Need a licence to listen to radio at work?

Terry WigonTerry Wigon Posts: 6,831
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I've just been watching Central News and there was a report about companies being warned to get a licence if they want to listen to the radio at work.

This includes taxi drivers (even if they turn off the radio when picking up a fare) and those of us who work from home. It's not the BBC who is enforcing this, but the Performing Rights Society who represent artists' interests.

Does anyone know anything about this? How on earth can it be enforced? This issue's obviously been around a while as I found more info here The cheapest licence is £125 a year, according to the news report. Whoopee. Yet another tax!!
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  • WokStationWokStation Posts: 23,112
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    It's not a tax, the music goes to the british music industry association. It's "public broadcast", y'see.

    I agree, it sucks. Just be thankful that the music industry's moving away from the industry part of itself...
  • slade1slade1 Posts: 2,375
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    Where I work we had some official come round threatening us to get a licence to have radios on at work. He said he will be back in two months time to see if we had one.
  • Terry WigonTerry Wigon Posts: 6,831
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    WokStation wrote: »
    It's not a tax, the music goes to the british music industry association. It's "public broadcast", y'see.

    I agree, it sucks. Just be thankful that the music industry's moving away from the industry part of itself...

    I see. So you can listen to the radio via headphones as long as it can't be heard by more than one person as that constitutes a 'performance'. Is that right?

    Might be a good idea to suppy the staff with headphones for their FM radios.
  • susie-4964susie-4964 Posts: 23,143
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    This includes taxi drivers (even if they turn off the radio when picking up a fare) and those of us who work from home. It's not the BBC who is enforcing this, but the Performing Rights Society who represent artists' interests.

    Well, only if you have members of the public coming round to visit you. Not if you're like me and you only work on your own, because I'm not providing a public entertainment.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 7,449
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    Its a condition of our taxi licences round here that we have a working radio in the cars as well.
  • susie-4964susie-4964 Posts: 23,143
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    I see. So you can listen to the radio via headphones as long as it can't be heard by more than one person as that constitutes a 'performance'. Is that right?

    Might be a good idea to suppy the staff with FM radio headphones.

    Does it also apply to these eejits who drive around in their souped-up VW Golfs with the windows open and their 100 W speakers?
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 40,102
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    I wonder what happens if the radio is owned by the place you work in. Where I work we have our own radio station which only broadcasts internally.
  • WokStationWokStation Posts: 23,112
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    I see. So you can listen to the radio via headphones as long as it can't be heard by more than one person as that constitutes a 'performance'. Is that right?

    Might be a good idea to suppy the staff with headphones for their FM radios.
    I think the members of staff would mean it constitutes a performance with or without the public, depending on the number of staff present.

    So get them all their own radios, with headphones - probably cheaper!
    I wonder what happens if the radio is owned by the place you work in. Where I work we have our own radio station which only broadcasts internally.
    If they broadcast music, they need a license. It's the music it's for.
    susie4964 wrote: »
    Does it also apply to these eejits who drive around in their souped-up VW Golfs with the windows open and their 100 W speakers?
    Interesting question - I'd imagine it only counts when they're stationary, as otherwise it's not a performance as no-one has a realistic chance of listening.

    Note: I'm not an expert. I'm merely repeating what I've found when looking this up previously.
  • fat controllerfat controller Posts: 13,757
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    MrsOggy wrote: »
    Its a condition of our taxi licences round here that we have a working radio in the cars as well.

    Do you have to get a PRS licence then?
  • Terry WigonTerry Wigon Posts: 6,831
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    susie4964 wrote: »
    Well, only if you have members of the public coming round to visit you. Not if you're like me and you only work on your own, because I'm not providing a public entertainment.

    I thought that was odd. I mean, if your workplace is your home, who's going to enforce what you can listen to? Maybe the news was trying to make the situation sound more dramatic than it is.

    From what I've read on here it sounds as if people who work in public areas are quite familiar with this licence lark anyway.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 7,449
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    Do you have to get a PRS licence then?

    No one has ever said we have to befor.
  • fat controllerfat controller Posts: 13,757
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    MrsOggy wrote: »
    No one has ever said we have to befor.

    Hopefully they won't in the future either, especially if you've a number of cars. Come to think of it, would it be one licence for all cars, or one each I wonder?
  • bluebladeblueblade Posts: 88,859
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    I've just been watching Central News and there was a report about companies being warned to get a licence if they want to listen to the radio at work.

    This includes taxi drivers (even if they turn off the radio when picking up a fare) and those of us who work from home. It's not the BBC who is enforcing this, but the Performing Rights Society who represent artists' interests.

