CLA Welcomes Monisha Shah as new Co-Chair

The Copyright Licensing Agency (CLA) is pleased to welcome Monisha Shah as the new Co-Chair of the CLA Board. Monisha takes on this role through her appointment as Chair of the Publishers’ Licensing Services (PLS) Board, effective 1 June.

Monisha brings a wealth of experience across the creative, legal, and technology sectors, with a long-standing commitment to public service and cultural institutions. She currently holds a number of high profile roles including Board Director and Council Member at the Advertising Standards Authority, Chair of the King’s Counsel Appointments Board, and Chair of Wikimedia UK. She is also a trustee of both the Art Fund and the Royal Collection Trust.

Her previous Board experience includes roles at the Office for Students (2018 – 2022), Donmar Warehouse (2018 – 2019), and the Ofcom Content Board (2017 – 2023), as well as trusteeships at the Foundling Museum, the National Gallery, and the Tate. Monisha was formerly Chair of the Board at Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Performance and an Independent Member of the Committee on Standards in Public Life. Her early career included over a decade at BBC Worldwide (now BBC Studios), where she served as Director of Sales for Emerging Markets and sat on several international joint venture boards.

As Co-Chair of CLA, Monisha joins the CLA Board at a time of rapid technological change, as we continue to explore how collective licensing can support fair and sustainable use of creative content in the age of artificial intelligence.

Monisha is succeeding Rosie Glazebrook whose term comes to an end on 31 May and will serve on the CLA Board as Co-Chair alongside Kit Fan.

Monisha Shah said:

“I care deeply about fair value for intellectual property rights. Licensing matters because it supports a flourishing creative economy. It ensures access to users and allows for sustainable innovation for creators and publishers. I am delighted to join the CLA Board at this time of transformational change presented by new technologies to maintain the UK’s ‘gold standard’ copyright framework.”

Mat Pfleger, CLA CEO said:

“I would like to thank Rosie for her significant contribution to CLA over the last six years and welcome Monisha as the new Co-Chair at CLA. Her deep experience across the creative, legal, and tech sectors will be hugely valuable as we navigate the opportunities and challenges of AI. Her leadership will help strengthen our work to ensure that collective licensing continues to support content creators and rights holders in a fast-changing digital environment.”

Kit Fan, Creator Co-Chair added:

“I look forward to working with Monisha as CLA Co-Chair. As we respond to rapid developments in areas like AI, it’s vital that our members work together to ensure CLA continues to deliver effective licensing solutions to remunerate creators and rightsholders.”