TL;DR
The MLC (Mechanical Licensing Collective) holds hundreds of millions of dollars in unclaimed US mechanical royalties — over $400M across blanket and historical pools, per The MLC's 2023 Annual Royalty Recap. Under the Music Modernization Act, that money must be held for at least three years — after which it's redistributed to publishers based on market share, not to the artists who earned it. To claim your share, you need to register your works with The MLC with correct metadata, including ISRCs and co-writer splits.
In 2018, Congress passed the Music Modernization Act. One of its central provisions created The MLC — a nonprofit charged with collecting and distributing digital mechanical royalties in the United States. Before The MLC existed, streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music routinely kept mechanical royalties they couldn't match to rights holders. The MMA ended that practice.
It replaced it with a different problem.
According to The MLC's 2023 Annual Royalty Recap, over $400M in mechanical royalties is currently unmatched across blanket and historical pools. The MLC has distributed over $3 billion to rights holders since launching in 2021, but hundreds of millions more remain unclaimed — with new unmatched royalties added monthly. The money was collected. It belongs to songwriters and publishers. But The MLC can't figure out whose it is — because the metadata needed to match plays to rights holders doesn't exist in their system.
This guide explains how to make sure you're registered correctly, how to claim retroactive royalties, and what the three-year clock means for your money.
What Are Mechanical Royalties?
Mechanical royalties are payments made to songwriters and publishers when their compositions are reproduced — which, in the streaming era, means every time someone plays your song on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, or any other on-demand streaming service.
They are separate from performance royalties (collected by ASCAP, BMI, or SESAC) and from master recording revenue (collected by your distributor).
For a songwriter with 1 million monthly streams on Spotify, the mechanical royalty rate under the current Phonorecords IV rate structure is approximately $0.00088 per stream, or roughly $880/month — before any splits with publishers or co-writers.
Most independent artists never collect this.
Why Your Mechanical Royalties Are Going Unclaimed
The MLC matches royalties to rights holders using two pieces of data:
- The ISRC of the recording that was streamed
- The work registration in The MLC's database, which should include that ISRC, the correct songwriter name, the correct publisher or self-publishing entity, and any co-writer splits
If either piece is wrong — or missing — the match fails and your royalties go into the unmatched pool.
The four most common reasons for failed matches:
Unregistered works. If you've never submitted your songs to The MLC, they are not in the database. Every stream generates a royalty, but The MLC has no record of who it belongs to.
ISRC mismatches. Your distributor assigned an ISRC at upload. The MLC database has a different ISRC (or no ISRC) for your song. The royalty can't be matched.
Name inconsistencies. "Marcus Williams" in The MLC database vs. "M. Williams" in the DSP metadata. To an automated matching system, these are different people.
Missing co-writer registrations. If you co-wrote a song with another writer who isn't registered with The MLC, the entire work can be flagged as incomplete — and royalties for all writers may be held.
The Three-Year Clock
This is the most urgent part of this guide.
Under 17 U.S.C. § 115 — the section of US copyright law governing mechanical licensing — The MLC is required to hold unmatched royalties for a minimum of three years from the date they were first collected.
After that three-year window, The MLC redistributes the funds to publishers based on market share. "Market share" means major publishers — Universal Music Publishing, Sony Music Publishing, Warner Chappell — get the lion's share, because they represent the largest portion of the licensed catalog.
The royalties you earned do not expire. But after three years, they are no longer held for you. They are paid out to other publishers. The money is gone.
If your songs have been streaming since 2022 or 2023, some of those royalties have already crossed the three-year threshold. Others are approaching it now.
How to Register with The MLC
Registration is free. It does not require a publisher or a publishing administrator. Here is the process:
Step 1: Create an account at themlc.com. Go to themlc.com and register as a songwriter. If you self-publish, register as both a songwriter and a publisher (as a self-published entity).
Step 2: Register your works. For each song, you'll need:
- Song title (exactly as it appears in DSP metadata)
- Your legal name as songwriter
- Co-writer names and splits (percentages must add up to 100%)
- Publisher or self-publishing entity name
- The ISRC(s) associated with the recording(s) of this song
The ISRC is the critical link between your registration and the streaming royalties The MLC is holding.
Step 3: Search the unmatched royalties database. The MLC maintains a public Unmatched Royalties Search Tool where you can search for your name or song titles and see whether there are unmatched royalties associated with your catalog. If you find matches, you can initiate a claim.
