Sociedad de Autores y Compositores de Colombia

SAYCO (Sociedad de Autores y Compositores de Colombia) is Colombia's primary performing rights organization, founded on August 17, 1946, in Bogota. It is a non-profit collective management society that collects and distributes royalties for the public performance, broadcasting, streaming, reproduction, and synchronization of musical works on behalf of Colombian authors and composers and 100 foreign sister societies.

How SAYCO Works

SAYCO issues licenses to radio stations, television networks, streaming services, live concert venues, restaurants, retail stores, and any business that uses music publicly in Colombia. License fees are collected and distributed to rights holders based on usage data from broadcast logs, streaming reports, concert set lists, and venue reports.

SAYCO distributes royalties quarterly (three distribution cycles per year). The organization manages both national and international repertoire, representing millions of works across all genres including musical, dramatic, choreographic, and audiovisual works.

SAYCO is a member of CISAC (since 1952) and BIEM (since 2004). It maintains reciprocal representation agreements with 100 foreign societies, enabling Colombian creators to collect royalties internationally and foreign creators to collect royalties for uses in Colombia.

In 2026, SAYCO partnered with data specialists BMAT to handle VoD (Video on Demand) processing and music rights distribution. This partnership increases the number and accuracy of rights holders receiving royalties in the region, enabling faster and more efficient distributions and improving transparency and consistency of information delivered to societies across Latin America.

SAYCO operates alongside ACINPRO (Asociacion Colombiana de Interpretes y Productores Fonograficos), which collects royalties for performers and phonographic producers. The two organizations jointly operate OSA (Organizacion Sayco Acinpro), established in 1987, which collects royalties for public performance of music in commercial establishments throughout Colombia.

Under Colombia's Andean Decision 351 (1993) and Law 44 of 1993, an author or composer can only be affiliated with one collective management society that collects royalties worldwide on their behalf. If a Colombian composer wants ASCAP to be their global society, they must disaffiliate from SAYCO.

SAYCO's tariff structure includes specific rates for different uses: reproduction of musical works on physical media (calculated at 7.46% of the base price, with a minimum of 500 units), public performance in commercial establishments, radio and television broadcasting, advertising campaigns (10% of the applicable tariff), and digital rights. The organization also provides online payment through PSE for quick and secure royalty payments.

The organization is governed by a 7-member Board of Directors. President is Rita Lucila Fernandez Padilla and CEO is Cesar Augusto Ahumada Avendano.

SAYCO also offers social benefits to members, including discounts on educational programs through a partnership with Universidad Abierta y a Distancia (UNAD), which provides access to 120 programs at reduced rates.

Real-World Example

A Colombian songwriter registers 20 songs with SAYCO. A Bogota radio station plays 10 of those songs in regular rotation, a streaming service reports 1 million streams, and a live concert at the Corferias convention center features 6 of the songs in its set list.

SAYCO collects royalties from all three sources. The radio royalties are allocated based on airplay logs. The streaming royalties are allocated based on usage reports from the streaming service. The live concert royalties are allocated based on the set list submitted by the concert organizer.

If the same songs are played on streaming platforms in Mexico, SAYCO's reciprocal agreement with SACM means SACM collects those royalties and remits them to SAYCO, which distributes them to the songwriter in the next quarterly distribution cycle.

For physical reproduction, if a record label wants to press 1,000 CDs containing 10 SAYCO-administered works, the tariff is calculated on a base of 15,047 Colombian pesos per work, at 7.46% of the base price, multiplied by the number of copies. The minimum authorized pressing is 500 units.

A Colombian songwriter with 20 songs receiving regular airplay and significant streaming activity might earn anywhere from 2 million to 20 million Colombian pesos or more annually from SAYCO royalties, depending on the scale of usage and their registered share of the works.

Why It Matters for Independent Artists

If you are a Colombian songwriter, composer, or publisher, SAYCO is the primary organization for collecting performance and reproduction royalties in Colombia. Register every composition with SAYCO before commercial release. Unregistered works earn zero royalties, even if they receive extensive airplay or millions of streams.

Submit accurate metadata including ISRC codes, ISWC numbers, and split sheets. SAYCO's matching system processes usage data across radio, television, streaming, live concerts, and public venues, so correct metadata directly impacts how quickly and completely you get paid.

Remember that Colombian law prohibits belonging to two collective management societies simultaneously for the same rights. If you choose SAYCO as your society, you cannot also be a member of ASCAP, BMI, or another PRO for the same catalog of works. Choose carefully based on where your music is primarily performed.

SAYCO's 100 reciprocal agreements with foreign societies mean your music earns royalties internationally. Colombian music, including vallenato, cumbia, reggaeton, and Latin pop, has growing global audiences. Ensure your works are registered so international performances are tracked and royalties flow back to you.

The 2026 BMAT partnership means SAYCO is improving its digital rights processing, particularly for video on demand. This should result in more accurate and faster distributions for digital uses, which is increasingly important as streaming platforms grow in Latin America.

Use SAYCO's online portal to keep your contact information updated, check your registered works, and receive payments through PSE. The organization also provides digital tools for quick consultations about your registered works.

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 SAYCO
• Collective Management Organization (CMO) - How CMOs operate globally
• SAYCO Official Website - Visit SAYCO for membership and licensing information
• Use our Streaming Royalty Calculator to estimate your digital earnings