Frequently asked questions (FAQs) on music rights and licensing

Why do you have to pay to use music in audiovisuals?
Music is intellectual property and the rights of the owners of that property, the songwriters and their publishers are guaranteed by national and international law worldwide. In short it is illegal to use music in an audiovisual recording such as a video, a film or movie, TV programme or video game (this is known as synchronization) without the express written consent of the rights owners of the song and the recording of the song or the "master" recording.

What's difference between master recording and song?
When a songwriter sits down (or lies or stands up) to write a song, they first have the song in their head and as they go along they usually write down lyrics, if the song has them, and the music. This can all be done without actually recording the song. When the songwriter her/himself or a performer performs the song and it is recorded, then the "Master" Recording is created. Now legally, the idea in the songwriter's head and possibly on paper is different from the recording of that song. The laws, rules and procedures pertaining to the actual "song", the idea, the songwriter has in her or his head falls into the field of "publishing" and is therefore dealt with by a publisher, if the songwriter has a publisher. This term comes from the act that a song, once made public, is considered "published", but exactly when a song is considered published can vary from country to country. Therefore, in music licensing, the person intending to use the music will have to get permission both for the publishing and the master side.

Publishing, master, who owns what?
In the most simple of situations, a songwriter will write a song an therefore own it, then record the song and therefore own the master. This could be the case of an unknown songwriter at the start of their career. Unfortunately things are not all that simple. For example the songwriters could be two or more, which is very often the case, so that already means we have to get permission from more than one individual. Furthermore the songwriter(s) may then have their song managed by a publisher, and not all the writers of a song may have the same publisher. Once the song has been recorded, the Master recording may be managed by a record label. For these reasons it is very important, and not always simple, to find out exactly who we have to refer to in order to get permission to use a song.

How much does it usually cost?
Costs for use of music in synchronization can vary greatly according to a series of different factors: the length of the music used; whether it is in the background as the actors are talking or in the foreground in the montage or the actors are actually performing the song. Other factors are the distribution of the audiovisual work, is it worldwide, in cinemas, on video. Costs can range anywhere from free, to hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Can't I just go ahead and use the music for my small project? Who will know?
We'll know! Although it is rather difficult to trace and stop file-sharing piracy (things are improving there also) the technology for tracing music use in audiovisuals, especially when they get on the internet, are very advanced and the consequences can be extremely costly!

Do I have to get permission to use music for my website too?
Yes. Although legislation and litigation are still defining the details, protection of the rights of music owners also apply to the Internet and Web pages.

Isn't it enough for the rights owners to have exposition for their music?
No, music used in audiovisuals, unless already well know, does not show the credits, if at all, until the end when there is no guarantee anyone will read them.

I wanted to use some music in documentary for children; do I have to pay for that to?
There are some uses of music that are considered "fair use" and can therefore be made without asking for permission. However, the categories of "fair use" are rather generalized, so it may be good idea to check and also get permission form the rights holders anyway, just in case. One determining factor is profit: if you are making a profit on the use of the music, then it is less likely that it will be considered "fair use"

What about DVD's?
The license to synchronize music with images, called a synchronization license, does not automatically allow you to distribute DVD's of the audiovisual work containing the music. For this a separate "Videogram license" is needed. Fortunately, this license is usually part of an overall synchronization contract.

Exclusive or non-exclusive?
Synchronization licenses are usually non-exclusive, that means that the owners of the rights in the song have the rights to reach synchronization agreements with other parties in the same territory, weather worldwide or for certain territories. However, it is not uncommon to request "product" exclusivity. This means that is a song is used for an advert say for a particular soft drink, then the soft drink company could request that the song is not used to advertise another soft drink.

I am a songwriter, how do I get my music in TV and films?
Nowadays, it is very often said that an artist can make it on her or his own without help, and this is potentially true. You need to have infinite amounts of energy, determination, resources a good amount of money and all the time in the world. Before and above all of this, you need to have really good music with high quality recordings. In short you can't make music and try to get it in the media if you have a day job! If all the criteria are met, then you can try and approach people involved in the film, TV, advertising and video game industry, producers, music consultants and music supervisors. The secret is not bombard them with random music, but understanding what they need at the right time. A simpler solution is to rely on the services of a good music publisher!

Who is a music supervisor and what do they do?
From the outside, the job of a Music Supervisor is the coolest in the world. They are the ones who choose music to place in film, TV, advertising and Video Games and get paid, usually by the producers, to do this. So one might think that all they do is listen to music all day all the time watch moves for free, and then decide which music to put in. However, Music supervisors are the ones who have to deal with all the legal copyright issues, find out who owns what, how many owners there are, negotiate with all parties, and sort out all the contracts to get the ball rolling. Not an easy job! Indeed Bill Passaman, an industry expert, has said it is the hardest job in the industry!

There's a song I really love, can I do a cover version?
Doing a straightforward cover is not too complicated from a legal point of view, we simply have to get permission for a mechanical license from the correct mechanical rights society, for example SIAE in Italy, MCPS in the UK, the Harry Fox Agency in the US and so on. Things are slightly different if we want to change something in the song or for example, translate the lyrics. In this case, you will also have to get permission from the original publisher and have approval from the original songwriters.

My band is doing a gig and we want to play a cover version, what do we do?
All you have to do is make sure that the organizer of the event, files the correct registration form with the local performing rights society and that they specify the name of the song and the writers who are not necessarily the performs of that song.

Performance, mechanical, secondary, what are all these right?
When a song is written, recorded and performed, this gives rise to series of rights to the writers and artists involved. First of all, whenever a song is performed, whether broadcast on the radio or television or live in a club or concert, the writers of that song and their publishers have the right to receive "performance right fees" that they receive from the local performing rights collection societies. There are also rights that originate from the sale of the recordings of a song, these are called "mechanical rights" and are also collected and distributed to writers by collection societies. In some countries performance and mechanical licenses are the same, in others they are separate. Finally there are rights to which the performers of songs are entitled, whether they are the writers or not. These are called secondary rights and are commonly collected by a separate collection society. There is no obligation to sign up to a collection society, but without it, if you wanted to collect income derived from the use of your music, you would have to get in touch with and demand payment from every disco, radio, club, concert organizer and any other person or entity involved in the use of your music anywhere in the world it may be used. Good luck on that!