By Cassie Brown

There’s one major rule that everyone is breaking at events: not having a music license. This is a big mistake, as music licenses are a necessity – you can’t play copyrighted music publicly (at least not legally) without one.

Copyright laws require music users to get permission from songwriters and composers, who can then charge a fee for playing their music publicly. Two main organizations represent the majority of artists and music – BMI, the largest music rights organization, and ASCAP. It is their job to collect the fees from organizations that use music and distribute that to the artists. It is best to get both licenses unless you will only play a few songs and the ownership can easily be determined between the ASCAP and BMI. Why multiple licenses? Because different licensing organizations own different songs and it would be a miserable experience to take the band’s set list and look up every song.

Unfortunately, many people don’t understand the law, its scope, and the implications of breaking it. US Copyright law defines “public performance” as any music played outside a group of family and friends. By that definition, all company holiday parties, conferences, grand openings, etc. must obtain a license. Non-profits aren’t exempt either. If you pay an entertainer, a music license is necessary. Many companies assume that their music license includes events. Unfortunately, it doesn’t.

By not having the license, the organization is at risk of receiving copyright infringement penalties. By not doing it, the organization is risking very large fines – the ASCAP fine is a minimum of $750 per song plus attorney fees and court costs.

There is another common misconception that the contracted band or DJ is responsible for obtaining the license. Many band and DJ contracts have a line in their contracts stating it is the responsibility of the organization. In addition, the entertainers couldn’t get the license even if they wanted to…the license must be held in the organizations name. Venue contracts also typically pass off the responsibility of getting music licenses to the client.

Once you come to an understanding that you do, in fact, need to get a license, the good news is that they are fairly easy to obtain. Each site offers the ability to download the appropriate license. Fees are based on the number of people at the event, and each license covers all events for one year. You will fill out a reporting document at the end of the year with a total count of all participants.

One last caution: these licenses don’t cover sync rights, video usage, dramatic rights…that is a separate form (and expense).

Forewarned is forearmed: get the licenses you need, avoid future headaches and stand back as attendees dance the night away!

Originally published in Meetings+Events Media Group.