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A period name is the year followed by your record company’s accounting period. 2025M8 is the eighth monthly period of 2025, which covers August 2025. The letter tells you how often your record company accounts royalties: Your record company accounts on one frequency, so the letter is normally the same on every statement you receive. A record company that accounts quarterly gives you four statements a year, named Q1 to Q4.

What the name doesn’t tell you

The name is the period the figures were accounted in, not the month each stream or sale happened. Stores report to your record company after the fact, so a period usually contains sales that were played or bought earlier. If you need to know which sales went into a period, ask your record company.

Why the order can look wrong

Periods are listed newest first, in the order your record company created them rather than by name. If they go back and run an older period after a newer one, it appears at the top of your list.

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