MWN and the Common Works Registration (CWR)

The Common Works Registration (CWR) is a CISAC standard, whose current operational version is 2.2. The functional specification document defines the reason for creating the CWR as follows:

"The purpose of the Common Works Registration (CWR) format is to provide publishers and societies with a standard format for the registration of works.”

A gap analysis was done for CWR v3.0 and it is understood that CWR does not presently provide support for:

  • Musical Work licensing process;

  • Letters of Direction process;

  • Communication of a UGC policy for a work (e.g. Track/Monetize/Block);

  • Sending audio files that relate to a work (e.g. for audio finger-printing);

  • Communicating lyrics;

  • Communicating information for print rights; or

  • Communicating UseTypes (i.e. sub-categories of Mechanical/Performing/Synch Rights).

DDEX's MWN standard, however, was originally designed to support a different set of use cases to CWR, and in particular was designed to provide support for the complexities of works licensing in territories which do not have “central” licensing infrastructures, such as the US (and Canada).

The current version 1.3 of the MWN standard provides new features that have been added to enable organizations to use MWN messages to register musical works with CMOs, thereby aligning the standard with CWR. This relates in particular to more detailed works and right share information such as:

  • Work origin information;

  • Lyrics information;

  • Information about relationships with other works or exploitations;

  • Basic instrumentation information;

  • Usage information in right shares; and

  • Right share information specific to lyrics or music.

This alignment process will be continued and the next versions of MWN are expected to support:

  • Communicating cue information; and

  • Communicating full instrumentation information.

Additionally, DDEX’s MWN standard provides a richer conflict notification and resolution mechanism than is available in CWR.

For communicating CWR instruments, see here.

Search