BMI Bulletin

Annual ReviewBMI Revenues, Royalty Payments Rise Again in 2009BMI had an increase in both revenues and royalty distributionsfor the past year, a significantachievement in an economic environment that has been perhapsthe most challenging in the company’s70-year history. BMI realized revenuesof more than 905 million and royaltydistributions totaling more than 788million, both higher than BMI’s historicresults of the previous year. That successwas made possible by the power, scopeand appeal of the repertoire created byBMI’s affiliates, combined with the company’s long-term efforts to capture newsources of revenue. It is also a compelling validation of BMI’s dedication toefficiency, cost-constraint measures, andan enthusiastic embrace of technological innovation throughout all aspects ofthe company’s operations.The benefits of BMI’s continual focuson revenue diversity have never beenmore evident than during the past yearwhen the company was able to maintain the stability of its business in themidst of widespread economic turmoil.Revenue from licensing of restaurantsand bars, hospitality, retail and serviceestablishments broke the 100 million mark for the first time in companyhistory. Income from fast-growingnon-broadcast media such as cable,satellite and digital media collectivelyaccounted for almost a quarter of BMI’sTotal Revenues 2006200720082009total. The popularity of BMI’s repertoirearound the globe propelled the company to its best-ever year in internationalrevenue. Revenue from traditionalbroadcast radio and television continued to represent just over a third of thecompany’s revenues. BMI has long beena pioneer in the licensing of the newdigital media, and today has a portfolioof more than 6,700 digital media properties under license.BMI’s success was madepossible by the power, scopeand appeal of the repertoirecreated by its affiliates,combined with the company’slong-term efforts to capturenew sources of revenue.“As BMI marks its 70th anniversaryin the year ahead,” said BMI’s President& CEO Del Bryant, “we know we willbe looking at an extremely difficulteconomic environment. We will maintain our intense focus on efficiencyand cost containment. We anticipatetough discussions as we negotiate newagreements for the use of our repertoire. However, we are encouraged bythe steady growth in our market share,and by the expanded use of musicby both traditional and digital media,two dynamics that drive our licensingrevenues. These factors reinforce ourability to meet the challenges of thisvolatile economic landscape, provide apoint of stability to our songwriters, andproduce added value to our customersas the economy works its way towardrecovery.”RepertoireThe pace and scope of the digital realmis reshaping the industry, and, in theprocess, creating a greater demandfor BMI’s educational and career advancement tools, from workshops andpanels to showcases at key clubs andpremier festivals. BMI has promotedand publicized hundreds of eventsthroughout the U.S., Puerto Rico, andthe U.K. drawing media awareness todeveloping songwriters from key outletslike The New York Times, USA Today,CNN and Univision. The company hasalso launched a spectrum of professional support services for writers onits award-winning website BMI.com,which includes a suite of financial services as well as preferred access anddiscounts to new “fan-based” servicesthat focus on helping new affiliatesbuild individual brands for their musiconline.BMI recognized the opportunities inthe digital shift in its very early stages.Today, more songwriters affiliate onlinethan via any other method. A streamlined online affiliation system, with asimple five-minute application process,has added more than 30,000 affiliatesto the BMI roster over the past year, resulting in a total of more than 400,000affiliates.Today’s increasingly interconnectedpop culture facilitated cross-genreRoyalty Distributions 300200200100100002005200620072008200920053

