Privacy Policy

The MLC Privacy Policy

Last Updated: January 16, 2024

Welcome to The Mechanical Licensing Collective (“The MLC,” “we,” “us,” or “our”), a nonprofit organization designated by the U.S. Copyright Office pursuant to the historic Music Modernization Act of 2018 (the “MMA”), codified in 17 U.S.C. § 115, et seq. This privacy policy (“Policy”) applies to our website, themlc.com (the “Website”). The Website includes:

The MLC Portal: The Portal allows Members of The MLC to register to receive mechanical royalties administered by The MLC as required under the MMA. The Portal Terms of Use are found here.
Public Work Search: As required under the MMA, the Public Work Search allows a user to access a database containing information relating to musical works (and shares of such works) and, to the extent known, the identity and location of the copyright owners of such works (and shares thereof) and the sound recordings in which the musical works are embodied. The MMA and its implementing regulations reference the “musical works database.” The database accessed through the Public Work Search is the same as the “musical works database” described in 17 U.S.C. § 115(d)(3)(E).
Educational and outreach information: The MLC provides extensive information, including links to webinars and other materials, in various locations on the Website.
The MLC DURP: The Distributor Unmatched Recordings Portal (DURP) allows eligible music distributors to view, interact with, and download information about unmatched musical works and sound recordings registered in The MLC Musical Works Database. The DURP Terms of Use are found here.

By using and accessing the features on the Website, you accept and consent to the practices described in this Policy, which may be updated from time to time, the Website Terms of Use, Portal Terms of Use, and the DURP Terms of Use as applicable.

Information We Collect About You and How We Collect It

We collect the following information from you when you access the Website, including information:

By which you may be personally identified, such as name, e-mail address, and in some cases, your date of birth, personal address, phone number, and certain financial information required to receive mechanical royalties (“personal data”);
That is about you but individually does not identify you (e.g., geolocation information); and/or
About your internet connection, the equipment you use to access our Website, and usage details.

We collect this information:

Directly from you when you provide it to us.
Automatically as you navigate through the Website. Information collected automatically may include usage details, IP addresses, and information collected through cookies and other tracking technologies.

Information We Collect Through Automatic Data Collection Technologies

As you navigate through and interact with the Website, we may use automatic data collection technologies to collect certain information about your equipment, browsing actions, and patterns, including:

Details of your visits to the Website, including traffic data, location data, logs, and other communication data and the resources that you access and use on the Website.
Information about your computer and internet connection, including your IP address, operating system, and browser type.

The technologies we use for this automatic data collection may include:

Cookies (or browser cookies). A cookie is a small file placed on the hard drive of your computer. You may refuse to accept browser cookies by activating the appropriate setting on your browser. However, if you select certain settings, you may be unable to access certain parts of the Website. Unless you have adjusted your browser setting so that it will refuse cookies, our system will issue cookies when you direct your browser to the Website. For more details about cookies, please see below.
Flash Cookies. Certain features of the Website may use locally stored objects (or Flash cookies) to collect and store information about your preferences and navigation to, from, and on the Website. Flash cookies are not managed by the same browser settings as are used for browser cookies.
Web Beacons. The Website may contain small electronic files known as web beacons (also referred to as clear gifs, pixel tags, and single-pixel gifs) that permit us, for example, to count visitors to the Website and for other related statistics (for example, recording the popularity of certain content of the Website and verifying system and server integrity).

How We Use Your Information

We use information that we collect about you or that you provide to us, including any personal data:

To present the Website and its contents to you.
To identify you and potentially improve and/or customize the Website.
To provide you with information or services, including information you request from us.
To provide you with notices about The MLC.
To notify you about changes to the Website or services we offer or provide though it.
To respond to law enforcement requests
As required by applicable law, court order, or governmental regulations, specifically including the MMA.
In any other way we may describe when you provide the information.
For any other purpose with your consent.

We will not collect additional categories of personal data or use the personal data we collected for materially different, unrelated, or incompatible purposes without providing you notice.

We do not sell your personal data.

As permitted by law, the MLC may make the Musical Work database available to a person or entity for a fee not in excess of the marginal costs of providing the database to such person or entity. See 17 USC § 115(d)(3)(E)(v)(V). Additional information about the Musical Work Database can be found here and such use is subject to the Musical Works Database Terms of Use.

