Presentation on Music Law

1. MUSIC LAW
By Caan Larkin

2. WHAT IS MUSIC LAW?
Music law is the legal part of the music industry and other aspects of the
entertainment industry.
The music industry consists of:
• Record labels,
• Music publishers,
• Performers,
• Artists.
The three main features of Music Law are…
Copyrights,
Publishing,
Business.

3. COPYRIGHT
Copyright is used to protect music and other original works of authorship.
When copyright is registered for a piece of music it lets the owner (eg.
Composer or songwriter) to get financial damages and attorneys fees
from anyone who uses their work in a banned or illegal way.
Music companies manage copyrights for most written works and record
labels manage copyrights for sound recordings.
Once a musician registers copyright for a piece of music, it protects their
work for 70 years after their death. If the piece of work has multiple
composers the copyright protection extends to 70 years beyond the death
of the longest-living composer.

4. PUBLISHING
Music publishing consist of developing new music, protecting music and
promoting music.
Music Publishers are there to help composers by taking care of the
business aspects of publishing so it allows the artist to focus on creating new
music.
Music publishers look for new artists, produce recordings and other
promotional materials. Music publishers are also very strict about people who
use music without a license and take legal action against them.
Music publishers depend on publishing laws to protect their investments in
composers and songwriters.
Music publishing ties in with copyright because without copyright
protection the music publishers would not be able to pursue damages against
those who use original works of music without a proper license.

5. PUBLISHING
There has been two significant laws for music publishing. These are…
Fairness in Music Licensing Legislation (1998)
The Copyright Term Extension Act (1998)
The first significant law for music publishing is the ‘Fairness in Music Licensing
Legislation’. This act meant that less bar and restaurant owners had to apply
for a music licence to play music during business hours at their bar or
restaurant.
The other significant law for music publishing is ‘The Copyright Term
Extension Act’. This increased the length of copyright protection for music to a
further 20 years.

6. BUSINESS
Business Laws also play an important role in the music industry. This is
because Composers, music producers and songwriters rely on contracts,
licenses and other legal documents.
It is important for musicians to get a proper business license because
it tracks their sales, wages and concerts. It is important for musicians to
report their profits and losses to the government or they can face serious
consequences regarding Tax.
Many Music business’s have music attorneys that are there to help their
clients review contracts and contract terms and negotiate settlements for
the clients.

7. WHY HAVE MUSIC LAW?
Music law is important because it covers a wide amount of things that a
musician on their own would struggle to achieve as well as creating new
music. Everything in music law comes together because without
copyright publishers are unable to seek money from people who use
copyright work illegally. But without a business agreement there would be
no publisher. Business agreements are also there to look out for the
musician from suffering from taxation issues if they do not report their
sales and losses.