Manager, Global Rights

Job Description

The Manager, Global Rights manages the licensing and acquisition of third party owned rights for A+E programming content by negotiating favorable fees and license terms for music, films, photos, talent and other IP. The Manager will work with the Director to formulate a licensing strategy to benefit the brands by securing clearances across a variety of multi-media platforms. This position's focus will be to negotiate fees, draft license agreements and finalize all deals for both new programming and renewal of expired programming to ensure that content is available for new business/sales opportunities and programming initiatives. This role will work closely with Production teams (internal and external), Programming, Marketing, Content Sales, International, Digital, Legal and Finance. The Manager will work independently to analyze legal agreements for licensed third-party materials and interpret the contracts under the current Rights landscape.

This position will also perform budgeting responsibilities of detailed renewal cost breakdowns and oversee the full lifecycle of the Rights Renewals process. These actions require strong organizational and follow-through skills as well the ability to make risk assessments related to clearance status. This role will be required to renew a large volume of content and will ensure content needs are met for many platforms including the on-air linear feed, multiplatform, digital SVOD platforms including History Vault and Crime 360, and for off-net distribution with both Domestic and International sales partners.

MORE ABOUT WHAT YOU'LL DO:
• A+E is currently operating on a remote basis.
• Negotiate favorable rates/terms and acquire rights from the copyright owners of film, photographs, music, record labels, music publishers, books, magazines, and more.
• Draft and review agreements to conform with Network's required terms and standards.
• Identify and analyze risks associated with rights and licensed materials and re-use parameters.
• Research copyright and trademark information for owners of footage, music, photos, etc. and prepares clearance requests.
• Analyze expired/rights deficient licenses across all brands and calculate renewal estimates based on initial rights granted and future exploitation potential.
• Provide forecasting and cost analysis for expired/expiring programs and manage budget accordingly
• Track Rights Renewals and Rights Upgrades on an individual program basis and advise various business units (Programming, Scheduling, International, Content Sales and Digital) regarding content clearance status, costs, and risk assessment.
• Negotiate music sync and master recording licensing fees for marketing efforts; must have solid knowledge and experience with negotiating and licensing publishing splits.
• Maintain program inventory with a focus geared towards emerging platforms (AVOD, FVOD, SVOD).
• Re-assess program rights availabilities for library content as new technologies come into play
• Support Director in day-to-day business including legal research, rights availability queries and music and media clearance requests.
• Present to and meet with various business units on an ad-hoc basis, as new business opportunities arise, and Rights and Renewals education is required.
• Utilize Rights Management systems to ensure Rights information is entered in a timely fashion and populating correctly into various Rights Availability Reports and Sales databases.
• Facilitate clearance requests for a variety of new productions and clearance projects including long and short form programming for linear and digital platforms, promos, in house productions, and more.

YOUR STORY: [+BEHAVIORS] (what you need to have)
• 8+ years' required experience actively negotiating and acquiring rights of third Party owned material for a television, media or music company; negotiation experience required.
• Existing strong relationships and connections in the third-party content business is a must – film companies, music publishers, record labels, stock houses, footage agencies, news agencies, studios, etc. – with a firm grasp of licensing standards and associated fees.
• Detail oriented and the ability to handle a large volume of work and to perform daily duties autonomously and efficiently.
• This role is service and client facing, requiring high touch communications. Excellent interpersonal and written communication skills are required to be successful in this role.
• A deep understanding of complex Rights grants and how they impact overall program exploitation ability on a global, worldwide landscape.
• Strong negotiation skills with an ability to utilize pre-existing relationships in the third-party licensing world to find opportunities for renewal cost savings.
• Tech-savvy working in databases and rights management systems.
• Excellent skills in Word, Excel, PowerPoint.
• Experience and knowledge of online copyright research tools for IP ownership.
• The candidate will have a four-year college degree or equivalent in relevant work experience.

Jobcode: Reference SBJ-rzke7n-18-191-216-163-42 in your application.