Music copyright: The Basics
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Music Copyright: The Basics
Copyright in music is theright a creator of a piece of music has, to
prevent others from using it withouthis/her permission
Copyright in music is also the permission a non-creator of music gets from the creator of a piece of music to use it.
How do I get the copyright to my music?
Copyright is automatic and begins at creation. All that is required for a song to enjoy
copyright protection is for it to be originaland exist in a fixed form
FIXED FORM means music may be written orrecorded (doesn’t have to be professionallydone) in music sheet, CDs, cassettes or anyother storage device
ORIGINAL means the expression of the work must
be unique to the owner; it doesn’t mean similar works
have not been created
There is NO copyright in ideas
Copyright RegistrationIn Nigeria, there is no official
registration system for copyright. It is the requirement
of countries which are signatory to the Berne
Convention (Nigeria is one of such) that copyright is
automatic. However, some countries like the United States
require registration at the Copyright Office.
What right does the copyright owner have?
There are two types of rights:
Moral rights &
Economic rights
Moral rights ensure that the creator of music is recognized when his work is used or
reproduced. It also ensures that a piece of music is not modified
in any way that may be derogatory to the reputation of the creator.
Economic rights are rights which the copyrightowner can exploit forcommercial benefits
Types of economic
rights
Reproduction rights- the copyright owner has the right toprevent others from making copies of his music
Distribution rights - the right of the copyright owner to control the
distribution of his music
Publishing rights - the right to makea song (without the sound recording) available to the public resides with the creator or someoneauthorized by him
Performing rights - the copyright owner has the right to determine who
performs in public the music he has created
Recording rights - this covers the right to make a sound recording or a video recording of a song
Rights of Translation - the right to translate or to authorize the
translation of a piece of music is solely that of the
creator of the work
Broadcast and communication to the public - theowner of copyright has the right to control thebroadcast of his music on radio, television andother cable stations. He also has the exclusive
right to control the communication of his musicto the public by means of a loudspeaker or similardevices as seen in shopping malls, banking halls,
clubs, buses, aircrafts, restaurants etc.
Rights of Adaptation - the owner of copyright has the exclusiveright to control the modification of his work into another work
Exploitation of the translation or adaptation-the copyright owner has the right to control the
exploitation in any form of the adaption or translation of his work
Length of a copyright
In musical works, copyright runs from the time of creation till 70 years after the end of the year in which the author dies.
In sound recordings, copyright lasts till 50 years after the end of the year in which the recording was first
made.
Ownership of a copy Vs. Owner of copyright
The purchase of a piece of music or a fullalbum does not confer on the buyer, copyright.The buyer is only entitled to enjoy the music hehas bought in a private setting, anything otherthan this; he may be liable of infringing on the
creator’s copyright
Transfer of Copyright
Copyright ownership can be transferred and this must be done by a written agreement.
The transfer (assignment) of copyright onlyaffects economic rights.
This transfer could be total or partial
In partial assignment, a music author maytransfer his reproduction, translation and
adaptation rights to a publisher. He may alsodecide to split his rights between different
persons
Transfer of copyright may also
be granted for aperiod of time and
for a certain territory
Transfer of copyright is serious business and should be entered into ONLY after proper
legal consultations.
Limitations on copyright There are exceptions to the rules in copyright.
Fair use: music is exploited without authorization of the owner and without the obligation to compensate the owner afterwards. This is
obtainable in the use of such works by way of illustration for news reporting or teaching purposes. This is purely for non-profit or
non-commercial purposes. Also note that playing a complete music track in a news report is not fair
use.