BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES
SAMI was founded in 1963 on the initiative of the Swedish Musicians’ Union and the Swedish Actors’ Union.
SAMI’s main task is to administrate performer’s economic rights in Sweden, based on the Swedish Copyright Act (1960:729) and corresponding legislation in other countries within the framework of the Rome Convention (1961) and principally its Article 12. With regards to composers’ and song-writers’ economic rights these are administrated by STIM.

As a so-called “Collecting Society” for performers, SAMI’s primary task is to collect and distribute remuneration for the use of sound-recordings.

The legal right to equitable remuneration covers not only broadcasting but also all other kinds of public use of sound recordings.

Furthermore, besides public use of gramophone records and other types of sound recordings, retransmission of broadcast programmes with or without cable gives rise to a similar right to equitable remuneration.

In addition to the above-mentioned administration of remuneration for public use of sound recordings SAMI also, in cooperation with the Unions involved, administrates rights and remuneration for other types of secondary uses of performers’ performances.

Copyswede: SAMI a member of Copyswede which is an umbrella collecting society responsible for the coordinated collection of Private Copy Remuneration and remuneration from cable operators for the retransmission of broadcasts. Its membership consists of the organisations that represent Swedish authors and performers.

Cooperation with IFPI: Since the Swedish Copyright Act (1986) Section 47 states that performing artists shall put forward their demands jointly and at the same time as the producers, SAMI works very closely with IFPI on general agreements with organisations as well as the collection of remuneration to be divided between SAMI and IFPI and distributed to their respective members.  IFPI is responsible for the radio and television market and SAMI for other public performances.  SAMI and IFPI are constantly exchanging information and both organisations are represented at the more significant negotiations.