The Authors’ Licensing & Collecting Society (ALCS) is a not-for-profit membership organization established in 1977 by writers to serve the interests of writers collectively. ALCS’s primary role is to collect and distribute fees for the secondary use of authors’ works, which includes uses such as photocopying, cable retransmission, digital reproduction, and educational recording. These secondary rights typically generate small royalties that are difficult for individual authors to monitor and collect independently. ALCS, therefore, provides a vital service by pooling these rights, using bespoke IT systems to collect payments on behalf of members worldwide through collaborations with over 70 societies in more than 50 countries.
ALCS operates with a strong mission to be a trusted and valuable representative for all types of writers, campaigning for fair copyright terms, collecting royalties efficiently, and promoting copyright principles. Being owned and run by writers themselves ensures the society remains aligned with authors’ needs and creative protection. The organization is also deeply involved in advocacy and lobbying at both national and international levels, including within the European Union, to ensure authors’ rights are recognized and enforced. It collaborates with other bodies such as the British Copyright Council and the Alliance for IP to promote robust rights enforcement frameworks.
The society’s work emphasizes the importance of digital licensing as a growing income stream, balancing declining revenues from traditional analogue uses. ALCS has pledged to collect significant sums — aimed at around £60 million in UK licensing and nearly £30 million from overseas sources during its 2016-2019 strategic plan.
ALCS’s lobbying activities are geared toward supporting copyright reform, better licensing models, and fair remuneration for authors, including awareness campaigns about authors’ rights and copyright education. It also works with international author organizations such as the International Authors Forum, the European Writers’ Council, and CISAC to promote authors’ rights globally.
ALCS relies on professional staff with expertise in licensing and rights management while maintaining its membership-driven governance model. Although ALCS itself is not involved in the UK Public Lending Right scheme’s distribution, it does collect royalties from international PLR schemes for UK authors.
In sum, ALCS functions as both a collective licensing agency and a lobbying entity, safeguarding authors’ rights in a rapidly changing digital environment by combining rights collection, cultural promotion, and policy advocacy globally and within the EU
