Integrating Stakeholder Values in System of Collective Management of Music Copyrights: A Value-Sensitive Design Approach

This study examined the integration of stakeholder values into the governance and technological system of collective management of music copyrights (SCMMC) in the Netherlands. Using a value-sensitive design approach, we identified and structured core values—justice, equity, fairness, transparency, ownership, accountability, and accuracy—into a framework of norms and technological and institutional system requirements. The qualitative semi-structured interview with thematic coding was applied as the method for qualitative data gathering and analysis: two rounds of a total of 24 interviews were utilised for this purpose. This framework serves as a conceptual tool for refining governance practices and technological implementations in SCMMC. Our findings highlight governance challenges and value tensions. Transparency, for instance, is critical for rights holders but often constrained by privacy and competitive pressures in licencing. Likewise, the pursuit of efficiency may compromise fairness and accountability, disproportionately affecting smaller rights holders. While Directives 2014/26/EU and 2019/790/EU aimed to enhance competition, they placed operational burdens on collective management organisations, affecting their ability to uphold fundamental values. This study is limited by its reliance on qualitative data from a select group of stakeholders, in the Netherlands, reducing generalisability. Future research should incorporate quantitative validation, broader stakeholder representation, and cross-regional comparisons. Further investigations should also focus on translating these insights into concrete institutional and technological requirements, ensuring that governance mechanisms remain adaptable to evolving music copyrights industry conditions.