August 9th, 2009 at 06:43am
Under music copyright
The number of Internet broadband subscribers surpassed 200 million in 2005. According to the Computer Industry Almanac, this number is forecasted to reach 500M by the end of 2010. This expanded broadband capacity is creating an explosion of rich media productions.
Companies are now demanding music-enriched websites, advertising and e-learning tools to serve this growing clientele. Sounds and images are now the norm and music is being integrated at every step. To meet that demand, Web designers and Flash developers are constantly looking for good music at a decent price.
Here’s why Royalty Free Music is the best option available on the Internet.
1. Royalty Free Music is 100% legal.
When you purchase a license from a Royalty Free Music vendor, you are legally allowed to play the music on your website. No need to worry about copyright or music clearance.
2. Royalty Free Music is cost effective.
Licensed music can cost a fortune! But you can use original musical compositions on your website for a fraction of the cost one would normally pay.
3. Royalty Free Music is instantly available.
As soon as your transaction has been processed, a link is sent to your email address. You simply click on the link and follow the instructions to download the music immediately. No need to wait for a CD to come in the mail.
4. Royalty Free Music offers worldwide unlimited license.
Once you purchase a license, you can use the recording for as long as you want, anywhere in the world, with no additional payments.
5. Royalty Free Music is made by professional composers.
Several Royalty Free Music libraries are now filled with professional quality work. Long gone are the days when Royalty Free Music or Stock Music meant low quality “canned music”.
6. Royalty Free Music is flexible to fit your needs.
Available in various formats, track lengths may be as short as 15 seconds or as long as 10 minutes. Loops are also available. Loops are small piece of music that “loop” or repeat themselves indefinitely. Because of their small size, loops load rapidly and are often used for flash animations.
7. Music helps you stand out and capture your visitors’ attention.
Times have changed. Over 30 million websites are competing for the attention of more than 1 billion users. High speed broadband use on the Internet keeps expanding. Streaming music and videos are everywhere. Internet surfers now expect websites enriched with music and images.
8. Music makes your website more stimulating and alive.
Today’s Web surfers are demanding not only information, but also an entertaining Internet experience. Properly chosen music enables a more complete appreciation of your website. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a picture with music is worth ten thousand.
9. Music moves people to action.
Music makes any presentation more effective. Music adds instant mood to a message, and helps people bond with the values of your products and services. Multimedia presentations are far more engaging. People will feel more emotionally connected to your website.
10. Music can be integrated into your website within minutes.
You can easily find inexpensive Flash Music Players on the Internet. Some websites even offer various models for free. Simple and clear instructions make for an easy installation on your website.
If you want to add music to your website, Royalty Free Music is the way to go. Stay on the legal side without going broke, and feature high quality professional music. Get you visitors’ attention and help them remember your website by engaging their emotions through music.
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July 17th, 2009 at 12:42pm
Under music copyright
In the connected world, where businesses pop up like dandelions and anyone with a computer can upload video, audio and text-based content to be shared across the web, it is of growing importance to understand the potential legal ramifications associated with these technical advancements.
Most internet businesses make use of some sort of rich media on their websites such as video or music. What most don’t realize is that even the smallest S-Corp can find itself in hot water if it doesn’t understand the basics.
The intent of this article is to focus on the use of production music (music on your website) and the ways you can protect your business or yourself from copyright infringement.What is production music?
Production music is music intended for use in connection with films, corporate videos, Television shows, commercials, Internet video, multimedia and any other form of media that requires music.
If you’ve ever listened to an advertisement on the radio, watched an infomercial, or heard menu music on a video game, then you have probably heard production music.
Production music libraries cover a multitude of genres, providing music for most tastes at varying levels of quality. Traditionally, production music comes in shorter lengths. These lengths are normally 30 seconds, 60 seconds and 90 seconds.
Production music also comes in different variations known as full and reduced versions. Reduced versions are identical to full versions with the exception of one or possibly two of the main instruments having been removed.Who uses production music?
Production music is most widely used by industry experts like; video editors, producers, music supervisors, videographers, and creative directors. Although increasingly, it is being used by relative amateurs for websites, podcasts, streaming video and more.How do I Get a License?
Something called a Synchronization License or Sync License must be obtained for the music in question before it can be utilized in any audiovisual production, such as a motion picture, television program, television commercial, video production, or website.
Sync Licenses come in different shapes and sizes. Two of the most popular are a Drop License and Blanket License. They are most commonly made available by production music publishers such as Slynth (www.slynth.com).How do I get a Sync License?
Production music publishers will usually license music on what is called a needle drop (a.k.a Drop License) or a Blanket License.
A needle drop or Drop License is a license that requires payment for individual songs. The prices for each song vary depending on the type of production in which the song is being used. The rule of thumb when pricing Drop Licenses is – the larger the audience, the higher the price. (Rate cards can be requested with Drop Licenses.)
A Blanket license is a license that affords a user either a set number of music selections or unlimited use of music selections in any given production. The distinction between a blanket and drop license is a drop is issued for one song, a blanket for many. Obtaining a blanket license involves dozens of variables, so it usually requires some negotiation. Venues such as radio stations or night clubs will often require blanket licenses.Is A Sync License the Same as a Performance License (Permission from the Musician)?
Unfortunately, no it isn’t. Obtaining a Sync License doesn’t absolve you from getting legal permission from the artist. And, seeing as musicians aren’t known for their knowledge of the legal system, you might imagine that obtaining such a license would be rather difficult. In actuality, the opposite is the case.
