The Royalties Module, the latest of Molten Cloud's three powerful modules, marks a significant advancement in film and TV operations. For the first time, industry professionals have access to a comprehensive business solution that seamlessly integrates operations from end to end. By combining rights, royalties, and content management into one unified platform, Molten Cloud’s Royalties tool offers a solution that exceeds the capabilities of existing technologies.
But just how straightforward is managing royalties on Molten Cloud? Let's explore the process.
Typical Workflow: In a typical royalty calculation workflow, the finance team at a film distribution company, for example, receives quarterly revenue reports from all streaming platforms they distribute to. Each platform provides revenue reports in unique formats, containing hundreds to thousands of data points across all relevant titles. The finance team must normalize all these lines of data to compile the revenue information into a single sheet, which is necessary for the subsequent calculation step. This normalization often involves manual copy-pasting and data manipulation in complex spreadsheets, a time-consuming and tedious task.
Molten Cloud: On Molten Cloud, this process is simplified to a drag-and-drop action. Multiple royalty reports from different streaming platforms can be uploaded simultaneously. Molten Cloud processes the reports, automatically mapping revenue data to the titles and contracts in your library. Within minutes, the mapping is ready for review. Any mappings that the system could not complete—such as when a title is translated into another language or when a contract is missing key data—are presented for review one at a time. Once you assign the correct mapping, the system remembers your choices for future reports. The more revenue reports you ingest, the faster the process becomes. In some cases, we’ve seen revenue reports ingested and normalized in just minutes, transforming a weeks-long process into a matter of minutes.
Typical Workflow: After normalizing revenue data into one massive spreadsheet, the next step is calculation. This requires complex formulas that draw on information from both the normalized revenue data and the deal structures of your contracts with each streaming platform, as well as the contracts you hold with licensors. This is another enormous task that is both laborious and error-prone.
Molten Cloud: This is where the true power of Molten Cloud shines. Because Molten Cloud is a deeply integrated platform that maintains pristine data conditions and powerful mapping capabilities, royalty calculations can be performed with the click of a button. It’s that simple.
Typical Workflow: After the hard work of normalizing data and performing calculations, the next step is formatting the results into various reports for internal and external use. This may include reports that separate royalties by licensor, by title, or by contract, requiring more time with Excel spreadsheets.
Molten Cloud: Within minutes of calculating royalties, Molten Cloud exports your royalty reports to a comprehensive spreadsheet, containing individual reports divided by various required formats, including by licensor, title, and contract. With powerful mapping and extremely clean data, you can ensure the accuracy of your royalty calculations.
Anyone who has struggled with the mammoth task of royalty calculations will understand the significance of this level of automation and efficiency. We understand your pain and won’t blame you if you cry a little. Royalty management has been an enormous challenge for the industry, making comprehensive streaming monetization unfeasible for many. We saw this challenge and decided to tackle it head-on, turning Molten Cloud into a 360-degree business tool with integrated Rights, Royalties, and Content Management for seamless end-to-end operations.
According to Ethan Shvartzman, Molten Cloud’s Head of Product:
"Our success comes from listening to our customers and truly understanding what they need, want, and why they want it. Equally important is knowing what isn't necessary or wanted. This valuable customer feedback, combined with our past experience with similar systems, has been a tremendous asset. It has allowed us to focus on the essentials and ensure they are functioning exceptionally well. This foundation gave us a strong platform to build from."
If you’re interested in seeing the platform in action, we invite you to schedule a 1:1 demo. Discover how Molten Cloud can transform your royalty management process, saving you time and ensuring accuracy.
