1 Introduction

This standard was developed by the member organisations of the Digital Data Exchange, LLC (DDEX) and provides a uniform mechanism for a Licensor (a music publisher or an agent for such) that has acquired a Catalogue of Musical Works and/or Right Shares thereof (the Acquiring Publisher) from another Licensor (also a music publisher or an agent for such, the Relinquishing Publisher) to inform Licensees such as a record company or a DSP about the acquisition andfor the record company or DSP to confirm that it has received information about the transfer and made suitable consequential amendments to the data contained in its systems.

The standard also supports the process by which an Acquiring Publisher can confirm the list of Musical Works and/or Right Shares it has acquired, with the Relinqushing Publisher from which it has acquired the Musical Works and/or Right Shares. Finally, the standard enables the Licensee to confirm with the Relinquishing Publishert hat the Acquiring Publisher's notification is correct.

No organisation is compelled to use this standard and nothing contained herein imposes any obligation on any organisation, nor relieves any organisation of any obligation, which may exist under law or by agreements between business partners, whether this occurs on a bi-lateral basis or as part of any collectively negotiated procedures.

This standard is therefore offered “without prejudice” to any such agreements or negotiations that might lead to the establishments of such information flows or choices of message.

Any organisation wishing to implement this (or any other DDEX standard) is required to apply for an Implementation Licence. Information about the Implementation Licence, its terms and conditions and access to an application form can be found here and here.