NLA Media Access

Turning copyright into revenue

Every day, companies copy and share your journalism. NLA Media Access turns that use into licensed, recurring revenue for publishers.

When companies monitor their media coverage, circulate press cuttings, or share press mentions on their websites, intranets or newsletters, they are using your content. Copyright licensing ensures that use is legal, compliant and paid for.

UK publishers collectively invest more than £1bn each year in journalism. Copyright licensing is one of the most effective ways to ensure that value is recognised and returned at scale.

Copyright and the law

Copying published content without permission is a breach of UK copyright law, whether the use is internal or public facing. Companies can either obtain permission directly from publishers or secure legal cover through an annual copyright licence. NLA licensing provides a simple, efficient route to lawful use while ensuring you receive the royalties generated.

Working on behalf of publishers

NLA is a publisher-owned copyright licensing organisation, established in 1996 by seven national newspaper companies and regulated by the Intellectual Property Office.

Today, NLA represents more than 14,000 newspaper, magazine, newswire and website brands. After operating costs, all revenue collected is distributed back to publishers. In the last year alone, over £50m was returned to rights holders.

NLA operates as part of your commercial and rights infrastructure, protecting your content at scale and maximising its value.

Beyond copyright licensing

NLA also provides services designed to reduce costs, improve control and unlock additional revenue.

• Database services: Controlled access to print and online content for the media monitoring sector, supporting compliance, accurate measurement of copying, and reducing the need for website scraping.
• ClipShare: A research tool providing access to archived news content dating back to 2006, covering more than 125 million articles.
• Copyright protection: Text Tracker identifies and supports takedown of scraped or republished content. In 2026, this will expand to include bot detection and advisory services.
• Agent for Publishers: Management of text aggregator and third-party syndication agreements, including content supply, reporting and royalty collection.
• Newsworthy: A marketplace enabling PR professionals to access publishers’ unique readership data.

Don’t miss out

Your content is already being relied on every day. NLA ensures that use is licensed, compliant and commercially returned to you.

To maximise the value of your published content, contact the Publisher Services team at publisherservices@nla.co.uk