Ade Govinda Highlights Music Royalties in Indonesia, Not Yet Optimal but There is Improvement

Kapanlagi.com - Ade Govinda, one of the prominent musicians and songwriters in the country, shares his perspective on the music royalty mechanism in Indonesia. Ade highlights several points, including how royalties operate in the digital era and the challenges faced by song creators today.

"If it comes to royalties in Indonesia, as long as we have a proper publisher, for digital platforms, it should be secure," said Ade when met in the Senayan area, Central Jakarta, on Thursday (6/2/2025).

However, according to Ade, the royalty system for performing rights in Indonesia has not yet reached an ideal point. Although there have been improvements year by year, he feels that much still needs to be enhanced to truly maximize it.

"Performing rights in Indonesia exist, but I want to say it’s not yet optimal. That’s all," said Ade.

When asked if there have been significant developments regarding the royalty system since last year, Ade admitted to seeing some progress, although it is not yet significant. He hopes that in the future there will be better regulations and management for the welfare of song creators.

"In my opinion, there have been improvements year by year, but it is indeed not yet optimal," he added.

1. Depends on Whether It's a Hit or Not

As a songwriter who has been in the industry for over 16 years, Ade also shares his views on the permission to perform songs. In this matter, he states that all decisions depend on the applicable laws.

"It depends on the law. I don’t want to answer that," he briefly stated.

Ade also acknowledges that a profession as a songwriter does not always guarantee prosperity. According to him, a songwriter’s income greatly depends on the popularity of the works produced.

"Songwriters depend on their songs, whether they are hits or not. If the song isn’t a hit, then..." he revealed.

2. Challenges and Hopes for Songwriters

He also added that many of his released songs did not achieve great success, thus not providing significant royalties. For this reason, he considers it important to continue producing quality works that are in demand in the market.

"Yes, our homework is to create good songs," he said.

Speaking about the differences in royalty conditions now compared to the early days of his career, Ade mentioned that technological shifts have changed the sources of income for songwriters. If royalties used to come largely from physical CD sales, now they are more dominated by digital platforms.

"The difference with the past is that royalties used to come from CDs and various other sources. Now they come from digital platforms," he concluded.

(kpl/phi)