Suissimage
Swiss non-profit cooperative managing collective audiovisual copyright for screenwriters, directors, and producers, collecting royalties from broadcasters, streaming platforms, and other users across Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1981
- HeadquartersBern, Switzerland
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
Suissimage firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Suissimage
- Legal name
- Schweizerische Genossenschaft für Urheberrechte an audiovisuellen Werken
- Website
- https://suissimage.ch
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1981
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Swiss non-profit cooperative managing collective audiovisual copyright for screenwriters, directors, and producers, collecting royalties from broadcasters, streaming platforms, and other users across Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Suissimage industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Collective Rights Management for Audiovisual Works
- NAICS
- Music Publishers (51223), Music Publishers (512230)
- SIC
- Patent Owners & Lessors (6794)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Publishing Administration (Catalog Admin, Global Subpublishing) (MPAIABAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Global Rights Representation & Sub-Publishing/Reciprocal Collection Services (MPAIAKAI), Performance Rights Administration (PRO Affiliation, Cue Sheet/Setlist Processing) (MPAIABAE), Public Performance/Neighboring Rights for AV Uses (Cue Sheet & Reporting Services) (MPAIALAK), Contracting, Licensing & Rights Management (Music/Performance Releases) (HSACAHAM)
Keywords
Where Suissimage is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Bern
- HQ country
- Switzerland
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
Suissimage business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Collective Rights Management Royalties: Suissimage collects royalties from users of audiovisual content (TV broadcasters, cable networks, streaming services, public screenings) based on negotiated tariffs. 10% of revenue is allocated to the Cultural Foundation and Solidarity Foundation, while 90% is distributed to individual rights holders. Administrative costs are less than 4%.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Various tariff categories based on usage type |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels3 records
Suissimage product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Suissimage collectively manages copyright and neighboring rights for Swiss audiovisual works on behalf of authors (screenwriters, directors) and rights holders (producers, distributors). It negotiates tariffs with user associations, grants licenses to users of audiovisual content (TV broadcasters, cable networks, streaming platforms, public screenings, schools, organizations), collects royalties, and distributes approximately 96 cents of every franc to rights holders (90% after retaining 10% for its Cultural and Solidarity foundations). Member services include legal advice, script deposit, and an expertise service for script authorship disputes, with international reach through 98 sister societies in 45 countries.
Product overview
Suissimage is a Swiss collective copyright management cooperative for audiovisual works, organized as a single unified service rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. The core offering centers on collective rights management for screenwriters, directors, and other audiovisual copyright holders, including legal services, script deposit, and expertise services. Digital services include a member portal for online account management. The organization operates two autonomous foundations: the Cultural Foundation (Kulturfonds) providing financial support programs for Swiss film production including automatic production support, the Momentum competition, series writing grants, and event distribution support; and the Solidarity Foundation providing social welfare support including pensions and assistance to cinema professionals in precarity. An educational program called respect ©opyright! provides copyright law instruction to secondary school students. Meeting facilities are also available to members.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Kulturfonds / Fondation culturelle Suissimage: Cultural foundation supporting Swiss film production through automatic aid programs, Momentum competition, series writing grants, and event distribution support.
- Solidaritätsfonds / Fonds de solidarité Suissimage
- respect ©opyright!
Products and services
- Script Registry (Dépôt de scénarios) Free service for depositing manuscripts and screenplays, available to Suissimage members and any concerned party, used to evidence authorship and creation date in case of disputes.
- Legal Services Legal advisory and contract-checking services for members on copyright law and cinematic production, including verification of contracts between producers and screenwriters/directors.
- Expertise Service for Script Disputes Independent expert evaluation service for script authorship disputes when multiple screenwriters work on a project; available to members and commissioning clients for a modest fee.
- Member Portal Online portal where members access services, submit work declarations, manage accounts, and communicate with Suissimage (login required).
- Conference Rooms Free meeting rooms for members and audiovisual industry associations, located near Bern and Lausanne train stations, with technical infrastructure and refreshments provided.
- Cultural Foundation - Automatic Production Support Automatic financial support from the Cultural Foundation for feature film production projects (fiction, animation, documentary) destined for theatrical release, capped at CHF 150,000 per film.
- Momentum Competition Competition from the Cultural Foundation funding audiovisual projects that must be realized immediately to capitalize on timing opportunities, with a CHF 600,000 budget for 2026.
- Series Writing Grant (Bourse pour l'écriture de séries) Joint program with SSA Cultural Fund supporting writing and development of fiction, documentary, or animation series, with an annual budget of CHF 200,000.
- Event Distribution Support Cultural Foundation support for Swiss distribution companies developing event release strategies in cinemas, with CHF 1,000 per event up to CHF 8,000 per film.
- Free Support (Freie Förderung) Occasional, targeted cultural foundation support for initiatives concerning new projects or particular events that do not fall under existing programs but present interest for the Swiss audiovisual industry.
- Solidarity Foundation Support Social support foundation established in 1989, funded by 10% of Suissimage revenues, providing welfare benefits to Swiss cinema professionals in precarity and retirement pensions to members over 62.
