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If you are not the IPR owner of the entire disc contents, proof of licensing of said tracks is REQUIRED! This can take the form of:
1) A copy of the license itself
2) Or the relevant parts of the license. The relevant parts will include: parties' concerned, relevant dates, repertoire or software concerned and territories covered if applicable.
3) Alternatively, a header letter, fax or e-mail confirmation of licensing from the licensor will suffice as well.
How do I obtain a license to use copyrighted music?
1. Determine as much as possible the exact song title, songwriter, music publisher, and performing rights organization for each song you are interested in using. Most CD booklets or cassette j-cards include some—if not all—of this information. Get as much of this information for each song prior to calling BMI or ASCAP.
2. Contact the appropriate performing rights organization to get the name, address and phone number of the publisher who controls the copyright to the music you are interested in using.
Index Clearance Section - ASCAP
1 Lincoln Plaza, New York, NY 10023
(212) 621-6160
Research and Information Department - BMI
320 West 57th Street, New York, NY 10019
(212) 586-2000; fax (212) 956-2059
3. Contact the publisher to obtain permission. Get the name of the person you talk with. Tell them you seek to obtain a mechanical license for a song or songs they control. Follow-up with a letter, and make sure you receive written permission before proceeding.
4. In addition to gaining the permission of the publisher, you must also receive permission from the record label on which the song was released (and occasionally the artist who recorded the song) if you are using a commercially released recording of a particular song.
5. If you are recording songs for commercial release, you are required to obtain a mechanical license from the publisher. (If you are using a song for a film, television show or commercial advertisement, you are required to obtain a synchronization license from the publisher.) The mechanical royalty rate is set by the Compulsory License Provision found in Section 115 of the U.S. Copyright Act; for the period January 1, 2002 to December 31, 2003 the statutory mechanical rate is 8.00 Cents for songs 5 minutes or less, or 1.55 Cents per minute or fraction thereof per unit sold — whichever is greater. The majority of large U.S. music publishers are members of the National Music Publishers Association. NMPA’s administrative agent, the Harry Fox Agency, is available to grant mechanical and synchronization licenses for its publisher clients. For more information, contact:
Indexing Department
National Music Publishers Association
475 Park Avenue South, 29th Floor, New York, NY 10016-6901
(646) 742-1651; fax (646) 742-1779
Harry Fox Agency
711 Third Avenue, Eighth Floor, New York, NY 10017
212.370.5330; fax 212.953.2384
How do I research who owns a copyright?
1. The Copyright Reference and Bibliography Section at the Library of Congress Copyright Office can research the copyright status of a song. The more detailed information you can furnish with your request, the less expensive the search will be. Please provide as much of the following information as possible:
The title of the work, with any possible variants
The names of the authors, including possible pseudonyms
The name of the probable copyright owner, which may be the publisher or producer
The approximate year when the work was published or registered
The type of work involved (musical composition, sound recording, photograph, etc.)
For a work originally published as a part of a periodical or collection, the title of that publication and any other information, such as the volume or issue number, to help identify it
The registration number or any other copyright data
Motion pictures are often based on other works such as books or serialized contributions to periodicals or other composite works. If you desire a search for an underlying work or for music from a motion picture, you must specifically request such a search. You must also identify the underlying works and music and furnish the specific titles, authors, and approximate dates of these works.
2. Files are subdivided by "year period". Records begin in the year 1790. The card catalog filing system began in 1870. Recent year periods for songs include 1955-1970, 1971-1977, and 1978-1993.
The Copyright Office published the Catalog of Copyright Entries (CCE) in printed format from 1891 through 1978. From 1979 through 1982, the CCE was issued in microfiche format. The catalog was divided into parts according to the classes of works registered. Each CCE segment covered all registrations made during a particular period of time. Renewal registrations made from 1979 through 1982 are found in Section 8 of the catalog. Renewals prior to that time were generally listed at the end of the volume containing the class of work to which they pertained. A number of libraries throughout the United States maintain copies of the Catalog, and this may provide a good starting point if you wish to make a search yourself.
There are some cases, however, in which a search of the Catalog alone will not be sufficient to provide the needed information. Because the Catalog does not include entries for assignments or other recorded documents, it cannot be used for searches involving the ownership of rights. The Catalog entry contains the essential facts concerning a registration, but it is not a verbatim transcript.
3. Upon request, the Copyright Office staff will search its records at the statutory rate of $65 for each hour or fraction of an hour consumed. Based on the information you furnish, they will provide an estimate of the total search fee. If you decide to have the Office staff conduct the search, you should send the estimated amount with your request. The Office will then proceed with the search and send you a typewritten report or, if you prefer, an oral re-port by telephone. If you request an oral report, please provide a telephone number where you can be reached from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., eastern time.
The search fee does not include the cost of additional certificates, photocopies of deposits, or copies of other Office records. For information concerning these services, request Circular 6, "Obtaining Access to and Copies of Copyright Office Records and Deposits.
