Can this doc "bypass" music copyright issue for editors?? (help frm Mr. Tauger?)

[Gregory Alexander]

Originally Posted by Steve House

Fair Use is a defense against allegations of infringment. It can only be raised as a defense once you have been sued.

Does it have to be actually something that needs to enter an actual courtroom or can this be settled at the Cease and Desist letter stage? I recall reading of people getting free help from Standford Law Center on this right when they get their unwarranted threat letters for legitimate Fair Use of their material and then record companies have backed off (and even apologized for their mistake). Am I misunderstanding this situation?

Doesn't seem right for someone to have to put out money they dont have for legal expenses (if they're not aware of this Fair Use legal help program at Standford) to have their rights enforced or even considered.

[Steve House]

Originally Posted by Gregory Alexander

Does it have to be actually something that needs to enter an actual courtroom or can this be settled at the Cease and Desist letter stage? I recall reading of people getting free help from Standford Law Center on this right when they get their unwarranted threat letters for legitimate Fair Use of their material and then record companies have backed off (and even apologized for their mistake). Am I misunderstanding this situation?

Doesn't seem right for someone to have to put out money they dont have for legal expenses (if they're not aware of this Fair Use legal help program at Standford) to have their rights enforced or even considered.

Fair Use is not a right. It is a defense you can raise if someone claims you have infringed their copyright. Fundamentally you don't have any rights with regard to another individual's property. The legislature has deemed that for a few specific exceptions spelled out in the law which I have listed in other replies, the social good of having those sorts of publications outweighs the property rights of the individual copyright owner. If you receive a cease and desist letter you can either comply or you can respond that you believe your usage is Fair Use because of x, y, and z. The person that sent that letter can then decide if they want to pursue it further or you have convinced them with your argument and they decide to drop their action. If they choose to push it, then a court will decide if your use actually is Fair Use or not. If the judge decides your usage of the material falls into one or more of those categories your claim of fair use will likely prevail. If he finds it doesn't, your claim will be rejected.

[Gregory Alexander]

Thanks for the clarification. btw, do you have a background in law or do you have a good site or book you could refer me to for detailed info on this laid out SIMPLY in layman's terms?

It would be nice if the mod could stickie this discussion thread, lots of very relevant and important info in here contributed by you and others!

[Steve House]

Originally Posted by Gregory Alexander

Thanks for the clarification. btw, do you have a background in law or do you have a good site or book you could refer me to for detailed info on this laid out SIMPLY in layman's terms?

It would be nice if the mod could stickie this discussion thread, lots of very relevant and important info in here contributed by you and others!

If by "background in law" you mean have I been to law school no, I have not. I have had an interest in various types of media production for over 40 years and have worked professionally in publishing, photography and broadcasting at several points in my career. Over that time I have made it a point to educate myself on copyright and other legal issues that might affect me. My information has come from a variety of reliable sources over the years, including personal communication with friends who are practicing attorneys. One current source you might start with is a series of podcasts dealing with the law and video production by intellectual property attorney Gordon Firemark, available for download on iTunes. A web search on his name should turn them up for you.

[Gregory Alexander]

AWESOME! Man if I would've known about that I probably would've skipped posting this question on here altogether and gone straight there (not that I and others didn't get helpful information in this thread from folks like yourself).

Thanks again :)

G

[Gregory Alexander]

And just when I thought this thread was all over...here I just NOW end up coming across this:

ZOOM :: Music Licensing for Videography & Digital Imaging

Anyone use this service before? I'm going through their TOS right now.

Excerpt:

With the expanding world of digital production in video, photography, and other media, you need to be sure that you and your clients are protected by using music that is licensed by the artists you select. ZOOM allows you to license copyrighted music of your choice easily and efficiently for a single production at fees of just $3.50-$5.50 per song.

Major publishing companies and record labels are already licensing original and popular music through ZOOM License and more songs are being cleared every month. Through ZOOM you will soon have an entire universe of copyrighted music at your fingertips for legal use in your productions.

ZOOM - Music Licensing for Videography & Digital Imaging allows you to:

* Use copyrighted music from major labels legally in your wedding and special event video productions and photo montages.
* EMI Music content already cleared for licensing.
* Other major labels and publishers are clearing music now.
* Create an account and begin licensing music today.
* View songs that have already been cleared for licensing.
* Register and track your uses.
* Request songs to be cleared for licensing.
* Print out a synch license for each song used.

[Gregory Alexander]

FAQ: ZOOM :: Music Licensing for Videography & Digital Imaging
TOS: ZOOM :: Music Licensing for Videography & Digital Imaging

[Steve House]

Sounds like a good idea if it actually flies. From a quick reading of the FAQ it appears they're acting as a clearance agent for you and clearance agents are a preferred way of clearing music rather than trying to contact copyright owners yourself. Agents know who to call to get a clearnace while most of us don't.

[Gregory Alexander]

Yah I know! I need to finish read through the TOS. For all other readers, it says right in the FAQ:

How do I know I won't be sued by the RIAA or any other music industry organization?
For every song that you license for your production project, you will be able to print out the legal synchronization license for your records as proof of licensing. All tracks cleared into the ZOOM catalog have been approved by the record label that owns the Master Recording of the song and the publisher that represents the Composition.

I gotta find someone who's tried them. If this is legit....SCORE!!! (especially since some of my favorite artists, like Moby, are with EMI records which are all pre-cleared)

woohoooo! :D

[Shaun Roemich]

Is Internet broadcast covered by ZOOM License?
Internet usage can be covered for an additional fee of $500 per song, per production project.

Tell your brides not to upload their videos to YouTube...

[Gregory Alexander]

Ya I saw that, looking to see if they say who is legally (and financially) responsible if the finished product were to be uploaded/broadcast by the client and it gets spread around and copied outside the producer's/editor's consent, knowledge or control. Hope that doesn't bring us back to square one. :(

[Nigel Barker]

Originally Posted by Gregory Alexander

Ya I saw that, looking to see if they say who is legally (and financially) responsible if the finished product were to be uploaded/broadcast by the client and it gets spread around and copied outside the producer's/editor's consent, knowledge or control. Hope that doesn't bring us back to square one. :(

You cannot be responsible for what your client does with the video after delivery but to be on the safe side just print a warning on the disc that it should not be copied or uploaded.

BTW We already have scheme here in the UK that allows us to cheaply licence any music for small production runs of discs which is ideal for weddings & similar but this does not extend to broadcast on the Internet http://www.prsformusic.com/users/rec...cence(LM).aspx