Mechanical Copyright Protection Society (MCPS) - Collects sale for copyright holder, This goes to the record company as they will retain rights to your music. But once that period is over you will be able to get the full amount.
Performing Right Society (PRS) - Established in 1912. PRS Collects money for writers of the music that is publicly performed. Main income for PRS is; Music played on Television, Radio & in concerts. The PRS and PPL are very similar, PRS is for the writers of the music whereas PPL is for the performers of the music.
Phonographic Performance Limited (PPL) - Established in 1934 by EMI and Decca. PPL collects and distributes money on behalf of record companies and performers.
VPL - VPL was established in 1984 and is exactly like PPL but instead they deal with music videos. VPL collects money and distributes for the rights holder.
How to claim these
To claim all of these you must sign up to the specific program that you want. There are official websites where you'll sign up and pay standard fees (if necessary). Once you've signed up it will be your responsibility (if unsigned) to record when/where you're music/recordings have been played and length (sampling). All of these factors will determine how much you get paid. There is a minimum that an artist can be paid, this is to avoid having the membership fee at a ridiculous high price. Once you've performed a song or written a song or heard your song being played you need to log it and submit to receive payments.
Licensing
To be able to provide entertainment through music you will need obtain the right licenses. you will need to obtain licenses from
PRS - A Music Licence is required for live performance. This includes jukeboxes, CDs, video, radio, TV or live bands and discos.
PPL - A PPL licence is needed for the playing of original recordings; e.g. CDs, tapes or records, including jukeboxes and background music systems and by means of radio or TV in the vast majority of cases.
VPL - A VPL license is needed for the public playing of music videos.
Protecting your idea
Copyright - "Copyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, that grants the creator of an original work exclusive rights to its use and distribution, usually for a limited time, with the intention of enabling the creator of intellectual wealth" Definition from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright
Trademark - "A trademark is a recognizable sign, design or expression which identifies products or services of a particular source from those of others." Definition from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trademark
You can copyright your creations in many different ways i will list the two most common ;
- Mail - This is also known as 'Poor Man's Copyright' as it is the most commonly used method of copyright. This method is risky and through research i have found out it can be faked quite easy, so if copyrighting use several methods. First you must mail yourself the thing you wish to copyright e.g. (music, scripts, websites, software etc). Seal it, and mail it using a time stamp and do not open when it's done.
- Online - This is a quick easy way to copyright something and is hassle free you go onto www.copyrightservice.co.uk this is possibly the best way to copyright as its done through the government. To copyright online you have to register, create a claim, pay your standard fee and then wait for your claim to be accepted.
Why Royalties/Copyright/Licenses are needed
All of these are needed to make a musician's life easier, although it does benefit the government alot aswell.
Royalties - Royalties are needed to ensure that artists receive money and have a healthy income because most of the artists that are signed up to PPL, PRS and MCPS are unsigned and are in need of the extra money. Royalties also tie in with copyright because it ensures the right person is financially credited.
Trademark - Trademark is important because it ensures that an idea cannot be plagiarized or mimicked, this means that an idea can stay original.
Copyright - Copyright makes it easier for the right person to be intellectually credited, without this it would be hard to claim sosomething as yours.
Bibliography
- http://www.prsformusic.com/users/businessesandliveevents/livevenuesevents/soundadvice/aguidetolicences/Pages/aguidetolicences.aspx
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PRS_for_Music
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mechanical-Copyright_Protection_Society
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phonographic_Performance_Limited
- http://www.bbc.co.uk/academy/production/article/art20130702112135229
- http://www.prsformusic.com/aboutus/FAQs/copyrightfaqs/Pages/default.aspx
