If more than one publisher or sub-publisher registers the same work in a way that brings the total number of shares above the maximum number of publishing shares allowed under the share division rules, you have a disputed work – a ‘counterclaim’. Counterclaims may arise for several reasons:
- A publisher registers all works contained in a catalogue agreement without being aware of a pre-existing agreement with another sub-publisher for certain individual works.
- The publishing agreement applies to a different territory than the one stated.
- The registration lists the maximum publisher share even though the work has several authors and the publisher has not entered into an agreement with all authors.
- The author with whom the publisher has an agreement actually holds a smaller share than the one registered by the publisher.
- A publishing agreement has expired, but we were not notified of this fact.
- The publishing agreement – typically a sub-publishing agreement – has been interpreted as having a larger share than is actually the case. For example, a 50% agreement may mean 50% of the publisher’s shares or 50% of the entire work / the author’s shares.
- There is a discrepancy between the collection periods of the agreements involved.
- There are discrepancies in the information provided about the allocation of shares between the authors.
- An author has entered into agreements with more than one publisher in a way that prevents compliance with the rules on the division of shares.
Making distributions for disputed works
When making distributions for disputed works, i.e. works that are subject to counterclaims, all publisher(s) involved who are members of Koda will receive a list identifying the other publishers who also assert claims on the works in question. The Koda publisher will be asked to contact the other publisher(s) to settle the issue. If the publishers involved in the dispute are members of rights management societies within the Nordic region, the general practice is for all those societies to mutually inform each other of the issue, and for each society to ask its publisher member to contact the other parties in the dispute to settle things.
Until an agreement on who actually holds the rights is reached, any amounts distributable for the disputed shares will be withheld.
Koda does not engage in interpreting publishing agreements or determining their validity. Koda relies on the information provided by the authors and publishers and regards the work registrations as all the valid documentation required. Furthermore, no distinction is made between who first registered a work or claims to have the oldest agreement date.
