Answers/Glossary/SESAC

Glossary · Royalties

SESAC

By Boboy Watson·Last verified August 31, 2026·Also called SESAC Performing Rights, Society of European Stage Authors and Composers

SESAC is the smallest of the long-established US performing rights organizations and the one an independent artist is least likely to join, because joining is not something you can decide to do. SESAC operates by invitation: it selects affiliates rather than accepting applications, and it does not publish membership fees or a standard rate schedule the way ASCAP and BMI do.

The trade-off attached to that selectivity is a smaller, more curated repertory and, at least in principle, more individual attention per writer. Because SESAC is privately held and for-profit, it also operates outside the consent decrees that have historically governed ASCAP and BMI licensing, which gives it more freedom in how it negotiates with licensees.

SESAC's corporate footprint is wider than performance rights alone. SESAC acquired the Harry Fox Agency in 2015, bringing mechanical licensing under the same roof as performance licensing, and the group has since operated a broader rights-administration business.

For a working independent artist, the practical guidance is short: if you cannot join SESAC or GMR, the real decision is ASCAP versus BMI, and neither can be shown to pay better as a rule. ASCAP charges $50 one-time for a writer account and $50 for a publisher account; BMI songwriter affiliation is free with a $175 fee for an individual publisher, per their published pages in August 2026.

The misunderstanding: people sometimes assume an invitation-only PRO means higher payouts. Affiliation determines who collects and administers your performance royalties, not the size of the licence fees the underlying users pay.

Independent artist's read of the landscape; verify anything specific with the organisation itself.

Definitions on this site describe the United States system. I am an artist who has been through this, not a lawyer.