Latest half-year numbers from MCPS-PRS reveal that songwriter royalties in the UK earned from CD sales dropped by 15 percent but were compensated for by rises in other licensing streams, including public performance, live and online. However this doesn’t mean that online is finally offsetting the impact of the dying CD market. Publishing royalties have always depended much more heavily on a broader range of revenue sources than physical product. And to bring some perspective, online royalties were just 2.5 percent of the total in the first half of 2008. All that said though, as recorded music sales continue to struggle (offline) and under-perform (online) licensing looks set to become an increasingly important part of the music industry mix. So understanding the dynamics is more imperative now than at any other time.