Società Italiana degli Autori ed Editori

SIAE (Società Italiana degli Autori ed Editori) is Italy's collective management organization for the protection and administration of authors' rights, founded in 1882 and headquartered in Rome. It represents 125,744 members and administers 29.7 million protected works across musical, dramatic, audiovisual, literary, and visual arts repertoires. In 2025, SIAE collected a historic EUR 1.022 billion in revenue, surpassing the one-billion-euro threshold for the first time in its 143-year history, and distributed EUR 849 million to rights holders, a 15% increase over 2024.

How SIAE Works

SIAE is a multi-repertoire collecting society, meaning it manages rights beyond music. It administers performing rights, mechanical reproduction rights, and synchronization rights for musical works, dramatic and dramatico-musical works, cinematographic works, audiovisual works, literary works, and works of visual art. This broad scope makes it one of the most comprehensive collecting societies in Europe.

SIAE collects from several sources:

• Public performance and live events: Approximately 45% of SIAE's collection still comes from public performance linked to Italian territory. This includes concerts, festivals, theaters, cinemas, and venues. SIAE charges a 5% commission on large live events, down from historical rates.
• Digital and online: SIAE renewed agreements with Meta, Spotify, YouTube, TikTok, Google, and Netflix in 2025. These deals include not just license fees but also data transparency provisions, which SIAE considers essential for accurate royalty distribution. Digital commission rates dropped to 8%.
• Broadcast: Radio and television broadcasting royalties collected from Italian broadcasters.
• Mechanical reproduction: Royalties from physical copies, downloads, and streaming reproductions.

SIAE distributes royalties to members on a quarterly basis for music (January, April, July, and October), a historic change from the previous twice-yearly schedule. This means rights holders receive payments faster. The organization reduced its average commission from 16% in 2013 to 13.7% in 2025, meaning more money reaches creators.

SIAE's digital transformation under its Industrial Plan 2023-2025 included:

• EVA: A virtual assistant that handled over 1 million messages in 2025
• SIAE+ app: Enabled 225,776 work registrations via mobile devices in 2025
• Data and AI capabilities: Approximately 50 staff dedicated to data, including AI engineers hired through dedicated hackathons
• Workforce renewal: 300 departures and 150 new hires in recent years, bringing in data specialists and digital negotiators

The organization operates 446 local offices across Italy and maintains 300 foreign agreements covering 199 territories internationally. General Manager Matteo Fedeli, appointed under President Salvatore Nastasi, has driven the transformation from a predominantly legal structure to a data-driven organization.

SIAE's 2030 strategic plan targets EUR 1.1 billion in collections and a further 1% reduction in commission rates. The organization is also positioning itself as a digital platform built on trust, transparency, and innovation.

The "Per Chi Crea" program, funded by Italy's Ministry of Culture and managed by SIAE, supports young artists under 35. The last cycle funded 331 beneficiaries with EUR 10 million, and the 2026 allocation is EUR 14.5 million, with an additional EUR 5.4 million for other social, cultural, and educational initiatives.

SIAE has also been active in AI copyright enforcement. The organization has taken positions on how AI companies must license musical works for training data, aligning with broader European efforts to protect creators' rights in the AI era.

Real-World Example

An Italian composer writes 30 songs registered with SIAE. In a given year, those songs generate the following usage: 250,000 streams on Spotify, airplay on four Italian radio stations, live performance at 10 concerts across Italy, and use in a film soundtrack broadcast on Italian television.

SIAE collects royalties from all four sources. Spotify reports streaming data under its renewed 2025 agreement, which includes data transparency provisions. The radio stations submit airplay logs. The concert promoters report setlists. The television network submits cue sheets for the film broadcast.

If the total collected royalties for those 30 songs amount to EUR 6,000 in a quarter, SIAE deducts its commission (at the 13.7% average rate, approximately EUR 822) and distributes the remaining EUR 5,178 to the composer in the next quarterly payment (January, April, July, or October). Under the old twice-yearly schedule, the composer would have waited up to 6 months for payment. Now they wait at most 3 months.

If the same songs are performed in Germany, SIAE's reciprocal agreement with GEMA means GEMA collects those royalties and remits them to SIAE, which then distributes them to the composer in the next international distribution cycle.

At scale, SIAE's EUR 849 million distribution in 2025 means an Italian songwriter with 50 songs receiving regular airplay across Italian radio and streaming platforms might earn anywhere from EUR 3,000 to EUR 30,000 annually in performance royalties, depending on the frequency and type of use. The shift to quarterly distributions improves cash flow significantly compared to the previous biannual schedule.

Why It Matters for Independent Artists

If you are an Italian songwriter, composer, or publisher, SIAE membership is the only practical way to collect performance and mechanical royalties for your works in Italy. Without it, you would need to individually license every radio station, streaming platform, concert venue, and business that plays your music.

SIAE membership requires registration and an assignment of your rights. Once registered, use the SIAE+ app to deposit works digitally. Over 100,000 authors already use SIAE's digital tools, with 225,776 works deposited via the app in 2025 alone. Submit accurate metadata including song titles, ISRC codes, ISWC codes, and split shares so your works can be matched to usage data.

SIAE's reduced commission rate of 13.7% (down from 16% in 2013) means more of every euro collected reaches you. For large live events, the commission is just 5%, and for digital revenues it is 8%. The quarterly distribution schedule for music means you receive payments four times a year instead of twice.

If you are under 35, apply for the "Per Chi Crea" program. It provides direct grants funded by the Ministry of Culture, with EUR 14.5 million allocated for 2026. This is free money for young creators that does not need to be repaid.

For non-Italian artists, SIAE matters because Italy is one of Europe's largest music markets. Your home PRO should collect from SIAE through reciprocal agreements. SIAE's network covers 199 territories with 300 foreign agreements, so most major PROs worldwide have direct relationships with the organization.

SIAE's aggressive negotiations with digital platforms (Meta, Spotify, YouTube, TikTok, Google, Netflix) ensure that Italian and international rights holders receive fair compensation for digital use. The data transparency provisions in these agreements mean more accurate royalty matching and fewer unmatched 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 work alongside performance royalties
• Blanket License - The licensing model used by SIAE
• Collective Management Organization (CMO) - How CMOs operate globally
• SIAE Official Website - Visit SIAE for membership and licensing information
• Use our Streaming Royalty Calculator to estimate your digital earnings