Music publishers

North American Industry Classification System code (NAICS): 51223

This industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in acquiring and registering copyrights in musical compositions, in accordance with the law, and promoting and authorizing the use of these compositions in recordings, on radio and television, in motion pictures, live performances, print, multimedia or other media. These establishments represent the interests of songwriters or other owners of musical compositions in generating revenues from the use of such works, generally through licensing agreements. They may own the copyrights or act as administrators of the music copyrights on behalf of copyright owners.