-----Original Message-----
From: seofon@wco.com
Like it or not, there is more to the music industry than music,
let alone
musical evolution. By all means, you can charge after people
and sue them
over every little sample ... I think it's a big waste of time.
I'd rather
put the effort into promoting myself better or something. After
all, if
someone rips off one of my songs and gets rich and famous with
it, then the
brute fact is that they have better PR than me.
--Seofon
CF sez:
I agree somewhat, but you're gonna get flamed like nuts by artist
victimized by copyright stealers with powerful lawyers. To have good PR
you need $, which isn't distributed fairly to the people based on merit!
BTW, when a DJ spins someone's records they legally ARE required to pay
for it just as if they used a big sample on a CD. This is usually done
through ASCAP fees. Basically, a nightclub or bar which plays recorded
music MUST pay ASCAP a certain flat fee per year to be permitted to play
"music" (just general "music") in their establishment, whether it's a
tape, a DJ, or even a transistor radio. If the music is part of the
attraction of the establishment, then the establishment must pay the
fee. (If they do not pay, they can be sued for copyright infringement.)
This money, ostensibly, goes to the artists and/or record labels. Chart
tracking and album sales, i think, help determine how to distribute the
money to whom. Radio stations pay these fees too, but I think they are
supposed to give rough estimates as to what music they are playing. So
the classic rock stations don't pay astralwerks anything, for example.
So, technically and legally, whenever you play somebody's music for
personal profit you have to pay the artist, however indirectly.
Anybody know more about this who can explain it more accurately? I'm no
entertainment lawyer
-CF