Wolfmother, Bon Scott: Ordior making music payday for artists

A small Southern Highlands royalties start-up which has the likes of Bon Scott and Wolfmother on its books, is reclaiming billions of lost revenue for music greats.

Ordior is the Moss Vale company making noise in the recording industry by recovering lost and unclaimed artist royalties for music giants like Bon Scott and Wolfmother

Ordior founder Damien Reilly estimates there are over (US) $2 billion in royalties that don’t make it to the musicians every year.

The company helps artists reclaim their lost revenue and ensure artists are making the most of the streaming possibilities.

Wolfmother has been a client of Ordor. Picture: Julian Smith

Rock god Bon Scott has worked with the Moss Vale company. Picture: Michael Putland/Getty Images

Mr Reilly has worked in the music industry for over 30 years, and said he saw what was being left behind in the move towards streaming services.

“What he realised, having done the publishing side, was that there was a gap in the royalties management side because it’s so complex and because there are so many platforms,” chief strategy officer Kate Ingham.

Simply put, Ordior turns streaming views into royalty payments for music artists by using metadata and tagging to identify each song and trace it on the many streaming platforms.

CEO and Founder Damien Reilly says Ordior is busier than ever.

If it sounds complicated, that’s because it is. There is no easy way to track down royalties across the many streaming platforms around the world. Each streaming service like Spotify and YouTube has a different set of metadata and a different way to upload it.

“This business has identified 60 ways of identifying royalties for artists, and each person will do one sliver of the management,” Ms Ingham said.

Ordior works with over 350 record labels and artists such as Wolfmother and Bon Scott (of AC/DC fame) to ensure that copyrights are protected. According to the company, it’s not uncommon for artists to miss out on 20 per cent their revenue.

Mr Reilly estimated they have monetised over 4 billion streaming views on platforms such as TikTok.

The company has offices in Los Angeles, Vancouver, Buenos Aires, Nigeria, and Moss Vale. When asked why our local town, Ms Ingham said that it is the perfect location for opportunity.

“It’s ideal for the depth of industry knowledge, skilled labour, English speaking, good price point in terms of regional location, and therefore stickiness of the staff,” she said.

Ordior is currently pursuing funding from the NSW State Government Regional Job Creation Fund to create new jobs for young people locally.

If the company was successful in securing the grant, it would create at least five new jobs in the area for tech-savvy music lovers. Ms Ingham suggested that number could be much higher.

Brendan Paniagua rose quickly in the ranks from an intern to Rights Manager at Ordior.

“If there’s financing involved, it’s as many people as we can handle,” she said.

Local education providers TAFE Moss Vale and University of Wollongong are excited about the opportunities that would be created for young people in an exciting growing field.

Chair of the Southern Highlands Chamber of Commerce, Steve Horton, said this was a golden opportunity for the region.

“What they’re doing is sustainable, and that sort of industry is something we should be looking toward,” he said.

“It adds to the area and gives people other avenues, and we should continue to pursue that as much as we can.”

Mr Reilly said the company was invested in the area for the long term, and would ideally be hiring 30 people a year to support the growth.

“The music industry is broken in some areas but, if we can plug some of the holes, it’s hugely exciting,” he said.

WE’RE STILL HERE FOR YOU

For trusted news that matters, and to support local journalism, go straight to the source:

For local news, go to thebowralnews.com.au

You can follow us on Twitter or on Instagram.

You can also get your news delivered straight into your inbox by subscribing to our online newsletter here.