Your request and any other correspondence should be addressed to:
Library of Congress Copyright Office, LM-451
101 Independence Avenue, S.E.
Washington, D.C. 20559-6000
Tel: (202) 707-6850 Fax: (202) 707-6859
http://www.loc.gov/copyright
If you wish to do your own searching in the Copyright Office files open to the public, you will be given assistance in locating the records you need and in learning procedures for searching. In addition, the following files dating from 1978 forward are now available over the internet: COHM, which includes all material except serials and documents; COHD, which includes documents; and COHS, which includes serials. The Internet site addresses for the Copyright Office files is http://www.loc.gov/copyright
Do I need a license to sample a track?
Yes, you must obtain a "clearance," or copyright license, for every sample that you use in your recordings. Unlike musical compositions, there is no compulsory license that lets you use any recorded performance. You must get a license from the copyright owner directly and negotiate a fee. Also, because both the composition and the sound recording are used in a sample track, you must obtain two clearances: one from the owner of the copyright in the song, and one from the owner of the rights to the sound recording. This may or may not be the same person or company.
The clearance protects you from copyright infringement and from being hit with a lawsuit from your record label. Record contacts have standard "warranty clauses" where you promise to produce material that does not infringe any copyrights. This is because the record company makes copies and distributes them for sale, which are exclusive rights belonging to the copyright owner. When the company sells your records with unauthorized material, it is infringing on the author's copyrights and will probably get sued. The company will then turn around and sue you for breaching your warranty clause.
Clear your use of any sample before you spend a lot of money on recording so that you don't spend studio time on a song that you cannot sell. Follow the instructions listed in How do I obtain a license to use copyrighted music? to find the copyright owners and get a clearance, or contact one of the agencies that specialize in music licensing and clearances, called "clearance houses." The sampling fees vary, depending on how much of a song you want to use and how important the song or performer is, so a professional may be able to negotiate a better fee for you. Some agencies that do clearance work are listed below:
Trace Elements
3953 Sendero Drive
Austin, TX 78735-6390
(512) 891-0789 Contact: Andrew Halbreich
AHalbreich@aol.com
Bug Music
1776 Broadway Suite 1708
New York, NY 10019
(212) 765-2172
http://www.bugmusic.com
Copyright Management Inc.
1102 17th Avenue South, Suite 400 Nashville, TN 37212
(615) 327-1517 Contact: Terry H. Smith
Vaughan Associates Inc.
2029 Century Park East, Suite 450
Los Angeles, CA 90067
(310) 556-1409 Contact: Suzy Vaughan
Clearing House Ltd.
6605 Hollywood Boulevard, 2nd Floor
Hollywood, CA 90028
(213) 469-3186
Can I really use eight notes from a song without a license?
Probably not. Many musicians believe that they may sample 4, 5 or 8 notes or bars of music without infringing any copyrights, but this is a myth. This common belief is due to the "fair use" doctrine of copyright law, but the doctrine is too complicated to break down to a specific number of notes. "Fair use" allows copyrighted material to be used in situations where a minimum of the material is used in a reasonable way that is not harmful to the owner's rights. For example, a journalist may quote an excerpt of your copyrighted lyrics in a printed review of your record without infringing your copyright.
The legal test of "fair use" is beyond the scope of this discussion, but bear in mind that just four notes from a sound recording can be substantial enough to raise questions of infringement. Consider the theme from "Jaws," where four notes are widely recognized as the theme to a classic movie. Sampling those particular four notes may seem like a stronger case for infringement than lifting four notes from the bass track of some obscure funk tune, but either situation could result in a copyright infringement suit. The only way to be sure that you are not infringing any copyrights is to get the proper clearances before you use any samples for commercial purposes.
How can I get permission to "cover" a song?
You are the Intellectual Property Right Owner of your recorded version of someone else's song. There is no need to obtain a copyright license, however, to "cover" a song, you must obtain a "mechanical license" from the copyright owner. (Crystal Clear does not require this information prior to manufacturing your CDS.) A mechanical license is a clearance to reproduce and distribute copies of the song, which are among the exclusive rights that come with copyright ownership. You may contact the copyright owner directly and negotiate a mechanical license. Even without the permission of the copyright owner, you can obtain a "compulsory mechanical license" under the Copyright Act.
The copyright law provides that every copyright owner has the right to "first use" of his song; after that, anyone may obtain a license to use the song. "First use" is satisfied when the song is first recorded, copied and distributed to the public. This way, the copyright owner gets the chance to release the first public version of his song. After that, the copyright owner must issue a license to anyone who wants to use the song, either directly or through a "compulsory license." The person using the song pays a set fee to the copyright owner. The mechanical royalty rate is set by the Compulsory License Provision found in Section 115 of the U.S. Copyright Act; for the period January 1, 2002 to December 31, 2003 the statutory mechanical rate is 8.00 Cents for songs 5 minutes or less, or 1.55 Cents per minute or fraction thereof per unit sold — whichever is greater.
Because the compulsory license procedure is complicated, copyright owners generally issue the licenses directly to the users and let the Harry Fox Agency in New York negotiate the fees and collect the money. The statute is still important because the statutory royalty rate sets the industry standard.
Thanks to the Texas Music Office, Office of the Governor for permission to reprint this information. http://www.governor.state.tx.us/music/
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