Annual ReviewSongwriter/artists including Taylor Swift and LadyGaga have harnessed the power of the Internet inunprecedented networking and marketing strategies.success for many of BMI’s key songwriters and producers. Pop mainstays Pink,the Black Eyed Peas, Britney Spears,Christina Aguilera, Five for Fighting,Josh Groban and others continued totop charts and sales, while relativelynewer American voices including ColbieCaillat, Mat Kearney, Gavin DeGraw,Grizzly Bear, and more made criticallyacclaimed and top-selling contributionsin addition to expanding popular music’s borders. Miley Cyrus and the JonasBrothers also proved that they have undeniable staying power, while Lady Gagadominated pop and dance charts all overthe world.Crossover SuccessVersatile hitmakers including will.i.am,Polow Da Don, JR Rotem, KaraDioGuardi, Jeffrey Steele, Brian Howes,Amy Foster, Ben Moody, Ian Dench,Amanda Ghost, Alan Chang, Jim Jonsin,and Rodney Jerkins create crossoverready hits, taking stars to the top of theBillboard charts for Mainstream, R&B/Hip-Hop, Country and Modern Rock, aswell as the Hot 100 airplay listings.At the close of the fiscal year, theunexpected, tragic death of MichaelJackson shocked the entertainment industry and the world at large. An artisticand cultural tour de force whose giftsdemanded the spotlight, Michael Jacksonwas equally potent behind the scenes,receiving numerous BMI Awards recognizing his prolific career as a songwriter.Rock and classic rock formats continued their trend of steady growth, andBMI’s prevalence in the genre is spearheaded by a wealth of rock’s most popular torchbearers, including Nickelback,3 Doors Down, Daughtry, Hinder, MyChemical Romance, Good Charlotte,Linkin Park, Kid Rock, Flyleaf, Maroon5, Fall Out Boy, AFI, Lifehouse, RedHot Chili Peppers, Wolfmother, Korn,Seether, Foo Fighters, System of a Down,The Raconteurs, Death Cab for Cutie,Kings of Leon, Shinedown and The WhiteStripes. BMI’s iconic classic rock acts,such as The Eagles, Pink Floyd, AliceCooper, Eric Clapton, The Who, EltonJohn, and others remained relevant andwidely popular throughout the world.Urban songwriters, artists and producers continued to make mainstream inroads this year. BMI heavy hitters MariahCarey, T-Pain, Kanye West, Eminem, SeanGarrett, Rihanna, Jamie Foxx, Polow DaDon, TI, Dallas Austin, Nas, Lil Wayne,Chris Brown, Gnarls Barkley’s Cee-LoGreen, OutKast’s Big Boi, and others alsodominated pop charts and club playlists.The past year brought even moreDomestic Revenue (percent by category)2%New Media16%GeneralLicensing36%Radio29%Cable & Satellite17%BroadcastTelevisionlegends into the BMI family of songwriters, including iconic songwriting duoLeiber & Stoller, whose compositionsinclude “Hound Dog,” “Stand By Me,”and “Jailhouse Rock”; rock titans ZZTop; Dave Stewart of influential duoThe Eurythmics; and innovative bandDepeche Mode.International HitmakersInternational superstars Shakira andJuanes remained at the forefront of theLatin genre. Gloria Estefan, Café Tacvba,Gustavo Santaolalla, Julieta Venegas,Anibal Kerpel, Juan Luis Guerra, LilaDowns, Pepe Aguilar, Christian Castro,Flex, Calle 13 and Ricky Martin also generated heavy chart activity and notableawards. British artists remain especiallypopular in the United States, provingthat the recent surge of talent from theU.K. is still a welcome addition to popand urban formats. Lily Allen, Estelle,Adele, Duffy, and Leona Lewis all generated significant sales and chart action.Norwegian songwriting and productionduo Espionage — Espen Lind and AmundBjørklund — have also made substantialcontributions to American urban and popcharts.Country music’s mass appeal becameeven more apparent last year, as theformat continued to boast more radioToday’s increasingly interconnected pop culturefacilitated cross-genre success for many of BMI’s keysongwriters and producers. Versatile hitmakers including will.i.am, Kara DioGuardi and Rodney Jerkinscreate crossover-ready hits, taking stars to the top ofthe Billboard Mainstream, R&B/Hip-Hop, Country andModern Rock charts, as well as the Hot 100 airplaylistings.4