    Does anyone know anything about this? How on earth can it be enforced? This issue's obviously been around a while as I found more info here The cheapest licence is £125 a year, according to the news report. Whoopee. Yet another tax!!

    It can't. So it's pretty pointless anybody making an issue of it.
  • Terry WigonTerry Wigon Posts: 6,831
    Forum Member
    susie4964 wrote: »
    Does it also apply to these eejits who drive around in their souped-up VW Golfs with the windows open and their 100 W speakers?

    They should have their radios limited to Radio 3 and BBC local radio and charge them for the privilege! I can't see them being so keen on pumping up the volume then! :D
  • Terry WigonTerry Wigon Posts: 6,831
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    blueblade wrote: »
    It can't. So it's pretty pointless anybody making an issue of it.

    I agree. That's why I was so surprised that one of the companies in the newscast said that they kept getting letters and would be being inspected to see if they'd removed the radio.
  • Prince MonaluluPrince Monalulu Posts: 35,900
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    blueblade wrote: »
    It can't. So it's pretty pointless anybody making an issue of it.

    Why couldn't it be enforced on offices or factory's for example?
  • bluebladeblueblade Posts: 88,859
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    Why couldn't it be enforced on offices or factory's for example?

    Because most radios at work belong to individual employees who bring them in. As far as I know, there is no rule to prevent those individuals playing their own radios for their own benefit anywhere they like. If you can find one, I'd be interested to see it.
  • GlenGlen Posts: 12,076
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    I wonder what happens if the radio is owned by the place you work in. Where I work we have our own radio station which only broadcasts internally.
    I would think that if the company runs its own radio station (or probaly gets Muzak or whatever they are called now to provide it like most places) they will have a PRS licence (they are supposed to have one).

    I would think all large retailers who have proper satellite rado services will have PRS licences - it's smaller companies or offices who won't bother.
  • susie-4964susie-4964 Posts: 23,143
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    I knew you needed a public entertainment licence to play recorded music, like records and CDs, I don't think I knew it also applied to radios played in public, though.
  • GlenGlen Posts: 12,076
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    blueblade wrote: »
    Because most radios at work belong to individual employees who bring them in. As far as I know, there is no rule to prevent those individuals playing their own radios for their own benefit anywhere they like. If you can find one, I'd be interested to see it.
    It doesn't matter whose radio it is, if it is on in a workplace it is classed as a public performance.

    But really the whole thing is unenforceable in places like offices and factories as the PRS people have no power to enter the premises so you can just say "no we don't listen to music we have Five Live on all day - now get lost" and they can't do anything.
    Of course, shops would need a licence as it's pretty obvious whether they had music on or not.


    I remember a few years ago when I worked for a national retailer we had a PRS licence for the shop. Then PRS claimed it only covered the shop floor and we needed seperate licence for the staff areas (this applied across the whole company). So our head office told us we weren't supposed to have the PA or radio on in the canteen. Of course no notice was taken of that as there was nothing anybody was going to do to enforce that.
  • AhlSAhlS Posts: 468
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    blueblade wrote: »
    Because most radios at work belong to individual employees who bring them in. As far as I know, there is no rule to prevent those individuals playing their own radios for their own benefit anywhere they like. If you can find one, I'd be interested to see it.

    If other people in the workplace can hear it, then it would require a license I think. Have no idea if would be OK if everyone wore headphones for their own radios though.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 143
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    If the US government here ever required a TV/Radio license, we would have our second revolution.
  • Prince MonaluluPrince Monalulu Posts: 35,900
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    blueblade wrote: »
    Because most radios at work belong to individual employees who bring them in. As far as I know, there is no rule to prevent those individuals playing their own radios for their own benefit anywhere they like. If you can find one, I'd be interested to see it.

    So as long as the Radio is privately owned there's nothing they can do?
    So what happens if the boss bought the radio or the company pipes the radio over the pa system?
  • Prince MonaluluPrince Monalulu Posts: 35,900
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    Lee_J wrote: »
    If the US government here ever required a TV/Radio license, we would have our second revolution.

    Read the OP Performing Rights Society, not the Government.
  • GlenGlen Posts: 12,076
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    Lee_J wrote: »
    If the US government here ever required a TV/Radio license, we would have our second revolution.
    This is not about a licence to use a TV or radio, it is regarding the fee paid to copyright collectives for public broacasts of their members' work.

    Similar licencing organisations do exsist for the same purpose in the US.
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ASCAP - Hmm.. trying to charge Scout camps for singing copyrighted songs - that's nice of them. Where's your revolution then?
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