Discussion:
What is the name of your state?CT
Hi and thank you for allowing me to post.
Can you please tell me if it is legal to copy professional musicians' recorded songs to personal videos that would NOT be sold, only played on the Internet or DVD's for free viewing? No compensation in any way would be generated off the site or DVD. If not on the net, can the video be used as entertainment for say, a party video?
Can you PLEASE expand on the boundaries and limitations in this area?
If a license is needed, what are the requirments and what would be the costs?
Thank you,
Joe
Answer:
Can you please tell me if it is legal to copy professional musicians' recorded songs to personal videos that would NOT be sold, only played on the Internet or DVD's for free viewing? No compensation in any way would be generated off the site or DVD. If not on the net, can the video be used as entertainment for say, a party video? No, it is not legal. Whether or not you receive compensation is irrelevant. From a practical standpoint, if the video is used soley for personal use in your own home, then the chances of you getting in trouble are very slim -- but it is still not legal. Putting something on the internet will make it much more likely that you will garner the attention of the relevant rights holders.
Can you PLEASE expand on the boundaries and limitations in this area? There are no boundaries or limitations -- you can't do it legally without permission. You could try and argue a "fair use" as a defense -- see 17 USC 107 for more info, also Campbell v. Acuff-Rose Music -- but "fair use" is a DEFENSE to an infringement action, which means it is something you raise once you've already been sued -- it doesn't keep you from getting sued in the first place.
Plus, if you use a whole song, that really mitigates against a use being fair anyway.
If a license is needed, what are the requirments and what would be the costs? You need two licenses, actually -- one for the "musical work" (the song), and one for the "sound recording" (the recorded performance of the song). You can purchase a license for the musical work from the Harry Fox Agency -- the licenses are compulsory, so they will give you one if you ask for one and pay for it.
The licenses for the sound recordings are NOT compulsory, however, and you will need to negotiate for a license with the record company that owns the particular sound recording you are interested in using. Some record companies are unwilling to negotiate with individuals for the right to use a song, so you may need to be flexible in your song choices...