Breaking Through The Business with Matt Skiba
By Abby Garcia, Office Operations Coordinator
Matt Skiba serves as Vydia’s Vice President of Rights and Content, where he leads the company’s Rights Management and Content Operations divisions. Leading both teams, Skiba ensures that artists’ work is not only delivered seamlessly to partner platforms but also protected and optimized long after release. From overseeing content distribution to navigating complex copyright issues, publishing, and sync licensing, Skiba plays a pivotal role in powering the systems that keep creators protected and expand their opportunities in today’s ever-evolving music landscape.
Q: What is your current title, and what are some of your responsibilities at Vydia?
A: I am Vydia’s Vice President of Rights and Content. I oversee the Rights Management team, and separately, the Content Operations team in close conjunction with Stephen Dworkin. The content operations team is our delivery mechanism, getting content out to our various partner destinations. Our rights management team is a post-delivery department that deals with issues on the copyright side, as well as continued exploitation, such as publishing and sync licensing.
Q: Was there a defining experience that drew you to pursue a career in music, or did your path into the industry unfold more unexpectedly?
A: I don’t know that I had one defining moment. My family has been generally musical and performance-based. It was kind of something I grew up with. After college, I felt stuck and wanted to explore something that I knew and thought was interesting and fun, so that’s when I started to pursue a music industry career. I felt like it was a combination of falling into it and growing up in music.
Q: How has the definition of “content rights” evolved in the past decade with streaming, social media, and short-form video platforms?
A: Well, the value of content may not have necessarily changed intrinsically. However, the way it is consumed and used has changed dramatically, and I think that’s therefore affected its commercial value. With streaming, I think many can make the argument that it somewhat saved the music industry after the CD boom. So now we have access to all this music, but, unfortunately, it’s hard to know what the lifetime streaming value of a song is, considering these streaming platforms are relatively new. I think that’s somewhat challenging.
As far as short-form content, and of course, the daunting acronym AI: it’s all kind of in flux. Vydia is a member of a lot of organizations that advocate for rights holders to help make sure that the intrinsic value of the content aligns with its actual commercial value.
Q: In your experience, what role does collaboration play in achieving favorable rights agreements?
A: I think in general if someone is contributing to the copyright, they need to be involved in the share of those rights, whether they get bought out in a work-for-hire or whether they get a share of publishing and so on. A lot of parties don’t necessarily know who all the contributors are because they’re using content as part of their new work, and they may not know who those other rights holders are. It’s important to acknowledge that if you didn’t actually put pen to paper, it’s important to figure out who those other rights holders are and make sure that they’re cleared. Overcommunicating with your collaborators and knowing who they are is the hardest part.
There are so many times when splits aren’t agreed upon, and it creates somewhat of a copyright mess. When you’re making the work, although it’s a boring thing to do, it can really set you up for a lot of success if you have all the contributors on the same page. You can likely earn one dollar much faster if everything’s agreed upon.
Q: How do you strike the balance between protecting creators’ interests and meeting business objectives?
A: I think this is really challenging, and a lot of this is where we try and rely on our partners and clients to help in facilitating that balance. We’re always trying to protect our rights holders and our clients’ content, and generally, all the actions we take are in that realm.
However, there could be issues with content. We’re trying to protect not only Vydia and its employees, but also our clients from any potential legal liabilities.
When we get notified of any issues, we take those pretty seriously. It might seem like we’re doing that in Vydia’s interest, and although we are, we’re also doing that in our client’s interest to make sure that they’re protected if there could be any potential issues.
Q: You also sit on Vydia’s executive leadership team. What steps did you take earlier in your career to strengthen your leadership abilities and position yourself for this level of responsibility?
A: A few things. I think relationships are really important. The people around me give me the trust to provide my opinions and input to help create an impact. Creating those relationships was really helpful for me to go from point A to point B, as far as coming into Vydia and rising in the ranks.
I also think that Vydia’s Founder & CEO, Roy Lammana, had a really concerted effort to provide resources for us all to get better, and I benefited from that. The book club we did a while ago was really helpful. I’ve also done management training, coaching, and peer coaching with other colleagues around the industry. A lot of that kind of stuff has been really helpful. I also think my general personality is to try to assume that I’m wrong and ask a lot of questions, and know that I’m learning as I’m going. It’s been really helpful to keep an open mindset as I grow.
Q: As the streaming landscape grows more complex, what excites you most about the opportunities and challenges in shaping the future of rights management?
A: A couple of things! I think artist tools are getting a lot better, putting the power back in our clients’ hands to help promote their content, and giving them similar tools to others in the distribution space is certainly really helpful as far as rights management is concerned.
Technology has allowed an easier way to identify potential issues, and I think that protects rights holders both on the usage side and the protection side. As that technology continues to get better and as AI potentially helps to get that to be better, we’ll be in a potentially cleaner landscape. That may be wishful thinking, but that kind of stuff excites me. I also think a lot of the advocacy organizations like the NMPA and others advocating for songwriters’ rights have proved to be helpful, and I think that’s something that will continue.
Q: What advice would you offer to someone beginning their career with aspirations in Rights and Content? Additionally, are there any books, podcasts, or industry resources you recommend for staying informed about developments in rights management?
A: My advice would be to do a lot of reading and get your hands on as many deals as possible. Understand what kind of lawsuits are out there and the impact of what we do in rights management.
When you read a lawsuit, it’s escalated to the highest point. We do a lot of things to try and avoid that moment on both sides. Being apprised of what those things look like when they escalate is really important.
As far as resources are concerned, I’d definitely recommend staying on top of the music news publications like Music Business Worldwide and Billboard. And The Writer Is… is a great podcast that can help contextualize a lot of complex material, too. And although it is controversial at times, I’d also recommend subscribing to Bob Lefsetz’s newsletter.
Q: Representing Vydia on the board of the Music Fights Fraud Alliance, in what ways do you see artificial streams complicate royalty distribution and rights management?
A: Artificial streams and fraud deflate how royalties are paid. For the most part, royalties are paid out of a pool of money. If the denominator of that pool is much larger based on fake streams, that hurts everyone in the pool, not just certain artists. That’s a problem.
As far as rights management, artificial streaming comes into play in a lot of ways. Looking generally at fraud, and those using poorly generated AI content or other people’s content as their own is still considered fraud and not exactly artificial streaming, where there are bots streaming the music on other platforms. That hurts rights holders because they’re not being cleared for uses of their work, and the whole point of the copyright system is to protect the creative work so that it can be monetized and encourage continued creation. The whole idea is that our culture needs art, and so the copyright system is there to protect creators so that they are incentivized to make that.
Q: Lastly, if you had to choose one song to be the soundtrack to your journey, what would it be and why?
A: “Under The Sea,” from The Little Mermaid. For me, this song is about not getting distracted by what could be and appreciating what you have currently. So far in my career, I’ve had to problem-solve using limited resources, which has been a great exercise in creativity and management. I also think it’s important to be grateful for what you have and not take anything too seriously.
About Matt: Matt Skiba is the Vice President of Rights and Content at Vydia, where he brings over a decade of music industry experience to the company. After receiving his MA in Music Business from New York University, Skiba worked in publishing administration and infringement management at the largest family-owned independent music publisher, The Royalty Network, Inc. Skiba has been working at Vydia since 2018 and provides expertise and empowering leadership within both the Rights Management and Content Operations departments. He is also a member of the MLC’s Dispute Resolution Committee and a board member of the Music Fights Fraud Alliance.
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