Australia / NZ · Performance + mechanical
APRA AMCOS
What counts as black box here
Automated matching plus specialist investigation; disputed, unidentified and unclaimed song lists are published and disputed money stays held. The AMCOS Unidentified Control Account holds 2.5 years then credits the record company; the General Control Account allows corrections for 3 years then redistributes against proxy data.
Mini box
Lit: compartments used and exit chute(s).
Its rules
Follows its own constitution and distribution rules, set by its members rather than a single statute.
- Rights it handles
- Performance + mechanical
- Holds a pool?
- Yes, control accounts
- Evidence level
- Official quantitative
How it distributes money
How often matched money is paid out, and how members can find what's theirs.
- Payment cadence
- Not publicly disclosed
- Data maturity tier
- B
How it handles unresolved royalties
How long money waits, when the clock starts, and where it goes if nobody claims it.
- Holding clock
- 2.5 yrs (UCA) / 3 yrs (GCA)
- Clock starts
- Control-account rule
- Exit chute
- Return to payer (UCA) and proxy redistribution (GCA)
- Late claims after expiry
- Not publicly disclosed
Lifecycle path
- 1
Match
Automated + specialist investigation
- 2
Publish
Song lists for claiming
- 3
UCA hold
Unidentified Control Account
2.5 yrs
- 4
Return to payer
Credited back to the record company
- 5
GCA redistribute
Proxy data for the original period
After 3 yrs
Published figures
A$20.700m
Not distributed due to unidentified works/disputes (FY2026)
Source: APRA AMCOS FY2026 report
From the original research
A$217.831m
Awaiting distribution (FY2026)
Source: APRA AMCOS FY2026 report
From the original research
A$238.531m
Total not distributed (FY2026)
Source: APRA AMCOS FY2026 report
From the original research
A$557.219m
Total revenue FY2026; A$431.081m paid
Source: APRA AMCOS FY2026 report
From the original research