Sociedad Chilena de Autores e Intérpretes Musicales

SCD (Sociedad Chilena de Autores e Intérpretes Musicales) is a private, non-profit collective management organization founded in 1987 in Chile that administers public performance and reproduction rights for musical works on behalf of approximately 10,000 affiliated authors, composers, interpreters, and producers. It is the only entity authorized by the Chilean government to manage collective rights for music, and it also represents over 50 foreign societies through reciprocal agreements, administering a worldwide repertoire of millions of works.

How SCD Works

SCD operates under a mandate from Chile's Ministry of Education to license, collect, and distribute royalties for the public use of music in Chile. The organization collects from several sources:

• Radio: 367 licensed radio stations across Chile pay monthly license fees to SCD. Each station submits monthly playlists detailing every song aired. SCD also runs an online monitoring system that tracks what is played on more than 300 radio stations, with coverage expanding each year.
• Television: Open-air and cable channels pay monthly license fees. SCD distributes TV royalties based on playlists that log exact airtime in seconds for each work used.
• Live music: Concerts, festivals, and venues with live music pay license fees. SCD distributes these royalties event by event, based on setlists submitted by promoters or obtained from other sources.
• Venues and businesses: Restaurants, retail stores, gyms, discotheques, and other businesses that play music publicly hold SCD blanket licenses. For venues with live music, SCD supplements distributions with 2.5% of fees collected from general users without live music.
• Digital platforms: SCD collects royalties from streaming services, YouTube, and other digital platforms for works performed online in Chile.

SCD distributes royalties to members twice a year, in June and December. From the total collected, SCD deducts a fraction for administrative costs, social benefits, and member programs. The remaining amount is divided among national and international rights holders based on actual usage data. Songs not identified in one distribution cycle retain their payments and roll into the next cycle. If works remain unidentified after two cycles, the retained amounts are redistributed among identified works from the prior cycle.

SCD classifies members into five categories: Socio Administrado (entry level, with access to collection and social benefits but no voting rights), Socio Adherente (participation in assemblies with voice), Socio Activo (full voting rights and eligibility for the Board of Directors), Socio Benemérito (honorary degree for exceptional contributions to Chilean music), and Socio Heredero (successors managing catalogs of deceased authors).

Beyond royalty collection, SCD founded the Fundación de la Música de Chile in 2001, operates two record labels (Sello Azul for new artists and Oveja Negra for established acts), created the Premios Pulsar in 2015, and runs the Feria Pulsar international music fair. The organization publishes the annual "País de Músicos" report, the most comprehensive study of Chilean music industry trends. The 2025 edition cataloged 884 Chilean albums released that year (702 LPs and 182 EPs).

Real-World Example

A Chilean songwriter registers 20 songs with SCD. In a given six-month collection period, those songs generate the following usage: 300 radio plays across three Santiago stations, 50,000 streams on Spotify, live performance at 8 concerts, and background play in 2 licensed restaurants.

SCD collects royalties from all four sources. The radio stations submit playlists confirming the 300 plays. Spotify reports streaming data digitally. The concert promoters submit setlists. The restaurants hold blanket licenses.

If the total royalties collected for those 20 songs amount to CLP 2,000,000 (approximately $2,100 USD) in a distribution period, SCD deducts its administrative percentage and distributes the remainder to the songwriter in the June or December payment cycle. If the same songs are performed on radio in Argentina, SCD's reciprocal agreement with SADAIC means SADAIC collects those royalties and remits them to SCD, which then distributes them to the songwriter in the next international distribution.

Radio license fees are calculated as a percentage of net advertising revenue. Under current SCD tariff schedules, the rate is 1.0892% of net advertising income for the period May 2023 to April 2026, increasing to 1.1421% starting May 2026.

Why It Matters for Independent Artists

If you are a Chilean songwriter, composer, or performer, SCD membership is the only practical way to collect performance royalties for your music in Chile. No other organization is authorized to license collective music rights in the country.

Register every composition with SCD before it is publicly released. Unregistered works earn zero royalties, even if they receive heavy radio rotation or thousands of streams. Submit accurate metadata including song titles, ISRC codes, and split shares so SCD can match your works to usage data from radio playlists, streaming reports, and venue setlists.

SCD is unique among Latin American societies in representing both authors and performers under one roof. If you are both a songwriter and a recording artist, you can collect both authors' rights and neighboring rights through a single organization.

For non-Chilean artists, SCD matters because Chile is one of Latin America's most active music markets. Your home PRO should collect from SCD through reciprocal agreements. SCD represents the catalogs of over 50 foreign societies, so most major PROs worldwide have direct relationships with the organization.

SCD also offers social benefits to members, including healthcare access, pension support, and educational programs. The Fondo de Apoyo a Actividades de Difusión de la Música Chilena provides grants for Chilean artists to tour internationally, with a second 2026 call for applications now open.

Territory Covered

SCD administers public performance, broadcasting, reproduction, and digital rights for musical works and phonograms throughout Chile. It is the only entity authorized by the Chilean government (under Law 17.336 on Intellectual Property) to manage collective music rights in the country. SCD's territorial mandate covers all of Chile, including radio stations, television networks, streaming platforms, live venues, restaurants, retail stores, and any business that uses music publicly within Chilean borders.