Disclosure of Your Information

We may disclose personal data that we collect or you provide as described in this Policy:

To contractors, service providers, and other third parties we use to support our business, including the below. All such third parties only receive data pursuant to a contractual relationship where the service provider is required to comply with all applicable privacy laws and to use the personal data only for the purposes for which it is disclosed.
- Google Analytics: We use Google Analytics to evaluate your use of the Website, analyze performance metrics, and compile reports on activity. More information on how Google uses data can be found here.
To fulfill the purpose for which you provide it.
For any other purpose disclosed by us when you provide the information.
With your consent.

We may also disclose your personal data:
To comply with any court order, law, or legal process, including to respond to any government or regulatory request. Specifically and for example, we may disclose personal data in the Musical Work established and maintained by The MLC as and to the extent required by the MMA (see 17 USC § 115(d)(3)(E)). The Musical Work Database is required to include information relating to musical works, and to the extent known, the identity and contact information for a copyright owner (e.g., post office or similar designation or address) for musical works and the sound recordings in which the musical works are embodied.
To enforce or apply our Website Terms of Use, Portal Terms of Use, DURP Terms of Use, and other applicable agreements.·
To verify your identity when you submit information to become a User (defined in the Portal Terms of Use and DURP Terms of Use).
If we believe disclosure is necessary or appropriate to protect the rights, property, or safety of The MLC or others. This includes exchanging information with other companies and organizations for the purposes of regulatory compliance and fraud protection and detection.

Accessing, Deleting, and Correcting Your Information

As an MLC Member, you will receive communications via email. These communications will consist of updates about your Membership and other notifications as appropriate.

In addition and for example, The MLC may forward a Member newsletter comprising regular communications via email that highlight key events, milestones, and other important information in order to keep you informed about The MLC. If at any time you choose to no longer receive the Member Newsletter, you may opt-out.

If you have an account on The MLC Portal or The MLC DURP, you can review and change your personal data by logging into your account. However, we may not be able to delete your personal data without also deleting your account.

You may send an email to privacypolicy@themlc.com to request access to correct or delete any personal data that you have provided to us. We may not accommodate a request to change information if we believe the change would violate any law or legal requirement or cause the information to be incorrect. This includes requests to revise data contained in the Public Work Search to avoid the public dissemination of Personal Information or other personal details. Copyright owners may provide anonymous or pseudonymous information as appropriate and may use third-party agents, post office boxes, or designated email accounts. Because of The MLC’s statutory obligation to establish and maintain a Musical Work Database, The MLC cannot and will not delete accurate information contained in the Musical Work Database (accessed through the Public Work Search). Changes made to your account information may be subject to internal review.

Storage and Transfer of Information

Pursuant to 17 U.S.C. §115(d(3)(M) and other related MLC policies, The MLC ensures that material records of the operations of The MLC, including those relating to notices of license, the administration of the claims process of The MLC, reports of usage, royalty payments, receipt and maintenance of accrued royalties, royalty distribution processes, and legal matters, are preserved and maintained in a secure and reliable manner. This includes commercially reasonable safeguards to protect against unauthorized access, copying, and disclosure. The MLC’s preservation of material records is subject to confidentiality requirements (set forth in 37 C.F.R. § 210.34) for a period of not less than seven years after the date of creation or receipt, whichever occurs later. In some cases, this information is kept permanently. Any personal data held by us for marketing and service update notifications will be kept by us until such time that you notify us that you no longer wish to receive this information.

The Website is hosted in the United States. Information that we collect from you will be stored in a cloud, used in accordance with applicable law, applicable terms of use, and this Policy, and processed by The MLC in the United States or one of our service providers based in the United States or outside of the United States. By using the Website, you expressly consent to any such transfer and storage of information outside of your country of residence, where data protection laws may be different and/or determined to be less stringent.

Information Relating to Minors

Our Website is not targeted to persons under thirteen years of age. We will never knowingly request or solicit personal data from anyone under the age of thirteen without verifiable parental consent. While individuals under the age of eighteen, but in no event younger than age thirteen, may utilize the Website (including the Portal and the DURP), they must do so only with the consent of their parent or legal guardian, and otherwise subject to this Policy. In the event that we receive actual knowledge that we have collected personal data of anyone under the age of thirteen or under the age of majority in your jurisdiction without the requisite and verifiable parental consent, we will delete that information.

