Legal Question in Entertainment Law in Florida
I have a small entertainment/band company that performs cover songs and has several of these songs on our web site as demos. Recently I , and several people I know in the same sort of business, have been getting letters and emails from ASCAP asking us to purchase a license to use their copyrighted materials, and threatening legal action if we do not comply. I certainly want the composers and performers who created these songs to be fairly compensated, but wonder what my responsibility is in this matter. In 40 years in the music business this has never before been an issue.
3 Answers from Attorneys
You should comply with the ASCAP notice. ASCAP is a legitimate association, and they distribute the license fees to the copyright owners. ASCAP makes it easy, as a "one stop shop," for you to purchase the required licenses. It is your responsibility to compensate the copyright owners, and they probably will take legal action if you don't purchase the license.
Just because it didn't happen before doesn't mean it won't happen again. :) You just came onto their radar, so they noticed you. That means you are doing well! Consider it a compliment!
ASCAP has been far more aggressive recently at protecting the copyrights of their member recording companies. Performing covers does violate copyright, so you'll have to pay the fee for the covers you perform. Some companies don't even allow cover performances, so you'll be unable to perform those songs. If you go forward without following the law and paying the licensing fee, ASCAP's lawyers can be very agressive in coming after you.
ASCAP is the appropriate group for you to deal with about these issues.
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