The mobile DJ and music licensing,

The mobile DJ and music licensing,



Many Club and Bar DJ’s play music from their music collections. The licensing agreement that is supplied with each song is for personal use in either home car ipod or so on. The big debate many DJ’s face is who is responsible for the licensing of music played at a venue.

If you are playing a club, bar, pub, our any type of event open to the public the club, pub or bar owner(s) are responsible for obtaining licensing for the music being played in their establishment. If you are playing an open to the public venue then the promoter is responsible for obtaining licensing. (Music licensing in the United States is made possible by the protection that U.S. copyright law provides for artists. According to this article from the U.S. copyright office: The copyright code of the United States (title 17 of the U.S. Code) provides for copyright protection in sound recordings. Sound recordings are defined in the law as "works that result from the fixation of a series of musical, spoken, or other sounds, but not including the sounds accompanying a motion picture or other audiovisual work." Common examples include recordings of music, drama, or lectures. Copyright in a sound recording protects the particular series of sounds "fixed" (embodied in a recording) against unauthorized reproduction and revision, unauthorized distribution of phonorecords containing those sounds, and certain unauthorized performances by means of a digital audio transmission. The Digital Performance Right in Sound Recordings Act of 1995, P.L. 104-39, effective February 1, 1996, created a new limited performance right for certain digital transmissions of sound recordings.)

There are several things that can be copyrighted in any sound recording for a song.
· There are the actual sounds themselves -- the performance of the work.
· There are the notes that the musicians play to create the song -- they could be embodied in sheet music.
· There are the lyrics for the song -- they can be written down on a sheet of paper.


It is the DJ’s responsibility to ensure the venue or bar, pub or club is licensed. In the United States you will want to be sure that the venue be licensed by BMI, ASCAP and SESAC.

Are licenses from BMI, ASCAP and SESAC all necessary?

SESAC, ASCAP, and BMI are three separate and distinct Performing Rights Organizations (PRO). Each organization represents different songwriters, composers, publishers and copyright holders, and each organization licenses only the copyrighted works of its own respective affiliated copyright holders.

Bar Pub club promoters and Venues If you do not pay and you get caught, you can be sued. DJ's if the venue is not licensed you can be fined to. Beware, the fines are pretty steep -- sometimes thousands of dollar.

It is my understanding and I could of course be wrong that private parties do not require such licenses. Private parties are parties not open to the public weddings sweet 16 corporate events, a club, pub, or bar allowing the general public access is not a private party!

Per an email I received from ASCAP

”We do not license djs. It is the venue, establishment, or promoter of an event that is responsible for public performance licensing, not the performer. Private events such as weddings,Etc. are exempt from licensing. Also, a performer and establishment (or
Venue or promoter) could both be held liable if any copyright infringement
Were to take place. So, as a performer, one would want to make sure
Wherever they perform is properly licensed.”



Much Respect



DJ OCP

Another Badd Creation Mobile DJ Service

Local Mobilized DJ Entertainment Friendly, Affordable
Professional, Experienced, Guaranteed to Please
Our goal is to meet your entertainment expectations!

Serving Clay and Duval Counties From Heights, Middleburg, Greencove Springs, Starke, Waldo, Palatka, Gainesville, Melrose, and Jacksonville Florida

http://anotherbaddcreation.com
http://claycountymobiledj.com
http://claycountymobiledj.net
http://claycountymobiledj.org
http://claycountymobiledj.info