Two publishers can collect the exact same song in the exact same country and pay you different amounts. The difference is one clause: ‘at source.’ With at-source calculation, your share is figured on the gross income as received in the country where it was earned — before any sub-publisher takes a cut. Without it, your share is calculated on what’s left after the foreign sub-publisher skims 15 to 25 percent off the top.
Run the numbers so it sticks. Your song earns $10,000 in Germany. With an at-source deal at a 75/25 co-pub split in your favor, your 75 percent is calculated on the full $10,000 — you get $7,500. On a receipt basis, the sub-publisher takes 20 percent first ($2,000), and your 75 percent comes from the remaining $8,000 — you get $6,000. Same song, same earnings, $1,500 difference. That gap repeats in every territory, every quarter, for the life of the deal.
This is why at-source is one of the first things experienced lawyers fight for in co-pub and admin deals. Publishers resist because it costs them real money — which tells you exactly how much it’s worth. If a publisher won’t give you at-source across the board, push for it in major territories at minimum, or negotiate a lower sub-publisher commission cap (15 percent instead of 25) as the fallback. Get the number, not the promise.
Check your current deal right now — the language usually sits in the royalty or foreign collection section, phrased as ‘computed on amounts received at source’ or similar. If it’s absent, you’re on receipt basis and you’ve been leaving money in every foreign territory since you signed. You can’t rewrite a signed deal, but you can make at-source non-negotiable in the next one. One clause, thousands of dollars, zero extra work from you.
About the Author – Ruben Burgos: Ruben Burgos brings over 25 years of music expertise and more than 15 years of model guidance to the table. He is the indie major pinnacle to retaining credits for musicians and helping them navigate this wicked industry without the fuckery.