Cookies and Other Tracking Technologies

We may use cookies, for example, to keep track of your preferences and account profile information for the Portal and the DURP, or to engage in certain retargeting activities that may better enhance your user experience of the Website. Cookies are also used to collect general usage and volume statistical information that does not include personal data. We may also use another company or third-party service to place cookies on your computer to collect information to compile aggregated statistics for us about users of the Website.

As mentioned earlier in this Policy, cookies are stored as text files by your Internet browser on your computer’s hard drive. Most Internet browsers are initially set to accept cookies. You can set your browser to refuse cookies from websites or to remove cookies from your hard drive, but if you do so, you may not be able to access or use portions of the Website, or certain offerings on the Website may not function as intended or as well.

A more detailed list of the cookies we currently, or in the future may, use and how we use, or may use, them are as follows:

Security: We secure the Website with cookies that facilitate security features and allow us to detect activity that might violate our rules and Website Terms of Use, the Portal Terms of Use, or the DURP Terms of Use, such as unauthorized access or activity.
Localization: We use some cookies to help us provide localized experiences, such as displaying the Website in the local language.
Website Features and Services: We use certain cookies to provide greater functionality to the Website and help us deliver our services.
Performance: We use performance cookies to help us route traffic between servers and understand how the Website is performing so we can provide users with the best experience possible.
Analytics and Research: We use certain cookies and other technologies also help us to understand, improve, and research features and content on the Website.
Marketing and Online Behavioral Advertising: We may use cookies to help us deliver targeted advertisements through web browsers and on social media platforms based on your activity on the Website and to track the performance of those ads. In some cases, our partners may also use cookies to provide us with information about your interactions with their services, as applicable. Those third-party cookies would be subject to such third-party service’s privacy policies. The Self-Regulatory Program for Online Behavioral Advertising program provides consumers with the ability to opt-out of having their online behavior recorded and used for advertising purposes. Visit this link to opt-out of having your online behavior collected for advertising purposes.

Do Not Track Requests

Please note that your browser setting may allow you to automatically transmit a “Do Not Track” signal to websites and online service you visit. There is no consensus among industry participants as to what “Do Not Track” means in this context. Like many websites and online services, we do not alter our practices when we receive a “Do Not Track” signal from a visitor’s browser. To find out more about “Do Not Track,” please visit http://www.allaboutdnt.com.

Link to Third Party Websites

The Website may include links to other websites, mobile applications, or services (“Third Party Sites”), whose privacy practices may differ from those set forth herein. Such links are not an endorsement by The MLC of those Third Party Sites and/or the products or services they offer. If you visit Third Party Sites or submit Information to any of those Third Party Sites, your visit and information is governed by their privacy policies. We encourage you to carefully read the privacy policies of any Third Party Sites you visit, as it may differ substantially from that of this Policy. The MLC makes no representations or warranties with respect to, nor is The MLC responsible for the privacy policies of any Third Party Sites. If you decide to click on any such links or access any Third Party Sites appearing on the Website, you do so at your own risk.

Data Security

We use reasonable security safeguards that comply with applicable laws to prevent unauthorized access to and otherwise protect your personal data. The Internet is a global network, however, and there are therefore times when your information may not be completely secure. We cannot guarantee or warrant the security of your personal data, or any other information transmitted to or through the Website, and to the fullest extent permissible by law, we disclaim any responsibility for the theft, destruction, or inadvertent and unlawful disclosure of such information. If you provide us with information over the Internet, you do so at your own risk. If you become aware of any unauthorized use of your account or loss of your account credentials, or if you suspect a security breach, please notify us immediately by email at privacypolicy@themlc.com or call The MLC’s support team at (615) 488-3653.

Changes to Our Policy

We may update this Policy to reflect changes to our information and privacy practices from time to time. We will update the “Last Updated” date at the top of this Policy, and we encourage you to periodically review this Policy for the latest information on our information and privacy practices. Once a change becomes effective, your continued use of the Website constitutes your acceptance of such changes.

Contact Information

We welcome your questions, comments, and concerns about this Policy. Please contact us at privacypolicy@themlc.com with any questions or comments you may have regarding the privacy of your information.

The MLC

Attn: Privacy Policy Notices

333 11^th Avenue South

Suite 200

Nashville, TN 37203