Step 4: Submit a claim. For unmatched royalties identified in the search tool, submit a claim with supporting documentation: proof of authorship, PRO registration confirmation, and any distributor records showing your ISRC.
Step 5: Wait. The MLC processes claims on a rolling basis. Processing time is typically 60–180 days for complex claims. Straightforward registrations with complete metadata resolve faster.
What The MLC Does Not Cover
Understanding The MLC's scope is as important as registering with it.
The MLC does not collect international mechanicals. It is a US-only entity. Mechanical royalties generated from streams in Germany, the UK, Japan, Canada, or any other country are collected by the local CMO in that country (GEMA, MCPS, JASRAC, SOCAN, etc.) and distributed through your PRO's reciprocal agreements with those societies — not through The MLC.
The MLC does not collect performance royalties. That's ASCAP, BMI, or SESAC.
The MLC does not handle neighboring rights. That's SoundExchange (US digital) and societies like PPL (UK), GVL (Germany), and Sena (Netherlands) for international broadcast and streaming.
The MLC does not correct metadata errors on your behalf. It matches what's submitted. If your registration has incorrect ISRCs or name mismatches, The MLC won't fix them proactively — it will simply fail to match your royalties.
How Much Could You Be Owed?
The MLC's unmatched pool contains royalties going back to January 1, 2021 — the effective date of the MMA. If you have 500,000 monthly streams and haven't registered with The MLC, a rough estimate of your unmatched mechanical royalties over four years is:
500,000 streams/month × $0.00088 × 48 months = approximately $21,120
This is a rough estimate. Actual amounts vary based on the mix of platforms, territories, and subscription tiers. But it illustrates the scale of what stays uncollected when registration is incomplete.
What CreateBase Does for MLC Registration
CreateBase handles the full MLC registration process as part of every engagement:
- We audit your catalog against The MLC's database and identify unregistered or incorrectly registered works
- We correct ISRC mismatches between your distributor records and your MLC registration
- We ensure co-writer splits are registered correctly so the entire work clears
- We search the unmatched royalties database and file formal claims for any royalties we identify
- We monitor the claims through to resolution and verify that payments are credited to your account
See how much you may have in unclaimed MLC royalties → CreateBase delivers a free personalized royalty gap report within 48 hours.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What happens to unclaimed royalties at The MLC after three years?
A: Under the Music Modernization Act (17 U.S.C. § 115), The MLC must hold unmatched mechanical royalties for at least three years from the date of collection. After that window, the funds are redistributed to publishers proportionally based on their market share of matched royalties. This means the bulk of redistributed funds goes to major publishers — Universal, Sony, and Warner — not to the independent artists who earned the money.
Q: How do I know if The MLC has unmatched royalties for my songs?
A: The MLC maintains a public Unmatched Royalties Search Tool at themlc.com. You can search by song title, songwriter name, or ISRC. If results appear for your catalog, those are royalties currently in the unmatched pool that you may be able to claim.
Q: Is registration with The MLC free?
A: Yes. Registration as a songwriter and as a self-publishing entity (if you self-publish) is completely free. The MLC does not charge fees for registration or for accessing the unmatched royalties database. There is no percentage taken from royalties distributed through standard registration. Third-party services that help you register may charge fees.
Q: I'm registered with ASCAP — am I also registered with The MLC?
A: No. ASCAP and The MLC are separate organizations collecting different types of royalties. ASCAP collects performance royalties (from radio, live performance, streaming performance). The MLC collects mechanical royalties (from on-demand streaming reproduction). Registering with ASCAP does not register you with The MLC. You must register with both independently.
Q: Do I need a publisher to claim MLC royalties?
A: No. If you self-publish — meaning you own your compositions outright — you can register with The MLC as both the songwriter and the publisher. You will receive both the songwriter's share and the publisher's share of mechanical royalties. You do not need to sign with a publisher or publishing administrator to access The MLC.
Q: How long does it take to receive payment after claiming unmatched royalties?
A: The MLC processes claims on a rolling basis, with typical resolution times of 60–180 days for standard claims. More complex claims involving disputed ownership, unclear metadata, or multiple claimants can take longer. Once a claim is approved, payment is issued in The MLC's next distribution cycle.
Sources
- The MLC 2023 Annual Royalty Recap — Over $400M unmatched; $3B+ distributed since 2021; public search tool
- Music Modernization Act, 17 U.S.C. § 115 — Statutory basis for the three-year holding period and redistribution rules
- Copyright Royalty Board — Phonorecords IV — Current mechanical royalty rates for streaming
- CISAC Global Collections Report — International royalty collection data