Charles Caldas is CEO of global rights body Merlin, the virtual fifth major, representing the world's most important set of independent music rights. Merlin seeks to ensure its members have effective access to new and emerging revenue streams and that their rights are appropriately valued and protected.

Since commencing operations in May 2008, Merlin has struck deals with digital services including Spotify, Google Music, Rdio, Zvooq, MySpace Music, YouTube, Simfy, Slacker, Muve Music, and Eircom. Merlin has also achieved settlements for its members with Grooveshark and XM Satellite radio.

A global organization, Merlin’s member labels represent the mst commercially significant basket of rights outside of those held by the major labels, with reported digital market shares of between 10 and 12% in major music markets. Most recently, streaming service Spotify publicly announced that Merlin's repertoire represented over 10% of the usage on its service.