Law relating to music

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Johnone

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Can anyone point me to good, sound and in-depth resources to the law as it relates to music in South Africa and internationally. Online resources, text books, it doesn't matter. As long as it is sound and in-depth.

I would like to educate myself with regards to protecting my music and the passive income it might generate.

Can you also recommend good and ethical (if that is possible) lawyers who deal in the music industry.

Thanks in advance!
 
You should be very more descriptive with what you plan to do or how you want to use this.

There is no single law regarding music, but there are hundreds of licenses under which music is released:
Copyrighted, Copyleft, Creative Commons, etc. depending on your wants.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyleft
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creative_Commons

Usually there is a clause with copyright music, something to the lines of "cannot play this in public without permission, etc." Just look at any CD, it should all be there.
If you sign with a label they will enforce the license, on your own it is going to be next to impossible to keep tabs on where, when and how your music was pirated.
Maybe get in touch with a music studio and hear how they do it?
 
MyWorld said:
You should be very more descriptive with what you plan to do or how you want to use this.

There is no single law regarding music, but there are hundreds of licenses under which music is released:
Copyrighted, Copyleft, Creative Commons, etc. depending on your wants.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyleft
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creative_Commons

Usually there is a clause with copyright music, something to the lines of "cannot play this in public without permission, etc." Just look at any CD, it should all be there.
If you sign with a label they will enforce the license, on your own it is going to be next to impossible to keep tabs on where, when and how your music was pirated.
Maybe get in touch with a music studio and hear how they do it?
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply.

I only know about how to make music and not the business side of it. And, I don't know why, but I feel protective over my music, so I don't want to enter into any deals blindly and through this sign away all my rights to the music I created.

Thanks for the links. Will give it a read later when I have more time. Was hoping, though, that there would be some resource (preferably a text book) which gather all the info and laws relating to music. It also just dawned upon me that maybe I can contact Unisa's law department and ask them for recommendations.
 
spiderz said:
Just upload your music to piratebay ... :D
Click to expand...

Lol, was actually considering making the music available for free. But what is free for the consumers are not free for the creator/s.

And some joker might come and steal the music and make a profit off of it by releasing it as his own.
 
You'd better be one of SA's top artists if you think you're going to dictate terms to a record label. In fact even the likes of Prime Circle are currently contemplating legal action against a certain label because of certain terms in their publishing contract.

Johnone, as admirable as your goal is, it will be fruitless in furthering your own career. Nothing wrong in learning the law though. You're better off removing this mentality that you have to completely protect your IP in this day and age of open music distribution and instead learn to embrace it. Determine for yourself where you see your revenue streams coming from and use music distribution as an agent to enable this. Licensing and royalties won't put food on the table for 9 out of 10 bands and artists, so you really need to rethink your logic of trying to control and protect everything. It won't benefit you in the long run. I used to have the same mindset as you about my music but I've come to realise that it's moronic, so self serving, and ultimately fruitless...
 
DJ... said:
You'd better be one of SA's top artists if you think you're going to dictate terms to a record label. In fact even the likes of Prime Circle are currently contemplating legal action against a certain label because of certain terms in their publishing contract.
Click to expand...

I recently did pro bono work for a forumite here in relation to a music deal. We managed to get away with quite a lot ;)
 
IzZzy said:
I recently did pro bono work for a forumite here in relation to a music deal. We managed to get away with quite a lot ;)
Click to expand...

That's awesome, it really is. But it's the exception that proves the rule, in my experience. The devil is usually in the publishing details and without an astute legal beagle on your side, you're not going to win that war. Most people don't have the luxury of the likes of an awesome attorney like you to call on.

BTW, if you're interested in can put you in touch with the aforementioned band who seriously need some legal opinion on their Gresham issue...
 
DJ... said:
That's awesome, it really is. But it's the exception that proves the rule, in my experience. The devil is usually in the publishing details and without an astute legal beagle on your side, you're not going to win that war. Most people don't have the luxury of the likes of an awesome attorney like you to call on.

BTW, if you're interested in can put you in touch with the aforementioned band who seriously need some legal opinion on their Gresham issue...
Click to expand...

Thanks for the compliments. You could PM the nature of their dispute, and I'd have a look to see if I could add any value?
 
Unfortunately piracy is one of those things that you can never stop, just look at this weeks poll.

