royalties directly in nearly 180 countries through reciprocal agreements with 126 foreign societies. Almost 40% of members' music streaming royalties are now collected from international markets. If your music streams globally, SACEM's infrastructure ensures those royalties reach you without requiring membership in multiple national societies.

SACEM also provides social protection programs for members, including a mutual insurance plan, provident fund, and legal advice. The organization invests over EUR 17 million annually in cultural initiatives, funding 3,800 projects across France. Members can apply for grants for creation, production, distribution, and training.

For creators in the Middle East and North Africa region, SACEM's expansion is relevant. Its representation of the largest Arabic-language repertoire and its February 2026 agreement with EMRA in the UAE mean Arabic-language creators now have improved access to collective rights management in the Gulf region.

Related Resources

• Performing Rights Organizations (PRO) - What a PRO is and how it functions
• Performance Royalties - How performance royalties are generated and collected
• Mechanical Royalties - How mechanical royalties differ from performance royalties
• Blanket License - The licensing model used by SACEM
• Collective Management Organization (CMO) - How CMOs operate globally
• SACEM Official Website - Visit SACEM for membership and licensing information
• Use our Streaming Royalty Calculator to estimate your digital earnings