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While there are three licensing agencies in the United States, there also others that operate internationally. The U.S. event planner/manager generally deals with two of these agencies, ASCAP and BMI. SESAC, the smallest of the three United States performing rights organizations, and their licenses cover the venue, where the music will be played, as opposed to the event, so meeting or event planners generally do not have to obtain a license from this organization. Bill Lee of SESAC said, “A SESAC license is required for meetings, trade shows, and expositions. A key difference between SESAC and the other Performing Rights Organizations is that SESAC licenses the premises where the event is taking place. If the premise does not have a SESAC license, the event coordinator would need to obtain a SESAC license. The license would be determined by the type and location of the event. I would suggest that meeting and event planners contact SESAC to confirm that the premise has a SESAC license, and if it is not licensed, we would arrange a license at that time.”
Quick Facts About Music Licensing
Many event and meeting planners are not familiar with the laws of music licensing. Here are some basic facts that you will need to know when licensing your music, a guide to what and when to license music, and some frequently asked questions about the topic.
• Licenses are issued on a blanket basis for meetings or events.
• Neither agency can deny a request for a license.
• Terms and conditions can be negotiated separately. You are not required to use the blanket license agreements.
• You would be wise to negotiate a separate and individual license for mega events, such as an inaugural event
• Besides the three PROs, there are other licensing companies that are privately owned For example, both Andrew Lloyd Weber and Billy Joel privately license their own music.
• For films, you must seek a synchronization right from the composers, then license the product to show the film.
• Jukeboxes must be licensed as well. You will notice a sticker on the side of a jukebox if it has been licensed.
• Music playing on your business phone when a client is put on hold is subject to licensing.
• You do not need to log the tunes the band or DJ is performing.
• The licensing fee is based on the total amount of people who come in contact with your music, except for the ASCAP and BMI Special Events Licenses.
• The licenses include mechanical music.
• One set fee will cover an entire event (up to 14 days maximum) and reflects a per person charge.
• You make payments by self-reporting your guest list. ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC however, reserve the right to audit at their discretion.
• Licenses are tax deductible
What does ASCAP actually do?
ASCAP licenses the right to perform songs and musical works created and owned by songwriters, composers, lyricists, and music publishers who are ASCAP members and members of foreign performing rights organizations who are represented by ASCAP in the United States.
According to ASCAP, “It is impossible for individual composers and publishers to monitor the hundreds of thousands of businesses that use music. It would be equally difficult, time consuming, and expensive for business owners to locate and negotiate with all the owners of the music that might be used. There is a simple, fast, and reasonably priced alternative. Through ASCAP, in one simple transaction, businesses can obtain the right to perform the millions of songs created or owned by over 140,000 of America's and hundreds of thousands of the world's best songwriters, composers, lyricists, and publishers. Founded in 1914, and still owned by and managed for its writer and publisher members, ASCAP grants businesses the permission they need to perform music publicly. The money collected is distributed, after deducting operating costs, directly to ASCAP members and to affiliated foreign performing rights organizations for their members.”
BMI is a non-profit, performing rights organization recognized under the U.S. copyright law to license businesses and other organizations to publicly perform intellectual property in the form of copyrighted music. BMI grants this permission on behalf of its more than 300,000 affiliated songwriters, composers, and music publishers through music performance agreements. They offer businesses legal access to approximately 4.5 million musical works through just one agreement. That saves you the time and expense of contacting each and every songwriter, composer, or music publisher for permission to use their work.
- What doesn’t ASCAP, BMI, or SESAC license?
The three major licensing agencies are collectively called Public Rights Organizations or PROs.
- They do not license "dramatic" rights, sometimes called "grand" rights. Their members who write musical plays, operas, or ballet scores deal directly with those who want to perform their works "dramatically." The PROs license does authorize non-dramatic performances of songs from dramatic productions. For example, their respective bar/nightclub license authorizes a piano-bar performance of an individual song from a Broadway show.
- The Public Rights Organizations do not license the right to record music on a CD or tape or as part of a multi-media or an audio-visual work such as a motion picture, video, or television program. Writers or publishers license those rights, known in the music industry as mechanical and synchronization (or "synch" rights.
- The PROs do not license the right to print copies of musical works, nor do they license rights to make adaptations or arrangements.
- They do not license rights for recording artists, musicians, singers, or record labels. However, artists or musicians who are songwriters can become members. The PROs license the performance rights for the music of their members.
--How much money is generated by ASCAP and BMI?
In 1998, ASCAP had over 40,242 writers and 18,727 publishers that collected $508 million on behalf of its members, 25% of which was from foreign sources. BMI, on the other hand, which represents about 140,000 writers and 60,000 publishers, collected $455 million in the same year, with approximately 23% of total receipts from foreign sources.
- Our event is not open to the general public. Are we exempt?
No. Even though your event is open only to select individuals, you must secure both an ASCAP and a BMI Music Performance Agreement. The United States Copyright Law defines a public place as any place where persons outside of "a normal circle of family and friends" are gathered. In other words, even though your event is closed to the general public, your attendees, do form a public. Therefore, exhibitor booths, general stage presentations, cocktail parties and banquets, as well as other ambient music use, require the appropriate music licensing.
