What Does Most Favored Nation (MFN) Mean in Music Licensing?

What is Most Favored Nation (MFN)?

Most Favored Nation is a economic status that means a given country or nation has been granted the most favorable trading terms by its trading partner. This provides security to the Most Favored Nation who knows that they are getting the best deal on their end.

What does MFN have to do with Music Licensing?

As you may guess, MFN is applied in many industries. For music licensing, it comes into play when we are negotiating custom licensing deals. Whether it's for publishing rights, master rights, or any other type of license, any copyright holder has it within their rights to require MFN with any permissions they give out. If you see that a publisher is requiring a fee with MFN included, this means that they will only give their permission if they're given the option to change or increase their fee any time that another party in the same deal requests a higher fee. This ensures that they are the Most Favored Nation and avoids them from being paid any less than another publisher without their consent.