Major music labels are cutting their staff, yet publishers are doubling the size of their film/TV licensing departments. In fact, total revenues earned by sync income is increasing at a rapid rate as publishing companies are pushing their copyrights through new media.

Television programs including The Hills, Weeds, and Grey’s Anatomy are music driven and of course a publishers dream. Also, the increase of reality TV shows are a benefit to newer acts while shows like American Idol and Dancing With the Stars benefit older artists and create enormous exposure for their catalogs.

Of course, many shows have a limited budget and it’s always the job of the publisher to get the highest price. In this respect, there is a growing a divide between publishers and labels - labels want the fee to be lower since they are counting on the TV usage to boost CD sales.