Music Business/Law Tip - "Songwriter Key Income Streams"

The 3 primary income streams earned by a songwriter are as follows: 1. Mechanical Royalties: Currently 9.1 cents per song included on a CD or download. 2. Performance Royalties: From play of the song(s) on radio and TV. Amount varies depending on the volume of play, how many listeners, etc. 3. Synchronization ("Sync") License Fees: From the usage of a song in TV, film or commercail (i.e., in conjunctioi with a visual image). Amount varies depending on the company licensing, how popular the song is, how long the song is used in the spot, etc. Ben McLane Esq benmclane.com

Music Business/Law Tip - "Buy Beats"

It is possible to buy or rent beats to incorporate into your music. There are companies/producers that will sell or license their pre-existing beats to you. There are 2 basic ways to handle this: Buy Out Exclusive Rights: This normally means you have to "purchase" the beat where you have it exclusively for any and all uses without restriction and never have to pay any more to the original owner/creator. Giving credit to the original producer/writer may or may not be a part of this deal. This is preferable so you don't have to worry about having to account or ask for permissions in the future. License: This may or may not be exclusive, and only lets you sell a certain number of units containing the beat or use the beat for a limited purpose. There may or may not be a back-end royalty due, and right to edit may or may not be granted. This is not the preferable way to obtain a beat, but its normally cheaper on the front end. Ben McLane Esq benmclane.com

Music Business/Law Tips - "Kickstarter Basics"

Kickstarter is a platform where Creators run campaigns to fund creative Projects by offering rewards to raise money from Backers. By creating a fundraising Campaign on Kickstarter, the Project Creator is offering the public the opportunity to enter into a contract with the Creator. Kickstarter is not a party to the agreement between the Backer and Creator (all dealings are solely between the parties). A Project is defined as something that has a clear goal, like making an album, a book, or a work of art. A Project will eventually be completed, and something will be produced by it. A Project is not open-ended. Starting a business, for example, does not qualify as a project. It is the Project Creator's responsibility to complete the Project. Normally, the motivation for a Backer to invest is that they are rallying around their friend’s Project, supporting someone they have long admired (i.e., a fan), or are inspired by a Project's rewards: e.g., a copy of what's being made, a limited edition, or a custom experience related to the project (i.e., a date). Kickstarter's Terms of Use require Creators to fulfill all rewards of their Project or refund any backer whose reward they do not or cannot fulfill – Creators have a legal obligation to do so. Also, a Creator shall not, and shall not permit any third party using its account to, take any action that it knows is false, misleading, or inaccurate, or is deceptive or fraudulent. Essentially, a Creator has to make a good faith effort to complete the Project and fulfill. If problems come up, a Creator is expected to post a project update (which is emailed to all Backers) explaining the situation. Sharing the story, speed bumps and all, is crucial. Most Backers support Projects because they want to see something happen (i.e., completion of an album) and they would like to be a part of it. Creators who are honest and transparent will usually find Backers to be understanding when plans change. Sometimes the execution of the project proves more difficult than the creator had anticipated. If a creator is making a good faith effort to complete their project and is transparent about it, backers should do their best to be patient and understanding while demanding continued accountability from the Creator. If the problems are severe enough that the Creator cannot fulfill their Project, Creators need to find a resolution. Steps could include offering refunds, or other actions to satisfy Backers. A Project Creator is not required to grant a Backer’s request for a refund unless the Project Creator is unable or unwilling to fulfill the reward. Ben McLane Esq benmclane.com

Music Business/Law Tips - "Mix Tapes Issue"

Putting up a free mixtape at websites like DatPiff.com can lead to potential infringment lawsuits by the original artists that are being sampled without permission/license. Heres why: Even thought the mixtape is not being sold and no direct money is being made per se, the claim would be that the mixtape artist is still profiting/benefitting indirectly from the unauthorized sample by giving away the mixtape to build a fanbase that would later buy the mixtape artist's albums, concert tickets and merchandise (but the original artist who is being sampled gets nothing). Best to clear all samples on free mixtapes to avoid any problems. Ben McLane Esq benmclane.com

Music Business/Law Tip - "Fan Web Music Posting Issue"

If a fan wants to post someone else's music on their web or social media site, they need to be aware of the following potential infringement concerns that might be raised by the owner of the music. By making someone else's music available on their web or social media site - even if they are not selling it - the fan could still be held liable for copyright infringement because of the following factors: display of music on the site, owning the site, control of the content on the site, uploading the music to the site. Even though the fan/site is not tryihng to "profit" from someone else's music per se, having it avaiable to hear or download for free from the fan site arguably damages the true owners chance to sell it, or control how it is heard. Hence, always be careful and try to obtain permission before posting music (especially if its by a major artist that has resources). In reality a take down letter is probably the worst case scenario, but an upset owner may pursue an infringment claim. Ben McLane Esq benmclane.com

Music Business/Law Tips - "Copyright Recapture – 35 Year Rule"

Under the Copyright Act 203, song copyrights that were transferred to a publisher under a publishing agreement can revert back to the songwriter(s)/their heirs if the songs were created after 1/1/78. This is known as the “35 year rule”. (Songs created prior to 1/1/78 are subject to a different 56 year rule). Basically, to exercise the 35 year rule, a songwriter must give written notice to the publisher and the Copyright Office not less than 2 years and no more than 10 years from the intended “termination date” (in general, the date 35 years from when the song was created). In other words, the earliest date of notice is 25 years after the song was created for a 1978 or later song. For example, if a song was created on 1/1/78, a notice of termination can be served as early as 1/1/2003 (to be effective 1/1/2013). There is some issue about whether this statute applies if an artist signed a “work for hire” or “writer for hire” agreement. A lot of the publisher agreements have this language - it is an issue to be aware of because this is not a clearly defined area as yet. Also, if it is a joint work (co-write) one might also need the co-writer(s) to sign off on the notice. None of these cases have gone to court yet to test the statute/these issues, but 2013 is supposed to be the year a lot of these disputed cases go to court because that is 35 years from 1978 so the issue is finally ripe for many valuable copyrights. Ben McLane Esq benmclane.com

Music Business/Law Tips - "Copyright v. Trademark"

COPYRIGHT [MUSIC] V. TRADEMARK [NAME] 1. Copyright Basics: a. (c) = Song/Composition b. (p) = Master/Sound recording c. Music + lyrics d. Prove date of creation 2. Trademark Basics: a. “First use” of a name b. “In commerce” c. Search availability before using d. Registration & Common Law rights Ben McLane Esq benmclane.com