The reason for the relative ease of obtaining a Performance License is most musicians are represented by one of two agencies or “performance right societies” that handle the legal jargon. These societies manage the right of performers and see to it that artists get paid when you play their songs in a “public” venue.
Performance rights societies such as ASCAP, BMI and SESAC collect monies for composers and publishers. These societies handle Performance Licenses and should be consulted before you publish any finalized work. Who needs a performance license?
Anyone who uses copyrighted music in a public place including radio and television stations and/or their networks; all new media, like the Internet and mobile technologies such as ringbacks and ringtones; satellite services like XM and Sirius; discos, nightclubs, bars, restaurants, hotels, and other venues. This includes digital jukeboxes and live concerts. All should obtain a performance license.What happens if I don’t have a performance license?
Production music users are in danger of copyright infringement without a license from a performing rights organization. If you’re an individual with a small audience and no real money (ie you’re not a business), then you are at lower risk of having suit brought against you for copyright infringement.
However, if you’re an individual with a large audience or you’re a business or organization and you fail to obtain the proper licensing, be prepared to hire a lawyer.
The basic rule of thumb with rich media on your website is this: If you’re going to use audio without a license, make sure no one sees it. This may be a difficult rule for most webmasters to cope with, as the purpose of internet businesses is to be seen. Remember the best choice, if you have a large enough audience, is to be safe and purchase the required licenses.
This article was coauthored by Mike Bradbury and Joel Thatcher. Joel is a senior employee of
Tunedge Production Music. Tunedge provides production music solutions for professionals and amateurs alike through an online interface. Mike is an analyst for Objectware, Inc, a
Washington DC web design company.
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July 13th, 2009 at 12:42am
Under music copyright
If you want to use music for your website, in multimedia or traditional media productions you need to know about music licensing. Website designers, video makers, TV show producers and all other creative artists are constantly looking for music in their productions.
It’s important to understand what copyright means, how it applies to music, and how you can obtain the rights to use music for your production. Terms such as “royalty-free music” and “synchronization licensing” get tossed around loosely, and this adds to the confusion. Hopefully this mini-tutorial will shed some light on this.
A Tale Of Two Copyrights: Composition And Master
Copyright is intellectual property. If you own the copyright to something, it means, quite simply, that you have the right to decide who can make a copy. Copyright is the right to copy. Obviously it’s more complex than that but we’ll keep it basic for now.
In terms of music, the key thing to understand is that each recording of music actually includes two distinct copyrights:
1. The copyright in the song itself, or the musical composition, or simply the Composition. This means the rights in the words and music of a song, and is often referred to as the ‘Publishing’ rights. Think of an old-school songwriter sitting at a piano, writing music and lyrics to a song. That song exists before it is recorded. Often musicians (especially in electronic music and hip hop) have a hard time grasping this distinction because they write music while they are producing it – sitting at their computer. Copyright is formed when you write a song, by virtue of the fact that it is new and original and takes a graphic form, such as writing down the lyrics or doing a demo. The copyright in this Composition is owned by whoever wrote it.
2. The copyright in a sound recording, also known as the Master. The Master is a Recording of a Composition. The copyright to the Master is owned by whoever produced it. Often this is a record company. To illustrate this, think of a famous song such as “Georgia on my Mind”. Each record company that produces a version of that song owns their own recording (the Master), but the fundamental rights to the composition remain with the original composer, who owns the Composition – the copyright of the song itself.
Synchronization And Master Use Licenses
Normally, since there are two copyrights involved, two licenses need to be issued to make use of a recorded song:
1. Synchronization License: gives you the right to ’synchronize’ the Composition with images or voice-over in your production.
2. Master Use License: this is exactly the same rights as the synchronization license, except it applies to the Master, the actual recorded interpretation of the musical composition.
Since the composer usually owns the Composition and the record company owns the Master, two different negotiations often have to take place, with two different contracts, for a song to be used in a Production. This can lead to complicated and time-consuming negotiations.
If a single company owns or controls the rights to both the Master and the Composition, this is called a One-Stop-Shop. This means that the company can sign both the Synchronization license and the Master Use license, which is less complicated and more attractive from the point of view of a website designer, an audio-visual show producer – or anyone who needs production music.
Most royalty free music libraries are such One-Stop-Shops since they control both the Master and the Compositions of the music on their website. Purchasing royalty free music means that once you have paid the one-time fee, you can use that music as many times as you want for as long as you want without ever having to pay additional money to the licensor.
It does not matter if one visitor or 100,000 visitors come to your website; or if the music is used for 3 months or 3 years – the purchase fee is exactly the same. If a piece of royalty-free music is purchased for use on a TV show, there is only the one-time fee, it doesn’t matter if the show is presented 5 times or 1,000 times. The TV show producer will never have to pay any additional fee for the music. This saves time and considerable expense.
Royalty free music does not mean however that anyone gives up their copyrights or their rights to administer a song. For instance, if you purchase a music license for a film project which goes on TV, the composer can still collect public performance royalties for the TV performance since these are paid by the broadcaster,and not by you the producer. The music may be offered on a royalty free basis but is not copyright free. The music composer and the publisher remain the copyright owners.
We hope this short article helps you understand the basics of music licensing.
Gilles Arbour is one of the partners at
www.premiumbeat.com a
Royalty Free Music Library. Premium quality affordable production music – 100% Copyright Clear. Music downloads instantly available. Easy simple music licensing.
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