Guides
Music publishing in China
How music publishing actually works in China: who claims which rights, what the national copyright system does, and what it takes for a publisher to set up and collect.
Who claims which rights
Performance and mechanical: MCSC, the mainland's only authorized music collective. In practice, streaming platforms license much repertoire directly from rightsholders. Sync: direct.
Copyright registration in China
Copyright is automatic, but voluntary registration with the Copyright Protection Center of China (CPCC) is strongly advised: Chinese enforcement and platform claims lean heavily on registration certificates as proof of ownership.
Setting up to claim publishing rights
There is no direct foreign membership path into MCSC; repertoire arrives via reciprocal agreements or a Chinese publishing partner. Real revenue in China increasingly comes from direct platform deals (Tencent Music, NetEase), which require either a Chinese entity or a licensing agent with one. Register key works with CPCC before enforcement matters — retroactive proof is much harder.
The societies
MCSC — each linked page covers the society’s history and how registrations reach it.
Two free checks for your CWR file. Is the file correct? Every record, share and control total against the spec, each problem on its exact line. Do its writers match their registrations? Every writer cross-checked against public registration data, including works registered under another spelling or IPI. Nothing stored: check a file at cwrcheck.com.