Category Archives: Music

Asked & Answered: Can co-writers exclude music rights from screenplay rights?

Yes, it is possible, in a collaboration agreement, to separate rights in certain components of the work, so that a composer retains all rights in the songs, while the parties share equally (or according to some other formula) in the other components. Unfortunately, each situation is different, so there’s no set ‘form’ or ’standard’ way to handle this wording.

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P.R.O.s continue policy of suing bars and Restaurants. Are your licenses in place?

New Here? Subscribe to the RSS feed or subscribe to get updates via email (fill out the form in the sidebar). Thanks for visiting! As  I blogged  here last December,  Performance Rights Organizations like ASCAP and BMI continue their policy of pursuing legal action against bars and restaurants that play music without proper licensing.  [...]

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360 deals – some basics from M.E.L.O.N.

My friend and colleague Tony Berman is at it again, preparing a useful and comprehensive blog post about the growing phenomenon of so-called 360 deals, where record companies participate not only in revenues from an Artist’s record sales, but also from merchandise, touring, ticketing, online presence, marketing, sponsorships, endorsements, and the like.  Essentially, any money [...]

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Music Basics for Film and Video productions.

Music is an integral part of any filmmaker’s toolbox. Proper selection of music can help tell a story, set a mood, and build suspense. For most independent productions, however, music is either under-budgeted or not budgeted at all. Even when there IS a music budget, it’s often re-allocated to more pressing expenses during [...]

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Listening to the radio at work? You may be a copyright infringer!

A recent case in the UK Courts is raising some interesting questions about liability for copyright infringement by companies whose employees play music in the workplace.
In the case at hand, mechanics for a Scottish car repair service played their personal radios in the work-bays of the company’s garage. Obviously, an auto-repair [...]

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Restaurants sued for playing music without ASCAP/BMI licenses

In recent months, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) has sued at least two dozen restaurants around the country for copyright infringement. The claims stem from the restaurants’ playing of music without obtaining a license from the performing rights organization.
ASCAP and its competitor BMI (Broadcast Music International) are the two largest [...]

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