Do you use BitTorrent or Newsgroups to download TV shows or movies?

Yes (76%, 466 Votes)
No (24%, 150 Votes)

Im sure music is also taken to account.
 
DJ... said:
You'd better be one of SA's top artists if you think you're going to dictate terms to a record label. In fact even the likes of Prime Circle are currently contemplating legal action against a certain label because of certain terms in their publishing contract.

Johnone, as admirable as your goal is, it will be fruitless in furthering your own career. Nothing wrong in learning the law though. You're better off removing this mentality that you have to completely protect your IP in this day and age of open music distribution and instead learn to embrace it. Determine for yourself where you see your revenue streams coming from and use music distribution as an agent to enable this. Licensing and royalties won't put food on the table for 9 out of 10 bands and artists, so you really need to rethink your logic of trying to control and protect everything. It won't benefit you in the long run. I used to have the same mindset as you about my music but I've come to realise that it's moronic, so self serving, and ultimately fruitless...
Click to expand...

Thanks for the advice. Yeah, I've heard some of the nightmare stories of record companies screwing over the artists. Always getting the major share of revenue. Even the cds that the artists sell at the events they perform at, they first have to pay the record company their dues before taking home money (if there are any left, that is).

But this is exactly why I want to know the law. So that I can know what awaits me.

Have thought about going the indie route and even releasing the music on a pay-whatever-you-want basis, or for free if you think its crap or can't afford it.

So, as you can tell, I have a lot to learn about the industry.
 
IzZzy said:
I recently did pro bono work for a forumite here in relation to a music deal. We managed to get away with quite a lot ;)
Click to expand...

That's awesome! Do you mind sharing resources or any knowledge that I should look out for when entering a record deal? If it is too technical or complex to outline on this forum then I would understand.

Don't know which area you are situated in, but can you recommend any great lawyers in the Cape Town and surround areas that would be able to assist with the legal matters?
 
Johnone said:
That's awesome! Do you mind sharing resources or any knowledge that I should look out for when entering a record deal? If it is too technical or complex to outline on this forum then I would understand.

Don't know which area you are situated in, but can you recommend any great lawyers in the Cape Town and surround areas that would be able to assist with the legal matters?
Click to expand...

I'd more favourably like to advise on specific queries rather than general advice. My first step is whatever deal you get, before signing, read through it thoroughly. After that stage, I'd get involved.

I'm situated in Sandton, and don't really know of any lawyers other than those at our CPT office who would then want to charge a fee.
 
Produce, record, creative commons, get your music out there on your own and if you're lucky enough to get a deal - take one.
Then you could look at a lawyer I reckon.
If your music is up on the web, ie soundcloud or beatport or your own site - and you feel that someone else has ripped you off - you've got dated proof where the rip off's beat is coming from.
Then you could go and sue.

Thing is - record companies, more often than not - are going to screw you over on your publishing rights.
But (if you're a big deal) - they're gonna give you loads of cash to go and get inspired and record.
You're realistically gonna make your money from touring and merchandise sales - well that's most indie related acts anyway.
But it could work in both scenarios.

I'd give up some IP to get my music out and to play it Live for people.
I also fret about it at times - but everyone wants a piece of the pie - and if you're not baking that pie 100% on your own - don't expect your backers to just smile and wave.
 
OP, check out out SAMRO for a start. You can register your songs and keep them copyrighted. That is the first step. Secondly, a record label is a load of rubbish in this country. I would stay away from them all together.

Lastly, I've seen a few people here mention piracy. Piracy, has actually been good for the industry and consumer. Live shows have increased ten fold since piracy started. Bands do more live shows than ever. Their income has shifted from album sales to live shows. True artists should perform live, not just record and do one or two shows a year.

Our country is a good example. Look at how many bands have toured here in the last few years.
 
The whole concept of having a manager and label is flawed and ridiculous, unless you are absolutley massive.

Think of your music or band as a business. If you started your own business, would you outsource all the work to another company, and rely on their marketing, product input, etc to determine the success of your business? No you wouldnt. :)
 
SAMRO is rather useless if you're a "Record at home" kinda operation just starting out.
Your music has to have at least 2 year's worth of airplay on local radio before they start covering you, is what I last heard.

Creative commons, free downloads and good luck - that is all ;) :p :D
 
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