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12 April 2022

Where Your Retail Music Licence Fees Go

How your choice of background music can keep another Aussie in a job. For thousands of Australian retailers who employ a Background Music Supplier to curate their playlist, the exact playlists make their way back to OneMusic Australia to be paid-per-play. Read about how this works.


There are many Background Music Suppliers in Australia and together with music licensing body OneMusic Australia they can steer licence fees (royalties) to home-grown acts with the development of custom playlists.

Wielding this power for good, retailer 7-Eleven opted to give Australian music centre stage in its 700+ locations leading up to and during Australian Music Month last year. Curated by their in-store commercial music and technology partner, Qsic, 7-Eleven scheduled a 100% Aussie playlist in place of regular scheduling.

Guided by the talents of their Background Music Suppliers who are professionals in curating music to suit the environment, the brand, the sales cycle and the clientele, many Australian retailers have embraced the opportunity to help more money flow to Aussie musicians.  

Nightlife Music highlighted their own campaign during Australian Music Month, called Australian Played. Some 16 million Australian songs were played across the Nightlife Music Network of over 6,000 locations in November 2021.

Last year storePlay created a 24-hour music channel Aussie & NZ Fresh Drop to help support local music talent. One of the first to jump on board was Telstra, who immediately added it to their in-store music rotation.

There are around 40 Background Music Suppliers like these in Australia.

See what special offers are available for members of ARA.

What about live music in your store?

OneMusic Australia, who on behalf of the music creators, grant permission to play music in-store (with the purchase of an annual licence) encourages retailers to consider integrating background music with ‘event’ music such as hosting live acoustic sets for store openings or seasonal campaigns such as the lead up to Australia Day or Mother’s Day.

“Even though online retailing is growing, after COVID we are so desperate for in-person experiences that our enjoyment of live entertainment is heightened. It’s about turning your store into a destination”, said Catherine Giuliano. Director, OneMusic Australia.

Read more on how to go about hosting live music for the first time and tips from those who have tried live music in retail around the world:

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