THREE OF THE MOST UNDERSTOODMUSIC COPYRIGHT LAWS

THE PERFORMANCE RIGHT

• Many musicians believe they have the right to perform any song, in any place, at any time.

• However, the right to perform songs depends on the individual song owners, not the performers.

• Song owners are entitled to collect royalties for all public performances of their songs.

• This means that performers need licenses to perform them.

THE PERFORMANCE RIGHT

• Business owners and musicians are required to pay for performance licenses if they want to play music for their customers.

• If your band ends up performing at a bar, restaurant or party, then you will want to ensure the venue has paid for a performance license before you play any cover songs.

THE RIGHT TO MAKE CHANGES TO OTHERS’ SONGS

• Making changes to the lyrics or melody of a song may seem like a good way to leave your mark or show your unique artistic talent, but you actually need permission from song owners before changing inherent parts of the song.

• There are some things that you can change, such as tempo and key, but anything that alters the fundamental bones of the song requires that you get in contact with the song owners first.

Be prepared to pay a fee to the song owners for the privilege of making changes to the song.

FAIR USE

• There are no hard and fast rules about what is fair use, making it the most commonly misunderstood parts of copyright law.

The courts evaluate fair use on a case-by-case basis, weighing factors four factors to

determine fair use.

FAIR USE CONSIDERATIONS

• Whether the use is for commercial or nonprofit/educational purposes and how the use will effect the value of the original work.

• Nature of the copyrighted work.

• Amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole.

• Effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.

FAIR USE - THE BOTTOM LINE

• Whenever you make a lot of money or gain fame and influence by borrowing someone else’s idea, there is a good chance that someone will take legal action against you.

• It is always best to err on the side of caution by asking for permission before making changes to someone else’s work.