Annual Reviewstations than any other genre. Whilethe record-breaking success of singer/songwriter Taylor Swift captured headlines, country music also became moreintertwined with mainstream tastes andcharts through top-sellers and crossoverstars Carrie Underwood, Toby Keith,Vince Gill, Keith Urban, Tim McGraw,Faith Hill, Miranda Lambert, Brooks &Dunn, Martina McBride, Rascal Flatts,and others including critically acclaimedbreakout artists Jamey Johnson, ZacBrown Band, and Lady Antebellum.BMI also continues to dominate thejazz field. An overwhelming majorityof the 2010 recipients of the NationalEndowment for the Arts Jazz MastersAwards, including Muhal RichardAbrams, Kenny Barron, Yusef Lateef,Annie Ross, and Cedar Walton, are BMIcomposers.BMI maintained its tradition of excellence in musical theatre, most visibly through the Tony Award-winningBMI Lehman Engel Musical TheatreWorkshop. The Workshop-generatedmusical Next to Normal garnered the2009 Tony for Best Original Score forworkshop alumni Tom Kitt and BrianYorkey.Film & TelevisonComposer A.R. Rahman experienced anextraordinary year. At the 2009 AcademyAwards, he swept the fields honoringmusical contributions, walking awaywith the statuette for Original Score forSlumdog Millionaire, while the film’s“Jai Ho” claimed Original Song honors.BMI represents the principal composerof more than half of the scores for thetop 100 films of 2008, and 14 out of thetop 25 films of the year relied on musicfrom BMI composers, who helped thosefilms generate more than 2 billion inBMI’s prevalence in rock is spearheaded by a wealthof the genre’s most popular torchbearers, includingNickelback, Kid Rock and The White Stripes.box office revenue. BMI television musiccomposers also maintained their competitive edge. In the fall of 2008, BMIboasted theme or background music in75% of all primetime network programs.According to the AmericanSymphony Orchestra League’sRepertoire, seven out of the 10 mostfrequently performed living Americancomposers are affiliated with BMI. BMIcomposer Steve Reich also enjoyed a bigyear, as he received the 2009 PulitzerPrize for Music for his 2007 piece,Double Sextet.Protecting CopyrightIn the past year, BMI continued its lobbying efforts on behalf of the creativecommunity and contributed to severalsignificant copyright bills that wereintroduced in the Senate and House ofRepresentatives.During fiscal 2009, the Legaland Government Relations departments were deeply involved with activities concerning H.R. 848 (House ofRepresentatives) and S. 379 (Senate).Both bills attempt to repeal the current exemption from the payment oflicense fees for the performance rightin digital sound recordings enjoyed byover-the-air radio broadcasters. BMIworked diligently with Congressionalstaff in order to protect the interestsof our affiliates by seeking “savings”language that would ensure that theperforming right in the musical work,(the right that BMI has been entrustedto protect for over 70 years) would notbe adversely impacted by the passageof such legislation. Both bills are currently pending and are being closelymonitored by BMI and other performing right organizations, the SongwritersGuild of America, the National MusicPublishers Association and the NashvilleSongwriters Association.This same group of organizations hasformed a lobbying coalition that is presently working towards the introductionof a bill in Congress to clarify that thereis a public performance in an audio/visual download. BMI and other interested parties are making every effort toensure that the Copyright Office reaffirms the public performance right onthis matter.BMI, in conjunction with the GeorgeWashington School of Law, IntellectualProperty Law Program and CreativeInnovative Economy Center, hosted asymposium in October 2008 to examine the opportunities and threats thatface the creators of intellectual propertyand explore solutions that help the creative and business communities reachnew levels of artistic and commercialachievement. Well-attended by congressional staff and key regulators, the program strives to spark a productive dialogUrban songwriters, artists and producers continued tomake mainstream inroads this year. BMI heavy hittersT-Pain, Eminem, Polow Da Don and many more alsodominated pop charts and club playlists.5

