Bildrecht GmbH Gesellschaft zur Wahrnehmung visueller Rechte

What Bildrecht GmbH Gesellschaft zur Wahrnehmung visueller Rechte does

Bildrecht GmbH Gesellschaft zur Wahrnehmung visueller Rechte is Austria's statutory collecting society (Verwertungsgesellschaft) for visual arts copyright, operating under state supervision per the Verwertungsgesellschaftengesetz 2016. Founded as Verein VBK in 1977 and restructured into its current GmbH form in 2009 (renamed Bildrecht GmbH in September 2013), the Vienna-based organization is wholly owned by the non-profit Verein Bildrecht and represents approximately 8,700-10,000 Austrian visual artists — including painters, photographers, sculptors, architects, choreographers, designers, illustrators, cartoonists, and filmmakers — plus ~300,000 international artists through reciprocal agreements with sister societies (VG Bild-Kunst Germany, ADAGP France, DACS UK, and others via CISAC, EVA, IFRRO networks).

The organization's core technology is the Bildrecht Portal, an online member system for reporting work publications, downloading royalty statements, and managing membership, paired with the KünstlerInnensuche (artist search) database of represented rights holders. Bildrecht monetizes through four revenue streams, retaining ~15% on average for administration and distributing the remainder to members: (1) reproduction licensing fees for commercial use in books, magazines, newspapers, calendars, advertising, TV/film, and online; (2) broadcasting royalties from ORF and international partners; (3) Folgerecht (droit de suite) resale royalties on art market transactions above €2,500 at degressive rates from 4% to 0.25% capped at €12,500; and (4) statutory compensation schemes including library royalties, reprography fees, schoolbook fees, Speichermedienvergütung, and cable retransmission fees.

Beyond rights administration, Bildrecht operates four exhibition and cultural venues under the Bildraum brand (01 and 07 in Vienna, Bodensee in Bregenz, Studio in Vienna's Brotfabrik), runs artist residencies and art prizes (Dagmar Chobot Skulpturenpreis, viennacontemporary SOLO Award, PARALLEL VIENNA YOUNG ARTIST Award), and administers the legally mandated SKE-Fonds for social and cultural member support. The organization is led by Geschäftsführer Günter Schönberger with a lean team of approximately five employees and a five-person supervisory board.

Name

Bildrecht GmbH Gesellschaft zur Wahrnehmung visueller Rechte

Legal name

Bildrecht GmbH Gesellschaft zur Wahrnehmung visueller Rechte

Website

https://bildrecht.at

Company type

Private

Founded year

1977

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Bildrecht GmbH is Austria's statutory collecting society for visual arts copyright, managing reproduction, broadcasting, and resale royalties for ~8,700 Austrian artists and ~300,000 international rights holders, plus operating the Bildraum exhibition and residency network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Visual Arts Rights Management

NAICS

Music Publishers (512230)

SIC

Patent Owners & Lessors (6794)

akta.pro primary industry

Performing Rights Organizations (PROs) & Public Performance Licensing (MPAIAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Content Licensing (Film/TV, Clips, Stills) (MPADALAA), Royalty Auditing, Compliance & Anti-Piracy/Enforcement (MPAIAKAE)

Keywords

• Visual arts copyright
• Collective rights management
• Image licensing services
• Royalty distribution services
• Resale royalty collection

