# Licencing, How it works?



## MoeWalsaad (Jun 7, 2016)

Hello Everyone.
I'm thinking about launching my personal commercial music website, where I compose exclusive ethnic/folk local content that I believe has special demand where I live (Jordan), although I aim that my music to be used internationally as well.
However, I'm not an expert at all when it comes to legal stuff. So I have the following general questions:

- What do my customers need from me legally in order to properly make my music licenced for them to use internationally?

- How does the licencing process happen? Email? Paperwork? any examples?

- How does the payment process work? Give them my Paypal email, IBAN, etc?

- Is there is a difference between music for licencing and Royalty Free Music? and where do I stand If I want many people to use the same tracks freely?

- Do I ever need to copyright this kind of music? and how?


Thanks,


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## gsilbers (Jun 7, 2016)

Where are you located? 

as for your questions... 

 Do I ever need to copyright this kind of music? and how?

In USA once you have your music in tangible form (cd/mp3/etc) then the music is already copyrighted and you own it. 
now, if you want to REGISTER it in the library of congress then you will fill out a form, pay a few bucks and they store it there. IF a legal issue arises then you have Proof its yours because of your submission was on X date so it proves its yours. 

its it needed? no. but its just safer to do it if you think it might be a hit. send one disk with a whole bunch of tracks label as a compilation and thats it. worry free if any issue happens in the future like someone claiming one of your songs its thiers and its a big hit. if i am not mistaken, any sort of litigation is only worth it if there at least $100k-300k dollars. but i guess if its registered and you have the submission proof you might scare someone before it gets messy. 
i personally dont do it. my music is not worth that much... not a self concious thing... literally i crank them out like crazy , they get placed and move on. dont get a lot of money from them so i dont bother. i would say any song song with a singer or a group it might be worth it. 

fyi-- each questions is about this long of an answer -- and more! if this thread derails i would suggest asking each question in one thread. each question is very relevant i always learn somehting from them.


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## MoeWalsaad (Jun 7, 2016)

gsilbers said:


> Where are you located?
> 
> as for your questions...
> 
> ...


Thanks For the answer, I live in Jordan. but I aim to prepare my music to be used internationally.


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## RiffWraith (Jun 7, 2016)

gsilbers said:


> its it needed? no.



Yes it is. At least here in the USA. (I know the op has since said he is in Jordan).

If you want to file a plagiarism suit, you MUST have your work(s) registered with the copyright office; you can not file suit without a reg form.

If you want to successfully defend yourself in a plagiarism suit, you MUST have your work(s) registered with the copyright office.


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## RiffWraith (Jun 7, 2016)

Moe - are you looking to license the music directly, ie - are you looking to self publish?


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## MoeWalsaad (Jun 8, 2016)

RiffWraith said:


> Moe - are you looking to license the music directly, ie - are you looking to self publish?


Yes, I want to do it directly, I gave up on relying on stock Music sites like AudioJungle, Pond5.. they are so picky when it comes to folk/arabic/traditional music (Maybe because the reviwers don't feel it like the local people here do), plus I'm not so happy with their payments system, standards and workflows. The Middle eastern market quality and standards are completely different than international/Western standards in all composition/arrangements/quality aspects.


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## RiffWraith (Jun 8, 2016)

If you want to self publish and license your music directly, the first thing you need to do is register the works with the copyright office in Jordan. I am assuming there is one.

Secondly, you want to have a good attorney who is familiar with the business draft a contract specific to your needs, that you will have your clients sign. You will work off of the original contract the attorney has provided you, and make adjustments, such as client name track(s) name, date terms, etc.

As for pymt terms, you would discuss this with your client. You should have a paypal acct set up so they can pay that way, but you should have other options available as well (such as bank > bank wire xfer), so your client does not feel pigeonholed into one pymt method.

For royalties and ownership - unless the client is asking you to create an original work for them, which will then be exclusive to them - your contract will say that you retain copyright/ownership, and the performance royalties as well. You will always hold on to the writers, but if a client wants to take the publishing, you will have to decide if that is the route you wish to go.

Cheers.


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## JohnG (Jun 8, 2016)

Hi Moe,

The questions you are asking, to be answered properly, would take ages. 

There is a 510 page book that, for the USA at least, covers a lot of what you are asking. It's called This Business of Music. The edition I have includes example contracts for various uses in the back but I don't know that the new edition has those -- doesn't look like it. When I bought it I laboriously typed the licensing one myself.