Annual ReviewCountry music’s mass appeal became even moreapparent last year, as the format continued to boastmore radio stations than any other genre. Countrymusic also became more intertwined with mainstreamtastes and charts through top-sellers and crossoverstars Keith Urban, Martina McBride and Toby Keith.that will help to generate workable, realtime, real-world solutions for creators,public policy officials and the businesscommunity alike.Technological AdvancesBMI has established itself as an international leader in the performing rightsarena through its development and implementation of leading-edge technological tools that increase productivity whilereducing operating expenses. These efficiencies allow us to offer an unparalleledlevel of service to both our affiliates andlicensees.Work completed during the past yearenabled a fall 2009 launch of a greatlyimproved structure and availability forour affiliates who use Online Services,allowing them real-time access to database information and giving them theability to update account information.This allows our songwriters, composersand publishers to accomplish multipletasks online that previously required6paper documentation.During the year, we completed the11th major revision of BMI’s awardwinning website BMI.com, which wasoriginally launched in 1994, more thana year before Microsoft released InternetExplorer Version I. The redesigned website features a broad array of digital toolsdesigned specifically for the creativecommunity and our licensing customers.A highlight of the new site is a special“creators” section that offers advice andopinions on songwriting and a series ofdiscounts to more than four dozen of themusic industry’s top companies that offerprofessional gear, financial services, andcareer development, as well as specialBMI-managed modules on key socialnetworking sites such as Facebook,MySpace and Twitter.BMI’s eCommerce system forms theheart of the expanded functionality serving our licensing customers throughBMI.com. The eCommerce system hasexperienced rapid growth and providedsubstantial benefit to BMI. This systemallows customers to purchase a licensein a secured online environment and hasbeen expanded to more than a dozen additional major markets.Financial Reporting QualityBMI’s commitment to quality and integrity is exemplified by the practiceof preparing its financial statements inaccordance with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). Reporting inaccordance with these principles enablesus to accurately and objectively reportour financial results.Each year our financial statements aresubject to an audit by our independentNew Writer Affiliations(online versus , moresongwriters affiliate online than via any5,00020052006 online20072008other method.A streamlinedaffiliationsystem, with a simple five-minute application process,0has added more than 30,000 affiliates to the BMI2005roster over the past year,resulting2006in a total of2007morethan 400,000 affiliates.auditors, Deloitte & Touche. Annually,our auditors express an opinion on ourfinancial statements based on the resultsof their audit. An unqualified opinion(the best opinion possible) was issuedagain this year, denoting that our financial statements present fairly the financialposition and results of operations of BMI.We are proud that this has been the casethroughout BMI’s history. It speaks wellto the high level of reliability that can beascribed to BMI’s financial reports thathave been issued year in and year out.In addition, in performing their audits,no weaknesses in internal controls werenoted by our auditors, an importantaccomplishment in today’s businessenvironmentThe growth of Latin radio stations continued to outpace all other formats, as international superstars Shakira andJuanes remained at the forefront of the genre, while two-time BMI Latin Songwriter of the Year Espinoza Pazsolidified his status as Regional Mexican music’s most in-demand composer.20092008