Headquarters

HQ city

Vienna

HQ country

Austria

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Licensing fees (Reproduktionsrecht): Revenue from commercial licensing of images for books, magazines, newspapers, advertising, calendars, merchandise, TV/film, and online use. Fees are collected by Bildrecht on behalf of members and distributed after deducting administrative costs (averaging 15%).
2. Broadcasting royalties (Senderecht): Annual payments from public broadcasters (ORF) and international partners via sister societies for television broadcast of visual artworks.
3. Resale royalties (Folgerecht): Statutory droit de suite royalties collected when original artworks are resold through galleries, auction houses, or art dealers. Minimum sale price €2,500. Degressive rates from 4% to 0.25% capped at €12,500 per transaction.
4. Collective compensation schemes: Statutory levies including: library royalties (Bibliothekstantieme), reprography fees, schoolbook fees, storage media fees (Speichermedienvergütung), cable retransmission fees. Collected through blanket agreements with collective partners (government, municipalities, trade associations).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Bildrecht is Austria's statutory collecting society (Verwertungsgesellschaft) for visual arts, managing reproduction rights, broadcasting rights, and resale royalties (droit de suite / Folgerecht) on behalf of approximately 8,700-10,000 Austrian visual artists. The organization negotiates blanket licensing agreements with Austrian media partners (publishers, ORF, museums), distributes semi-annual royalty payments to members, and operates cultural facilities (Bildraum exhibition spaces and an artist residency program) under Austrian copyright law.

Product overview

Bildrecht is Austria's copyright collection society (Verwertungsgesellschaft) for visual arts, operating as a unified platform offering membership services through the Bildrecht Portal, exhibition spaces (Bildraum 01, 07, Bodensee, Studio), artist residency programs, image licensing and royalty management, and various art prizes. The organization represents approximately 8,700 members and 10,000 artists through reciprocal agreements with international sister societies. Core services include copyright administration, licensing, resale rights collection, and cultural promotion via the SKE-Fonds.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Image Licensing Services (Reproduktionsrecht / Senderecht / Folgerecht) Standardized copyright licensing service covering reproduction rights (Reproduktionsrecht), broadcasting rights (Senderecht), and resale royalty collection (Folgerecht/droit de suite) on behalf of approximately 10,000 Austrian artists and 300,000 international artists via reciprocal agreements. Tariffs are categorized by medium (books, magazines, calendars, online, TV/film, advertising, posters, merchandise).
• Collective Compensation Schemes (Statutory Levies) Collection and distribution of statutory copyright compensation including library royalties, reprography fees, schoolbook fees, storage media remuneration (Speichermedienvergütung), and cable retransmission fees, distributed to member artists.
• Bildrecht Member Portal Online portal for member artists to manage their membership with Bildrecht, submit publication reports (Meldungen), download royalty statements, and view information about Bildrecht's services and licenses.
• KünstlerInnensuche (Artist Search) Publicly searchable online database enabling image users to verify whether approximately 10,000 Austrian artists and 300,000 international artists are represented by Bildrecht for reproduction rights or resale royalty claims.
• Reporting System for Royalties System enabling member artists to report their work publications in Austrian and international media, which forms the basis for royalty payments distributed twice annually.
• SKE-Fonds (Social and Cultural Fund) Statutorily mandated fund providing project grants, exhibition support, publication subsidies, and emergency assistance to member visual artists, managed by an SKE Advisory Board and financed through Bildrecht's royalty income.
• Artist-in-Residence Program (Bildraum Studio) Residency program at Bildraum Studio offering national and international artists workspace across disciplines including painting, photography, sculpture, installation, performance, media art, design, architecture, and art science, currently fully booked until early 2028.
• Bildraum 01 Exhibition space in Vienna's 1st district (Strauchgasse 2) focusing on photography, graphics, and drawing. Operated as a cultural facility of Bildrecht, open Tuesday to Friday with seasonal hours.
• Bildraum 07 Exhibition space at Burggasse 7-9 in Vienna's 7th district, dedicated to promoting the younger generation of artists. Operated by Bildrecht as a cultural facility.
• Bildraum Bodensee Exhibition space in Bregenz (Seestraße 5, former post building) serving as a platform for artists from western Austria and as a regional branch for Bildrecht operations. Open Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.

Quantifiable outcome

• €6.2 billion annual economic contribution of Austrian visual arts sector
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core, key and minor.

