Original publishers and sub-publishers

One music publisher is rarely the same as another and its structure, responsibilities and roles vary widely. Generally, we assume that a music publisher is an original publisher that handles one or more music catalogs for multiple creators. The publisher is usually active in many different countries and markets. But it is also common to have a sub-publisher that collaborates with the original publisher.

Original publisher: A music publisher that has a direct contract with a creator to administer the rights to the creator's works of music. The original publisher can in turn make agreements with sub-publishers in other countries to represent the musical works there

Sub-publisher: A music publisher that represents an original publisher's works of music in a specific country. The sub-publisher works to promote the musical works and may also be responsible for releasing local versions of the musical works.