- Is the band or DJ we hire for company events responsible for licensing?
No. It is the corporation's responsibility to secure music licensing since it is the company itself that is authorizing the performance. DJs and bands do not license directly with any of the PROs.
- Is permission to play music publicly included in the cost when I purchase a tape or CD?
No. Although most people buy tapes and CDs thinking they are now their property to use as they wish, there is a distinction in the law between owning a copy of the CD and owning the songs on the CD. There is also a difference between a private performance of copyrighted music and a public performance of that music. Most people recognize that purchasing a CD does not give them the right to make copies of it to give or to sell to others. The record company and music publishers retain those rights. Similarly, the music on the CDs and tapes still belongs to the songwriter, composer, or music publisher of the work. When you buy a tape or CD the purchase price covers only your private listening use, similar to the home use of home videos. Once you decide to play these tapes or CDs in your business, it becomes a public performance. Songwriters, composers, and music publishers have the exclusive right of public performance for their musical works under the U.S. copyright law. Therefore, any public performance requires permission from the copyright owner, or ASCAP or BMI, if it is ASCAP or BMI-affiliated music. Since in many instances the songwriter or composer is different than the artist performing the work, approximately 50%, and in some cases as much as 75%, of a songwriter's income comes from the public performance of their work. This makes it a critical component of the songwriter's income and is what enables them to continue to create music for use in your business. With an ASCAP and BMI Music Performance Agreement, you can publicly perform all ASCAP and BMI-affiliated music.
- What Happens To The Fees I Pay Under My Music Performance Agreement?
Since BMI operates on a non-profit basis, all music licensing fees, less BMI's operating expenses, go directly to the BMI songwriters, composers, and music publishers whose music you are performing. Currently, 83 cents out of every dollar of your licensing fee goes to BMI’s affiliated copyright owners.
- Our event is in a facility that has an ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC Music Performance Agreement. Is it covered under their agreement?
No, no, and yes. When a facility such as a hotel or convention center leases space to an outside organization for any of its meetings, conventions, trade shows, or expositions, the facility’s Music Performance Agreement does not cover music used at those events, except in the case of SESAC. More specifically, the ASCAP and BMI hotel agreement does not include leased areas of the hotel where meetings, conventions, or trade shows take place. Even though the hotel may supply the music to any of the meeting or convention areas, the presenter of the event is still responsible for licensing the music, whether performed live or recorded.
- What are synchronization rights and how are they different from mechanical rights and performing rights?
A “synch” license is the form of permission that authorizes the mechanical reproduction- of a musical composition, accompanied by a motion picture or other audio visual work, for use in connection with motion picture theatrical performance and television broadcast (Kohn, 1998). Synchronization rights are rights granted by copyright owners to those wishing to synchronize their musical compositions to visual images on film or tape. This type of musical performance is often employed by trade show vendors to enhance the presentation of their products. If a trade show vendor employs synchronization, by presenting a video, for example, he or she must also obtain performance rights to perform that synchronized music for the public (meeting, convention, trade show, or exposition attendees). Synchronization rights should not be confused with mechanical rights. Mechanical rights are granted by a music publisher, usually to a record company, to record and release a specific composition at an agreed-upon fee for each unit manufactured and sold.
- Does someone actually own a musical composition?
Yes. Unless the age of a composition has allowed it to enter the public domain, musical compositions, like other copyrighted material,l are the legal property of their creators. When your meeting or trade show plans to use music – either from tapes, records, CDs, audio-visual presentations, live entertainment, or even radio, you must first obtain permission from the copyright owners. But the time and expense of negotiating for the use of each of the songs you or your exhibitors might play, which could easily amount to thousands of songs over the course of a year, would be an unaffordable burden.
- I bought the record or sheet music. Why do I need permission to perform the music?
Copyright owners enjoy a number of different rights including performance rights, print rights, and recording rights. Rental or purchase of sheet music or the purchase of a record does not authorize its public performance.
- I want to record or videotape a song or record. Do I need permission, and how do I obtain it?
If you want to make copies of, or re-record an existing record, tape or CD, you will probably need the permission of both the music publisher and the record label. A music publisher owns the song, that is, the words and music, and a record company owns the "sound recording," that is, what you hear, the artist singing, the musicians playing, the entire production. If you plan to hire your own musicians and singers and create an original recording of a copyrighted song, then you need the permission of only the music publisher.
- How can we find out more about the musical works in the ASCAP and BMI catalogs?
For ASCAP visit: http://ascap.com
For BMI visit: http://repertoire.bmi.com
The best advice is to do the right thing and protect yourself and your event. When providing music for your guests you should sign a license with the PROs and pay their respective rates. Information is available at their repective websites.
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Industry News: Expert Day at MeCo: Hiring Headline Entertainment, Part 2
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featured artist: The Peking Acrobats
 Mark
Sonder, CSEP is the Chief Entertainment Officer of Mark Sonder
Productions, an award-winning leading national entertainment agency designing
headline talent and production services for facilities,
corporations and associations. In addition, Sonder sits on
the faculty of the University
of Nevada at Las Vegas (UNLV), The George Washington University, Stratford
University, and Northern Virginia Community College. Event
Entertainment and Production is the book published by
Wiley authored by Sonder.
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