Country Awards continued from page 1Swift’s second consecutiveBMI Song of the Year;“Teardrops on My Guitar”earned the prestigious honorin 2008.With four songs amongthe year’s most-performed,Bobby Pinson earned theSongwriter of the Yearcrown. In addition to cowriting Sugarland’s charttoppers “All I Want to Do”and “Already Gone,” Pinsonco-composed Toby Keith’s“She Never Cried in Front ofMe,” and Josh Gracin’s “WeWeren’t Crazy.”Publishing giant Sony/ATV Music PublishingNashville earned its eighthconsecutive BMI CountryPublisher of the Year title.Through its subsidiarycompanies Sony/ATV AcuffRose and Sony/ATV Tree,the powerhouse placed 14songs among the year’s top50, including Jimmy Wayne’s“Do You Believe Me Now,”Billy Currington’s “Don’t,”Keith Urban’s “You LookGood in My Shirt,” GeorgeStrait’s “Troubadour” and“River of Love,” MirandaLambert’s “Gunpowder &Lead,” and Taylor Swift’s“Love Story,” “Picture toBurn,” and “Should’ve SaidNo.”A highlight of theevening was the tribute toBMI Icon Kris Kristofferson,featuring performancesby Patty Griffin, VinceGill, and Willie Nelson.With the penetration ofa poet and the humblinggrace of a troubadour,Kris Kristofferson builta legendary career mostrecognized for its versatility,authenticity, and sheerbrilliance. He has received48 BMI Country and PopAwards for compositionsincluding “Sunday Mornin’Comin’ Down,” “Why Me,”“Loving Her Was Easier(Than Anything I’ll Ever DoAgain),” “Me and BobbyMcGee,” “Help Me MakeIt Through the Night,”which garnered seven BMICountry and four BMIPop Awards, and “For theGood Times,” which won aBMI Country Award eachconsecutive year between1971 and 1979 as well as fiveBMI Pop Awards between1970 and 1974. Eight of hiscompositions have generatedsubstantially more thanone million performances,and three Grammys line hisshelves. While he wrote mostof his masterpieces alone,his co-writers include giantsShel Silverstein, MarijohnWilkin, and Fred Foster. Hehas starred in numerousfilms, including Lone Star,the Blade trilogy, Pat Garrett& Billy the Kid, A Star IsBorn, for which he garneredthe Golden Globe trophyfor Best Motion PictureActor, and Songwriter, forwhich he received an Oscarnomination for OriginalSong Score. Along withWillie Nelson, WaylonJennings, and Johnny Cash,Kristofferson also formedthe Highwaymen. Stillrecording, now for New WestRecords, he released newalbum, Closer to the Bone, inlate September of this year.BMI President & CEO DelBryant saluted the prolificcareer of Brooks and Dunnwith the BMI President’sAward. A prestigioushonor presented only onunique occasions when anartist has distinctly andprofoundly influenced themusic industry, the awardcelebrates Brooks & Dunn’stwo decades of genreshaping excellence, whichhas made them the mostawarded artists in Academyof Country Music or CountryMusic Association history.Vocal Album of the Year andCaetano Veloso won BestSinger-Songwriter Albumfor his Zii E Zie in additionto Best Long Form MusicVideo for his “E a Música deTom Jobim.”The Regional Mexicancategory featured winnersfrom the BMI family as well.In a testament to broad appeal of the genre, GrupoPesado and Costumbreshared Norteño Album ofthe Year honors for theirSólo Contigo and Siempre, respectively. Jimmy Gonzálezy Grupo Mazz’s The LegendContinues La Continuacionwas named Best TejanoAlbum.Additional BMI 2009Latin Grammy winnersinclude Jorge Villamizar,who co-wrote Best TropicalSong “Yo No Sé Mañana”;Carlos Franzetti & EddieGómez’s Duets for BestInstrumental Album; BeboValdés’s Juntos Para Siemprefor Best Latin Jazz Album;Paulina Aguirre’s EsperandoTu Voz for Best ChristianAlbum (Spanish Language);and Pombo Musical, featuring BMI songwriters CarlosVives, Juanes, SantiagoCruz, Adriana Lucia, IvanBenavides and Cabas, forBest Latin Children’s Album.Calle 13 continued from page 1Song, while the pair’s “LaPerla” received Best ShortMusic Video honors.Cachorro López earnedthe prestigious Producerof the Year crown whileduo Wisin & Yandel’s“Abusadora,” co-writtenwith Marcos Masis “Tainy,”received Best Urban Songhonors. Draco Rosa’s Teatrogarnered Best Rock SoloSwift Soars at CMA AwardsThe night after she took home her second consecutiveBMI Song of the Year crystal, Taylor Swift swept the43rd Annual CMA Awards, winning Entertainer, FemaleVocalist, Album and Video of the Year honors. The youngestperformer to ever earn the Entertainer of the Year crown,Swift is also the first female to ca

Billboard country chart, “Love Story” topped the Billboard pop and AC charts and became the best-selling country song in the United States and the most-downloaded country single in U. S. history. Published by Sony/ATV Tree and Taylor Swift Music, “Love Story” is November/December 2009 A Bi-Monthly News Up