Rights and Claims Management System
rac ist ein umfangreiches Paket für Filmdokumentation und Urheberrechteverwaltung, welches von mehreren europäischen Verwertungsgesellschaften eingesetzt wird. Die Software erlaubt eine weitgehende Automatisierung verschiedener, u.a. nutzungsbezogener Verrechnungsmethoden im Bereich der audiovisuellen Werke bei der Entschädigung von Rechteinhabern.
Copyrighted Works
RaC includes a hierarchical works register that represents series, episodes or instalments, as well as stand-alone works. The works register also supports alternative titles and multiple language versions at all hierarchy levels.
In addition to standard work attributes, RaC provides the ability to define and maintain custom characteristics, external keys and relationships between works (including links between any works).
Entitled Parties and Participants
All address and personal data is stored in a centralised register. The persons register maps representations (of a person by a collecting society), contracts (between one society and another) and memberships.
In addition, the register includes fields for bank payment details, correspondence languages, pseudonym assignments, the distinction between natural persons and legal entities, as well as the recording of bankruptcies and inheritances.
Rights
RaC models rights including information on the role in the work (e.g. producer, actor, screenwriter, musician, etc.), the duration (validity of the right), broadcast countries, registrations and types of distribution.
The rights structure is hierarchical; during data entry, for example, rights assigned to a series can — if desired — be automatically propagated to its episodes.
Distributions
RaC includes distribution registers (e.g. broadcasts) that contain all relevant details of a distribution, such as the broadcaster, audience reach, time, duration, medium, programme title, repeats, and more.
Both manual and automated capture of media metrics data (e.g. audience figures) is also supported.
Accounting
RaC includes its own accounts payable and accounts receivable accounting, with three posting levels:
account, cost centre and cost object.
In addition, the software provides interfaces to standard financial accounting systems. The package also includes a module for the collection of copyright royalties from cable network operators.
Technical Information
RaC is built on Progress OpenEdge. Client access is provided either via a web browser or a Java-based rich client. External services can be integrated via interfaces.
In addition to on-premises installation on the customer’s server, RaC can also be used as a hosted SaaS solution provided by aren:e.
Distributions and Transfers
RaC enables distributions based on different algorithms, executed in separate processing runs. When calculating allocation points, the distributions can take into account all relevant distribution, work and rights information. Various bonuses and deductions can be defined depending on the rights holder, collecting society or country.
In addition, forwarding of funds is possible either with or without redistribution (recalculation of points). Comprehensive filters with predefined selection criteria allow convenient and precise narrowing of the works, rights or distributions to be included in a distribution or forwarding process.
The integrated accounting module supports separate payouts per individual distribution run or payouts based on the accumulated balances of entitled parties.
Data Synchronisation Features
RaC offers a wide range of options for the automatic reconciliation of “internal” data with imported data from partner societies, as well as with data such as programme information from broadcasters and third-party providers.
Intelligent algorithms evaluate the degree of congruence when searching for potential matches and can automatically assign works, entitled parties and distributions, as well as import missing data. The user interface also supports efficient semi-automated matching and importing of various data sets.