As the Canadian Music Publishers Association (CMPA) enters its 61st year, the organization can look back proudly at a number of important landmark achievements that helped songwriters and other music creators prosper.

One of the biggest was the establishment of the Canadian Musical Reproduction Rights Agency (CMRRA) and the campaign that resulted in Bill C-60, allowing for the amendment of the compulsory licence. Until the 1988 bill became law, songwriters and publishers were stuck earning a Draconian two-cent statutory royalty rate that was established with the Canadian Copyright Act back in 1924. Hence the rallying cry: “Two Cents Too Long.”

“That campaign is probably one of the biggest things that the CMPA has worked on,” says Jodie Ferneyhough, current CMPA president and creative director for Universal Music Publishing Canada. “Since then, we have seen a rise in the mechanical rate — even in this year, where it’s increasing from $.081 to $.083.”

In 1996, Bill C-32 followed, establishing the levy on blank recording media as part of Private Copying legislation. And the CMPA has chimed in with a loud and weighted voice in the current round of copyright reform. “We have built the CMPA into a very visible organization,” says Ferneyhough. “It is trusted by the federal government and now we’re getting funding for publishers, which we never saw before.”

The CMPA also gave a legitimate platform to independent publishers who didn’t have the resources of their corporate brethren. “It gave a place for independent publishers to join in with major publishers in terms of lobbying efforts,” says Morning Music’s Mark Altman, who originated the “Two Cents Too Long” slogan. “There was no place for independent music publishers in the other music associations, so that was our only voice. Independent publishers were always on the CMPA board and the executive committee. Our opinions were valued, so we were able to contribute and make sure the association championed our cause.”

Another crucial CMPA initiative was to help establish and then raise and maintain public awareness of songwriters as one of the founders and a sponsor of the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame, which holds an annual gala and honours songs, songwriters and key industry builders throughout the eras and from around the country.

Despite these achievements, the CMPA isn’t about to rest on its laurels. Moving forward, the organization faces compensatory and legislative challenges created by rapid technological shifts. But there are also opportunities for new rights, tariffs and income.

“Music publishers have been in the rights-management business from Day One,” says CMPA executive director Catherine Saxberg. “We’re not afraid of change, and I think music publishers are well positioned as more people than ever are listening to music. The overall challenge in the new music world that we are dealing with is to find mechanisms for fair compensation.

“Advocacy is also a major part of our mandate, as is developing markets for publishers, whether they’re international markets or new licensing opportunities. Those are the day-to-day, nuts-and-bolts priorities of the organization.”