Publishers’ Licensing Services (PLS) has provided rights and licensing services to the publishing industry since 1981.

A non-profit collective management organisation, owned and directed by the four main UK publishing trade associations, our primary role is to maximise the value of published content, enable its legitimate re-use, and protect copyright through effective collective licensing, permissions and rights management services.

PLS represents over 4,500 publishers and collected and distributed more than £48 million in 2024-25.

PLS provides a range of rights management services and resources, including:

• PLS Collect provides publishers with direct access to all of the benefits of collective licensing through a simple user-friendly platform.
• PLSclear is an award-winning permissions platform designed to save publishers time and reduce the often admin-heavy processes associated with handling permissions requests.
• Access to Research makes it easy, free and convenient for anyone to access world-leading published academic research in libraries across the UK.
• Rights & Licensing Hub is a free online resource for anyone wishing to better understand how good rights management can improve a publishers’ revenue and profitability.