I'm not saying you need this book but if you really want to understand what you are doing you need something like it. Or go to work for a music publisher for a time and learn that way.

Here's what the publisher says about it:

_"(Book). The bible of the music industry with over 500,000 copies sold! Now in its tenth edition, This Business of Music has been revised and completely updated to reflect the latest changes in the ever-evolving music business. An entirely new chapter has been added, asking and answering the question "Are there borders in cyberspace?" The answer is yes, and this book clearly and concisely explains what they are and how to maintain them. Commentary on recent legislation, a reader-friendly summary of the laws on copyright duration, and much more insightful analysis plus fully updated lists of music organizations and important websites make This Business of Music indispensable for musicians, agents, managers, marketers, music publishers and groups, colleges and universities, and everyone who wants to make music and make money."_


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## gsilbers (Jun 8, 2016)

MoeWalsaad said:


> Hello Everyone.
> I'm thinking about launching my personal commercial music website, where I compose exclusive ethnic/folk local content that I believe has special demand where I live (Jordan), although I aim that my music to be used internationally as well.
> However, I'm not an expert at all when it comes to legal stuff. So I have the following general questions:
> 
> ...



ll try to answer each one shortly.

- What do my customers need from me legally in order to properly make my music licenced for them to use internationally?

normally its just a contract but since each country has its own laws its tough.
there are contracts out there you could use but also you can hire a lawyer to draft a most common license deals.
making sure it grasp the most common EU and USA standard license contract info.

- How does the licensing process happen? Email? Paperwork? any examples?

email. have a clear site that states music for license and a way to contact you. someone will email you and you state the price
and if they are ok, send them the contract , they sign it and you send them the WAV audio.

- How does the payment process work? Give them my Paypal email, IBAN, etc?

paypal is most common and easy. paypal has also a way to accept credit cards. if you have a website with this feature it might be easier. or you can send an email via paypal as an invoice.

- Is there is a difference between music for licensing and Royalty Free Music? and where do I stand If I want many people to use the same tracks freely?

yes. its a grey area with many details. for royalty free site try submitting directly to those types of websites.
they will send a contract. I would recommend only doing with tracks that are not top notch.

- Do I ever need to copyright this kind of music? and how?
see below. the answer is a big NO. it is NOT at all necessary. you can license tracks without copyright registration.
but it would help to get them registered for JUST in CASE scenarios. I suggest don't over think this. 

other things:

FYI- you will have to register with BMI or ASCAP or whichever PRO is the best for you.
You will also have to register as a publisher in BMI or Ascap or whichever PRO is the best for you.


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## MoeWalsaad (Jun 8, 2016)

RiffWraith said:


> If you want to self publish and license your music directly, the first thing you need to do is register the works with the copyright office in Jordan. I am assuming there is one.
> 
> Secondly, you want to have a good attorney who is familiar with the business draft a contract specific to your needs, that you will have your clients sign. You will work off of the original contract the attorney has provided you, and make adjustments, such as client name track(s) name, date terms, etc.
> 
> ...



Great, Thanks for the information.


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## MoeWalsaad (Jun 8, 2016)

JohnG said:


> Hi Moe,
> 
> The questions you are asking, to be answered properly, would take ages.
> 
> ...



Thanks, Looks like I have no room and patience in my brain to study all this, I think I will go with hiring a specialized attorney.


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## MoeWalsaad (Jun 8, 2016)

gsilbers said:


> ll try to answer each one shortly.
> 
> - What do my customers need from me legally in order to properly make my music licenced for them to use internationally?
> 
> ...



Great answers, brief and a good starting point to look for.

However, can the licensing contract be just a standard online check on an "agreement terms" to be done when the clients pick a track to buy? or do we have to meet and sign an actual paper? (Sorry for stupid questions, I'm a simple artist who's way out of this business and legal universe)


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## JohnG (Jun 8, 2016)

MoeWalsaad said:


> Looks like I have no room and patience in my brain to study all this



You don't have to study all of it, but you will have to understand at least some of it or you risk wasting your time or even having your pocket picked by someone unscrupulous. ASCAP's website used to be a good place to learn basics about music copyright ideas, publisher's and writer's share, and so on; they had primers on the subject. BMI may as well -- haven't looked in a long time.



