New fees for playing recorded music

[radiofan]

Copyright board to charge for music at weddings, parades

May I have this dance? It’s going to cost you

By Zoe McKnight, Vancouver Sun May 31, 2012


VANCOUVER - After paying for the hall, the rings, the food and the dress, couples planning weddings will have even more fees to worry about when it comes time to dance.

New copyright rules announced today will impose fees on venues holding live events that play recorded music. But that won’t stop happy couples from dancing, said wedding and event planner Candice Jones.

“You’re still going to have some background music. Whether it’s Michael Bublé or the Black Eyed Peas,” Jones said. “I don’t think it’s going to deter anybody from having dancing, but it’s just one of those surprise costs in the end that people aren’t aware of.”

Effective Oct. 1, the Copyright Board of Canada has certified new tariffs on events held at venues that play recorded music, whether it’s convention centres, banquet halls, parades, ice shows, fairs, or weddings. The fees will be collected by not-for-profit agency Re: Sound, which distributes the money to performers and music labels. The fees are on top of those collected by the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN).

For events such as weddings, receptions, conventions and assemblies with fewer than 100 people, the Re: Sound fee is $9.25 per day. That increases to $13.30 for crowds of up to 300 people, $27.76 for 301-500 guests, and $39.33 for crowds of more than 500. Oddly, the fees double if there’s dancing.

The fees will also apply to fashion shows, circuses, fireworks displays, cabarets and taverns.

The intention behind the tariffs is to share some of the revenue made by venues with those who created the music, said Matthew Fortier, a spokesman for Re: Sound. “This is music being used commercially,” he said. “A venue, a hotel, a conference centre — they’re making money off it, right? Bringing people in, retaining people at the event. The rights protect the people that recorded that music.” Fortier said it’s up to the organizers of public events or venue owners to pay the royalties.

Reporting works on the honour system — it’s up to venues to tell Re: Sound how much music they’ve used.

But Jones, who runs A Day to Remember event planning, said the costs will likely be off-loaded onto couples or party hosts the same way SOCAN fees are. At a recent wedding she organized for 168 people, the SOCAN fee was $78, on top of nearly $1,000 for a DJ. The Re: Sound fee for a wedding of that size would be about $30. It was not immediately known if any dancing took place.

Meanwhile Karaoke bars will pay between $86.06 and $124 annually depending on how many days they operate per week. And parades will be charged a minimum daily fee of $32.55 and $4.39 thereafter for each participating float with recorded music.

zmcknight@vancouversun.com

With files from Canadian Press

© Copyright (c) The Vancouver Sun


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[PMC]

Isn't this double dipping if the dj that shows up with his netbook/laptop, pays a fee.