- respect ©opyright! Interactive educational program on copyright law for upper secondary school students, developed jointly with SUISA, ProLitteris, SSA, and SWISSPERFORM, addressing copying, editing, citing, and artificial intelligence usage.
Quantifiable outcome
- Administrative costs less than 4%, with 96 centimes per franc transferred to rights holders
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Suissimage
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Suissimage technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Suissimage partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- 98 Foreign Collective Rights SocietiescoreReciprocal agreements with 98 sister societies in 45 countries enable Suissimage to collect royalties for Swiss rights holders from foreign use and distribute royalties to foreign rights holders from Swiss use. This international network is fundamental to the organization's mandate.
- SUISA, ProLitteris, SSA, SWISSPERFORMcoreJoint operation of the respect ©opyright! educational program for secondary school students on copyright awareness, celebrating 20 years in 2026. This five-society initiative provides interactive introduction to copyright law.
- ARF/FDS, SRG SSR, SSAcoreJoint creation and support of the Expertise Service for script disputes. This service provides independent expert evaluations for conflicts regarding authorship shares in screenplays, serving members of these institutions.
- SSA (Swiss Writers Association)coreJoint cultural funding programs including the 'Bourse pour l'écriture de séries' (series writing scholarship) with annual funding of CHF 200,000, and the Momentum competition for urgent film production support.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Suissimage competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- ProLitteris: Swiss cooperative for visual arts and literary rights. Direct peer in the Swiss collective rights management ecosystem, co-developing joint educational programs with Suissimage.
- SWISSPERFORM: Swiss collective rights management society for neighboring rights (performers and producers). Direct peer in the same collective management mandate, with closely aligned structural model and joint industry initiatives.
- SUISA: Swiss cooperative for music rights management (not audiovisual). Direct peer in the same Swiss collective rights management ecosystem, jointly operating programs like respect ©opyright! and serving overlapping members.
- SSA (Société Suisse des Auteurices et Auteurs): Swiss collective rights society for audiovisual and theatrical authors. Direct peer for screenwriting and audiovisual rights; jointly runs the Series Writing Scholarship program with Suissimage.
Broad incumbents
- SACEM (Société des Auteurs, Compositeurs et Éditeurs de Musique): France's largest collective rights management organization. Comparable as a much larger European audiovisual/music rights management incumbent with broader portfolio scope and similar statutory mandate.
- PRS for Music: UK-based collective rights management organization for music and lyrics. Comparable as a major international PRO with reciprocal agreements and similar role in royalty collection and distribution.
- GEMA: Germany's largest collective rights management organization for music authors and publishers. Comparable as a major European rights society with similar statutory tariff structure and reciprocal agreement network.
- JASRAC: Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers. Comparable as a major international collective rights management organization with similar tariff negotiation and distribution model.
Regional players
- Copyright Licensing and Collecting Society (CLCS) - Copydan: Danish umbrella organization for collective rights management. Comparable as a small European peer with similar cooperative structure and reciprocity-based royalty collection model.
- Visual Copyright Society Sweden (Bildupphovsrätt): Swedish collective rights management organization for visual and audiovisual works. Comparable as a regional European counterpart in the same collective rights management field.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Suissimage social profiles
Digital presenceSuissimage financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Suissimage leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles11 records
Suissimage subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
Suissimage funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Suissimage M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Suissimage
What does Suissimage do?
Suissimage collectively manages copyright and neighboring rights for Swiss audiovisual works on behalf of authors (screenwriters, directors) and rights holders (producers, distributors). It negotiates tariffs with user associations, grants licenses to users of audiovisual content (TV broadcasters, cable networks, streaming platforms, public screenings, schools, organizations), collects royalties, and distributes approximately 96 cents of every franc to rights holders (90% after retaining 10% for its Cultural and Solidarity foundations). Member services include legal advice, script deposit, and an expertise service for script authorship disputes, with international reach through 98 sister societies in 45 countries.
Is Suissimage a public or private company?
Suissimage is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Suissimage founded?
Suissimage was founded in 1981. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Suissimage based?
Suissimage is headquartered in Bern, Switzerland, in the Europe region.
How does Suissimage make money?
One revenue line is on record: collective Rights Management Royalties.
Who are Suissimage's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are ProLitteris, SWISSPERFORM, SUISA and SSA (Société Suisse des Auteurices et Auteurs). Broad incumbents are SACEM (Société des Auteurs, Compositeurs et Éditeurs de Musique), PRS for Music, GEMA and JASRAC. Regional players are Copyright Licensing and Collecting Society (CLCS) - Copydan and Visual Copyright Society Sweden (Bildupphovsrätt).
Does Suissimage have an API?
No public API is recorded for Suissimage.
What industry is Suissimage in?
Suissimage's product category is Collective Rights Management for Audiovisual Works. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAIABAB, Publishing Administration (Catalog Admin, Global Subpublishing), with a secondary code of MPAIAKAI, Global Rights Representation & Sub-Publishing/Reciprocal Collection Services. Its NAICS code is 51223 and its SIC code is 6794.