MoeWalsaad said:


> I'm a simple artist who's way out of this business and legal universe



I get that -- we all start where you are now, with no information and a lot of questions, but you are proposing to start a business so you need to make yourself learn something to start with. Personally, I found all the concepts initially a bit hard to understand. But of course if you want to go into business you will want to be clear on at least the very basics. You can learn by working for someone else, reading books and websites or hiring an attorney. 

Most Expensive Education Possible?

Hiring an attorney is the most expensive possible route I can imagine to getting educated; attorneys, even good ones, may give you a lengthy, accurate, comprehensive and expensive answer _to the question you asked_ but, as a newcomer, you may not be asking the right question. It is not typical of attorneys to correct the questioner or tell him what questions he _should_ have asked. A few will, many won't. Start with a book or an authoritative website so at least you know the basics. 

One thing I would suggest you NOT do if you earnestly want to start a business, is to rely on website advice (like ours here). You cannot hope to get complete and accurate information from strangers whose qualifications you cannot check and who may lack the knowledge, time or inclination to give you guidance on which you will be risking your reputation and time.


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## MoeWalsaad (Jun 8, 2016)

JohnG said:


> You don't have to study all of it, but you will have to understand at least some of it or you risk wasting your time or even having your pocket picked by someone unscrupulous. ASCAP's website used to be a good place to learn basics about music copyright ideas, publisher's and writer's share, and so on; they had primers on the subject. BMI may as well -- haven't looked in a long time.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Thanks for the tips, I will see what to do, search and look around, however, I started a topic here assuming the subject is familiar to many composers and been through all this already, so it may help me know where to start my research.
Thank you.


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## higgs (Jun 8, 2016)

I realize that this might be ludicrously rudimentary, but I had this ASCAP copyright FAQ pulled up for a reply in another thread: http://www.ascap.com/~/media/files/pdf/advocacy-legislation/ascap_copyright_lesson_plan.pdf Sorry if it's too rudimentary, but there is some good info and a few great hypotheticals that might be helpful to get a basic understanding of US copyright - particularly the last page.


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## rJames (Jun 8, 2016)

I'm going to go against the grain here a bit.
But as everyone says, make sure you can prove ownership. If there is a way to register copyright in Jordan (there must be) do it.
The toughest thing to do anywhere is to make contacts with people who use music. Sure, you can have a website but you'll have to do a lot more than that if you want people to know you have music. Or you can wait 50 or 60 years until everyone has discovered you.
Most of the contracts I've had here in the US were presented to me by the end user, the movie studios.
You DO want to be legally careful... but your most important concern now is to get music users listening (and securing ownership proof).
Always be careful of who you work with but find good people and work with them. There probably IS a music library/publishing site that caters to Jordan and local music. Find them. Let them critique your music. Offer some of it to them as a test market. 
Learn the business from pros in your area. Find mentors in your area.
Starting a business from the ground up is tough. It can be done. Find example contracts in your area. Again, the most local music library. Muzikotek in Turkey???
You can go to your local TV station and try to hawk (sell) your music. Many, many, (most) people you meet like this will be honest and you can just work things out. But some people are not honest. Don't be naive. Protect yourself.


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## gsilbers (Jun 11, 2016)

MoeWalsaad said:


> Great answers, brief and a good starting point to look for.
> 
> However, can the licensing contract be just a standard online check on an "agreement terms" to be done when the clients pick a track to buy? or do we have to meet and sign an actual paper? (Sorry for stupid questions, I'm a simple artist who's way out of this business and legal universe)



Not a bad idea. its one way of doing it. 
The problem that if the next coca cola launch happens to use your music and they just did an automatci agreement checkout and paid .. say $100 then you have lost a big oportunity!

each usage is different and each region is different. so you'd wanna check and see how much money can you get out of the deal. maybe there is royalties or maybe not. so each deal will be a bit different. 

also, if someone sends you an email, that someone could be a potential buyer and could come for more and maybe ask you custom music and you can estbalish a relashonship.


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## AllanH (Jun 12, 2016)

I find the whole licensing, copyright, registration, PRO, etc. difficult to understand even though I'm sure it's pretty simple at some level. I asked a local attorney for guidance, and I immediately felt he really didn't know either. My conclusion is that before I release next time, I'll have to find an attorney that specializes in this field and start there. There are a couple of highly-rated book at Amazon and that's a place to start. I think this is difficult to get right no matter where you're located.


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