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Copyright | Publishing | Licensing | Royalties
Copyright
The
most accurate information on copyright
can be found at the Library of Congress
in Washington, DC. The Library of Congress
is where you register for copyrights,
trademarks, and patents. The registration
fee per application is generally $30;
however fees can range from $1 to $580.
For more information on fees visit www.copyright.gov/docs/fees.html
or call (202) 707-6850. The appropriate
forms can be found by using three different
methods: online at www.copyright.gov,
by fax call (202) 707-2600, or
by mail call (202) 707-3000 between
8 a.m. and 4 p.m. CST.
To
research the ownership of a specific work,
visit the Library of Congress website
at www.copyright.gov/rb.html.
To determine the current publisher of
a song, visit the BMI Research and Information
Department at repertoire.bmi.com/startpage.asp
or call (212) 586-2000 or you can
contact the ASCAP Clearance Express (ACE)
at www.ascap.com/ace/
or by calling (212) 621-6160 or
you can search the SESAC Repertoire at
http://www.sesac.com/repertory/repertory_main.asp
or by calling (615) 320-0055. You
will need to know the song title and name
of the author(s) before contacting these
organizations.
Publishing
Music
Publishing is a major source of revenue
for songwriters. There are four methods
of generating income through publishing:
mechanical rights income, public
performance income, sheet music
income, and synchronization income.
Mechanical
Income is earned from the manufacture
and sale of the recording. In the United
States the royalty rates are set by the
Copyright Royalty Tribunal. The mechanical
income is paid to the publisher of the
composition by the record company that
manufactured the recording, usually on
a quarterly basis.
Public
Performance Income is compensation
for the copyright owner for the public
performance of their music. The majority
of this income is collected by the Performing
Rights Organizations since it would be
difficult for an individual to collect
from all radio and television stations,
concert halls, nightclubs and other venues.
Sheet
Music Income comes from the sale
of the printed form of the music. It too
can create substantial earnings for a
songwriter.
Synchronization
Income is generated by having the
composition placed into film and television
productions. Normally the additional exposure
from being featured in a production such
as this will generate more popularity
and income for the song.
Licensing
By
licensing your work you are granting permission
for someone to incorporate your creative
idea into their own new project, normally
in exchange for a flat fee or a percentage
of their profits. Licensing is closely
related to publishing because it essentially
means that the author or owner of the
copyright has agreed to let someone else
use the work, and the methods used to
generate income are virtually identical
for both.
It
is important to understand that if you
own the rights to a song, it is your decision
to license your material or not. Most
requests are typically granted, but there
are many reasons why a rights holder will
deny a request including but not limited
to: temporary contractual restrictions,
creative issues over certain topics (alcohol,
violence, etc.), and the most common is
probably that the song owner may feel
that a usage warrants a higher fee than
you have offered.
Royalties
If
you are interested in affiliating with
an agency to collect your mechanical and/or
synchronization royalties, contact:
National
Music Publishers' Association
475 Park Avenue South, 29th Floor
New York, NY 10016-6901
(646) 742-1651
(646) 742-1779 fax
The
Harry Fox Agency
711 Third Avenue, 8th Floor
New York, NY 10017
(212) 370-5330
(212) 953-2384 fax
Association
of Independent Music Publishers
P.O. Box 1561
Burbank, CA 91507
(818) 842-6257
Country
Music Association (CMA)
1 Music Circle South
Nashville, TN 37203
(615) 244-2840
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