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GVL year-end accounts 2022: For the third COVID-19- year running, revenues are stable

Berlin, 14 June 2023 The remuneration collected by the Gesellschaft zur Verwertung von Leistungsschutzrechten mbH (GVL) in 2022 is slightly declining at EUR 235.4m but are still clearly above the original projected figures.
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Guido Evers und Dr. Tilo Gerlach, Managing Directors of GVL

Overall, Guido Evers and Dr Tilo Gerlach, Managing Directors of GVL, give a positive re-view for 2022 and the COVID-19 times: “Even in the third year of the pandemic, we managed to yield satisfactory results. Furthermore, we navigated GVL through these changing times with economic success and achieved historic maximum levels for our payouts. At the same time, we used this special phase to significantly develop from a technical and organisational perspective.”

As part of a total of 13 national and four international distribution runs, GVL paid remuneration to more than 175,000 performers and producers in 2022- Despite another challenging year for the sector, GVL managed to distribute a total of EUR 257m to creatives and their partners in 2022. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, GVL has thus paid out approx. EUR 886m to its rights holders.

Declines against a background of one-off special items in the previous year

The collections in 2022 amount to EUR 235.4m (previous year: EUR 248.6m). The decline of the remuneration is mainly based on one-off special items in the private copying sector. As such, GVL received particularly high back payments in 2021 for previous distribution years which now stand out in a year-on-year comparison. All other collection sectors were, however, subject to sometimes significant growth rates in the 2022 financial year.

The most important figures at a glance

Remuneration for radio, TV and retransmission amounted to EUR 94.7m and thus exhibited a slight growth compared to the previous year (2.4%). In this context, the remuneration from television was increased by EUR 1.9m (5.5%).

The amounts arising from public performance, the so-called “Kneipenrecht” (pub rights), in-creased by EUR 8.4m (27.5%) to EUR 39.1m. Here, it was particularly the decrease of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic which had previously had a strong impact on restaurant and shop opening times and culture and sports events. Despite a clear increase of the reve-nues in this sector, the pre-COVID-19 levels have not been reached yet (compare to 2019: EUR 42.3m).

In the copying and reproduction sector, one-off special items realised in the previous year fell away in 2022. The decrease in this financial sector thus amounts to EUR 25.2m (-22.6%). An increase in the other revenue streams of EUR 11.9m (+8.7%) counteracts the decrease in the copying and reproduction sector.

GVL's own administrative expenditure amounted to EUR 25.3m in 2022. The cost rate thus amounted to 10.7% (previous year: EUR 24.2m, cost rate: 9.7 %). Here, the reduction in in-come due to the one-off payments of the previous year were particularly felt.

Grants increased by EUR 0.3m to EUR 3.6m particularly due to the support provided for the artists affected by the war in Ukraine (previous year: EUR 3.3m).

The year-end accounts and the transparency report of GVL were presented and adopted at the Assembly of Shareholders and Delegates on 12 June 2023. Check out our homepage for the full version of the 2022 transparency report (VGG).

Image details:

  • Guido Evers and Dr Tilo Gerlach, Managing Directors of GVL (Photo: Stefan Wieland)
  • Additional image material can be accessed here

About GVL:

Those who render artistic performances or create the respective financial basis for the latter must receive money for the exploitation of their performances. GVL, the society for the administration of neighbouring rights, captures and manages such exploitations. GVL pays the fees it collects on a fiduciary basis e.g. from radio and TV stations and for the communication to the public (e.g. in restaurants or cafés) to its members in the form of a remuneration each year. More than 170,000 performers, producers of sound recordings and audiovisual recordings, music and music video clip producers as well as event organisers have placed their trust in GVL on a global level - and thus make GVL one of the biggest collective management organisations and music licensing companies for neighbouring rights in the world. Shareholders of GVL are the unisono Deutsche Musik- und Orchestervereinigung e.V. [unisono German Music and Orchestra Association] (ehemals Deutsche Orchestervereinigung e.V. [formerly German Orchestra Association], the Bundesverband Musikindustrie e.V [Federal Association of the Music Industry] (BVMI), the Bundesverband Schauspiel e.V. [Federal Acting Association] (BFFS) and the Verband unabhängiger Musikunternehmer*innen e.V. [Association of Independent Music Entrepreneurs] (VUT).

Kontakt Presse

Juliane Fiedler
Leiterin Kommunikation