It was set up in 1981 as an international non governmental organization, to defend audiovisual producers' copyrights, especially in the area of cable TV and similar retransmission means. Its members are worldwide audiovisual producers associations, representing some 7,000 rightsholders.

As a neutral and non-profit institution, AGICOA acts in a growing international market which represents today more than 35 countries to collect and distribute payments of royalties to producers of audiovisual works and/or rightsholders. Whenever there is a retransmission of an audiovisual work by cable or by similar means, a remuneration may be due. It is AGICOA's task to obtain payment of these royalties from the operators and to redistribute them to the rightsholders entitled thereto, after proper data processing based on TV reports of the countries involved.

Registration at AGICOA is free. It finances its services through the deduction of a fee of below 10% of royalties collected. In other words, there is no client investment, only returns.