• VG Bild-Kunst (Germany)coreTechnology or IntegrationReciprocal representation agreement with German visual arts copyright society for cross-border rights management and royalty collection between Austria and Germany.
• ADAGP (France)coreTechnology or IntegrationReciprocal representation agreement with French authors' society for visual and graphic arts. Enables cross-border licensing and royalty distribution.
• DACS (UK)coreTechnology or IntegrationReciprocal agreement with Design and Artists Copyright Society for UK-Austria rights representation.
• IFRRO (International Federation of Reproduction Rights)coreTechnology or IntegrationInternational federation of reprography rights organizations. Bildrecht joined in 2015, enabling international coordination of reproduction rights.
• CISACcoreTechnology or IntegrationInternational confederation of authors' and composers' societies. Bildrecht joined in 1979 for global rights coordination.
• EVA (European Visual Artists)coreTechnology or IntegrationEuropean umbrella organization for visual arts copyright societies. Bildrecht member since 1997.
• Ars Electronica FestivalkeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-term cooperation for exhibitions at Bildraum venues during the Ars Electronica Festival in Linz. Extended to Bildraum Bodensee in 2022.
• Tricky Women/Tricky RealitieskeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual animation film festival partnership. Bildraum 07 hosts exhibitions in conjunction with the festival celebrating women and gender-queer animation artists.
• Vienna Design WeekminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCooperation with Vienna's design festival for cultural programming and design-focused exhibitions.
• Foto Wien / FOTO ARSENAL WIENminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership supporting Vienna photography festival and programs. Bildrecht presents photography exhibitions through its Bildraum venues.
• Foto Gacilly Baden PhotominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPhotography festival partnership supporting photographic arts.
• designaustriaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerSupport for Joseph Binder Award and Romulus-Candea-Preis through sponsorship and prize contributions.
• Traklhaus SalzburgminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCultural institution partnership for visual arts programming.
• das weisse hausminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerVienna art space partnership for cultural programming.
• ORF (Austrian Broadcasting Corporation)keyChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBlanket agreement for television broadcast of visual artworks. Major collective licensing contract covering ORF's use of Bildrecht members' works.
• Austrian newspapers and publisherskeyChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBlanket agreements with Austrian print media for reproduction rights. Major collective licensing contracts covering newspapers' and publishers' image use.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves12 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• VG Bild-Kunst: Germany's collecting society for visual arts copyright, the largest such society in the German-speaking world and Bildrecht's primary reciprocal partner for cross-border rights management. Operates an identical structural model (Verwertungsgesellschaft) for a larger member base.
• ADAGP: France's collecting society for visual arts and graphic works, a direct functional peer with which Bildrecht maintains reciprocal representation. Operates the same collective licensing and royalty distribution model across photography, fine art, and graphic arts.
• DACS (Design and Artists Copyright Society): United Kingdom's visual artists' rights organization providing collective licensing, royalty collection, and pay-backs for visual creators. A direct peer under reciprocal agreement with Bildrecht, serving as the UK equivalent.
• ProLitteris: Switzerland's cooperative collecting society for visual arts, photography, and film, with a comparable small-market, member-governed structure. Provides an analogous role in a neighboring German-speaking market.
• SIAE: Italy's broad collecting society covering visual arts among other author categories, including reproduction rights, broadcast royalties, and resale rights (droit de suite). Comparable statutory monopoly structure in another EU member state.
• Beeldrecht: Netherlands' visual artists' copyright organization, structurally identical to Bildrecht as a collecting society for image rights with a similar small-staff operating model and statutory mandate.
• KUVASTO: Finland's collecting society for visual artists, handling reproduction rights, resale royalties, and collective licensing on behalf of Finnish visual artists. Closely comparable in scale and function within the Nordic market.
• BONO: Norway's visual arts collecting society managing reproduction rights for photographers, illustrators, and visual artists. Comparable single-country, small-team collective rights management organization with similar tariff structures.
• Pictoright: Netherlands-based collective licensing organization specifically focused on visual works and image rights, structurally analogous to Bildrecht's core Reproduktionsrecht and Folgerecht activities.

Broad incumbents

• GEMA: Germany's much larger collecting society, primarily for music but also with rights management functions. Provides a structural precedent for Bildrecht's collective management model and is a co-member of CISAC and IFRRO.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/bildraum
• Instagraminstagram.com/bildrecht_bildraum

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bildrecht GmbH Gesellschaft zur Wahrnehmung visueller Rechte