How to Join and Membership Fees

SCD offers multiple membership categories depending on experience and contribution level:

• Socio/a Adherente: Entry-level membership for authors, composers, artists, interpreters, and performers whose application has been accepted. This is the starting point for all new members.
• Socio/a Activo: Available after at least 2 years as a Socio Adherente, with no sanctions, a minimum threshold of administered rights income, and approval by the Council. Grants full voting rights and eligibility for the Board of Directors.
• Socio/a Permanente: For members with at least 15 years in the organization, including 10 as a Socio Activo, subject to Council approval.
• Socio/a Benemérito: Honorary recognition for artists over 60 with at least 30 years of contribution to Chilean music, appointed by a two-thirds Council vote.
• Socio/a Heredero: For successors managing catalogs of deceased authors.

To join, submit an incorporation application and mandate form to the Socios Department. SCD does not charge a fixed membership fee to join. However, members who participate in the social security system (SGP) pay a monthly contribution calculated as 20% of the minimum monthly wage (7% for FONASA health coverage and 13% for AFP pension contributions), reajusted each July. These contributions can be deducted automatically from royalty distributions.

SCD also offers a work transcription service at UF 0.17682 (approximately CLP 4,500), with SCD covering 51% of the cost deducted from future royalties.

Overhead Rate

SCD deducts a fraction of collected royalties for administrative costs, social benefits, and member programs before distributing the remainder to rights holders. The exact percentage is not published as a single fixed rate. SCD operates as a non-profit corporation, and its deductions cover operational costs, the social benefits program (including healthcare access and pension support), and cultural initiatives such as the Fundación de la Música de Chile, the Premios Pulsar, and the Feria Pulsar music fair. Unidentified royalties from one distribution cycle roll into the next. If works remain unidentified after two cycles, the retained amounts are redistributed among identified works from the prior cycle.

Royalty Distribution Schedule

SCD distributes royalties on the following schedule:

• General royalties (radio, television, venues, digital): Twice yearly, in June and December.
• Live performance royalties: Distributed monthly, event by event, based on setlists submitted by promoters or obtained from other sources.
• Digital/streaming royalties: Processed quarterly, depending on work registration to ensure correct income distribution among creators based on their authorship percentages.

Radio license fees are calculated as a percentage of net advertising revenue. The current SCD tariff rate is 1.0892% of net advertising income for the period May 2023 to April 2026, increasing to 1.1421% starting May 2026.

Reciprocal Agreements

SCD represents over 50 foreign societies through reciprocal agreements, administering a worldwide repertoire of millions of works. SCD is a member of:

• CISAC (International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers)
• BIEM (Bureau International des Societes Gerant les Droits d'Enregistrement et de Reproduction Mecanique)

When a Chilean songwriter's works are performed in Argentina, SCD's reciprocal agreement with SADAIC means SADAIC collects those royalties and remits them to SCD for distribution. The same mechanism applies across all 50+ partner societies worldwide.

Notable Members

SCD's membership includes many of Chile's most recognized musicians and composers:

• Horacio Salinas - Composer and former musical director of Inti-Illimani, Second Vice President of SCD's Board
• Álvaro Scaramelli - Singer-songwriter and producer, founding member and President of SCD's Board
• Valentín Trujillo - Pianist, arranger, and orchestra director, named Figura Fundamental de la Música Chilena in 1994
• Alberto Plaza - Singer-songwriter known for "Que cante la vida," named Figura Fundamental in 2024
• Fernando Ubiergo - Trova and singer-songwriter artist, Figura Fundamental recipient
• Myriam Hernández - Pop singer and songwriter, Figura Fundamental recipient
• Jorge González - Leader of Los Prisioneros, Figura Fundamental recipient
• Quilapayún - Folk ensemble, Figura Fundamental recipient
• Gloria Benavides - Pioneer of the Nueva Ola, Figura Fundamental recipient
• Eduardo Gatti - Singer-songwriter, Figura Fundamental recipient
• Carmen Barros - Singer and composer, Figura Fundamental recipient
• Willy Bascuñán - Composer and songwriter, Figura Fundamental recipient
• Roberto Lecaros - Jazz and popular music composer, Figura Fundamental recipient
• Luis Advis - Composer of "La Cantata de Santa María de Iquique," former SCD President (1993)

Comparison Table

Videos

Similar PROs

• SADAIC - Argentina's PRO for authors and composers, with reciprocal agreements to SCD
• SAYCO - Colombia's PRO for authors and composers, a Latin American peer society
• SACM - Mexico's society of authors and composers, comparable Latin American CMO
• SOCAN - Canada's PRO that also manages both performing and mechanical rights like SCD

Related Resources

• Performing Rights Organizations (PRO) - What a PRO is and how it functions
• Performance Royalties - How performance royalties are generated and collected
• Neighboring Rights - How neighboring rights differ from authors' rights
• Collective Management Organization (CMO) - How CMOs operate globally
• SCD Official Website - Visit SCD for membership and licensing information
• Use our Streaming Royalty Calculator to estimate your digital earnings