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Do all offices and warehouses have to pay a licence fee to play music at work?
Cissy Fairfax
Posts: 11,818 Forum Member
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-23984386
Odd article this, which seems to create more questions that it answers. Not sure why it focusses only on the Police.
Odd article this, which seems to create more questions that it answers. Not sure why it focusses only on the Police.
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You've probably seen that message which comes up at the start of a film which warns against playing the DVD in ships, prisons, hospitals and oil rigs (lawyers love to be exhaustive).
Whether anyone pays attention is another matter of course. I suspect the police, local and central government and large corporations tend to pay for the licensees. Small businesses I'm guessing don't bother.
There's a similar ruse for showing TV as well, but I've forgotten who that is?.
So at its literal level if I nip into the office on a Saturday and put the radio on, that's ok but two other colleagues nip in, I should be paying a fee?
Is it music orientated or including any speech stuff?
My nephew's band receives money so I guess it does for others too.
Those who wish to use commercially produced music / gas / electricity / telephone lines / buildings / chairs / tea / coffee etc are traditionally required to pay for such goods and services.
So many ruses....
P.S. PRS distribute around 95% of income to their member composers and songwriters.
Does anyone fly out over the North Sea to check?
There must be barely an office or shop in some streets of 20 of them in a row which isn't playing a radio or CD.
If someone has Radio 4 or 5 on would they still have to pay?
Our works is a closed unit - anyone puporting to be from PRS or similar is promptly refused access through security.
yes as they have the ability to pick up other stations even if they don't play them and according to the PRS the music in the jingles created by the station if they have them also has to be paid for , even if the creator gets no money.
I am refusing to pay any PRS licence for our hotels that do not have music in public areas, I pay enough for the commercial TV licence and dispute that a hotel bedroom is a public performance as watching a TV there is no different to watching one at home.
The PRS are now trying to say that the law has changed under this government and that any TV that does not have its own dedicated aerial and is fed communally such as a hotel must pay the fee, I asked them when they intended to issue bills to block of flats to which they had no answer , I have emailed my MP on this but as Sir Malcolm Rifkind is an idol idiot with a safe seat he hasn't yet bothered to respond.
I object to paying for something that a TV station has already paid for and as a small to medium business we pay out enough already
night colleagues, have played there own tunes, but have been seriously told of by the security manager, that they cant do this, they risk the store being fined
But they have not paid for a business to have music performed
The PRS will even try and do you if a staff member is humming a tune and they hear
They also tried to get us to pay for a fee for our music on hold, even thought that system and its hold music is created by a company and it is licence free, the PRS said their rules override that of the creator, they created the music and its our own spoken words as a description on hold , why the hell should I pay the PRS for licence free music and my voice ? again we told them to sod off .
We are not playing music publicly , I am talking about TV's in hotel bedrooms, The BBC , ITV etc have already paid for any music in programmes and adverts and also a huge fee to the PRS , the PRS state that does not matter and that we have to pay for each TV a fee as we have to pay a licence fee for any music included in a TV programme or advert
http://www.venturenavigator.co.uk/content/499
The TV stattion pays for their right to use the music commercially - not yours. It doesn't matter from where you source the music, it's not yours or anyone else's to sell on.
When a telephone marketing company creates an on hold message using music they themselves create and require no licence fee for and it is not from any performer and use my voice for the talk over the PRS have no right to a fee
As for hotel bedrooms, hotel rooms are not public places but are a persons temporary accommodation as was described in the smoking law , there is a big difference between someone watching Corrie in their bedroom and they expect us to pay a fee for the theme tune and music in ads ( that has already been paid for ) and playing music in reception and a bar ( which I would have no objection to paying for )
Yes, anywhere that "broadcasts" music should have a licence.
The police story seems to be more a case of "lets complain about what tax payers money is being spent on" than anything specifically to do with the PRS licences for police stations. This story was also covered back in 2009 when Wiltshire Police banned the listening of music on its premises because the PRS wanted £28k for a licence.
The PRS has also been heavily criticised for going after small businesses, including one bloke who worked alone in his workshop who they tried to get £150 off.
They pay out to members of PRS. Media stations have to fill in lists saying artists they've played, bands and DJs and promotions managers for festivals are supposed to do the same thing as well but don't always.
If I was in one of the above organisations, yes.
Re the music on hold point - if you use non copyright material, you don't owe anyone any payment for the use of it.