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The big music companies hire untalented musicians for cheap because they have no union.

Actually, there is the American Federation of Musicians. Granted, it is far and away the most inept and least effective collective bargaining unit in human history, but it does exist. A lot of musicians I know consider their AFM membership as just a really expensive compulsory newsletter subscription.

Here is the guy's e-mail address: awillaert@afm.org. Make sure to use it wisely...

(Here is what I sent him:

Sir,

We have been informed that you had the incredible gall of demanding an apology for an NDP member of parliament distributing a pamphlet promoting FAIR copyright.

Obviously, you have absolutely no clue as what the NDP is. The NDP is not an american media industry shill, but a political party dedicaced for the needs of the public.

We, the canadian public, will make sure that a truly balanced copyright act pass, a copyright act that will not solely cater to the whims of companies engaged in an outdated business model and who want absolute total control over the material it produces.

Copyright always has been a matter of balance between the rights of authors and of the consuming public. By removing all the rights of the public and effectively creating a nation of criminals, the government would break the social contract that have existed for centuries between the people and government.

By demanding ridiculously onerous copyright protection, the media industry acts like it was everything. It is not. After all, it's nothing but a bunch of public entertainers, and not something on which national security depends.

Do not take for granted the desiderata of the (mostly foreign) copyright industry (for which you are a paid shill); after all, just like the previous two attempts, a federal election is looming, which will render useless any lobbying efforts p

Rather than legislating it, artists could form a proper union or professional society I guess.

Like the American Federation of Musicians?

Ah, there IS a musician's union. It's been around for over a century: the American Federation of Musicians.

http://www.afm.org/public/home/index.php/

Well, all you have to do is join the American Federation of Musicians, then apply to the Canadian Private Copying Collective for a zero-rating on the levy.

That should save you $105 on your purchase of 500 blanks (yes, $0.21 on ea.!!), and after the $60 application fee for the zero-rating and the $112.00 annual AFM dues plus the $115 initiation fee, you'll have saved -$182 ...oh.

I was archiving field recordings on blank media, and paying a levy. At some point, I just broke down and started downloading mp3's so that I didn't feel so ripped off.

heh, that's funny, because when I read AFM, I first thought about the American Federation of Musicians" at afm.org.

-dB

Are the AFM really doing nothing about Work For Hire?

Tom.

> In the movie industry, Actors get paid a lot of
> money,

Most don't.

> In the music industry, Artists get paid sweet
> FA, they obviously don't have a union,

They don't?

But it doesn't stop there. Some creative jobs are organized. Hollywood is very unionized; actors belong to the Screen Actor's Guild (SAG) or the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA), musicians belong to the American Federation of Musicians (AFM) directors belong to the Director's Guild of America (DGA), drivers belong to the Teamsters, and most of the support people belong to the International Association of Theatrical and Stage Workers (IATSE). Lucasfilm's animators and CGI techs in Northern California belong to IATSE, which is trying to organize online entertainment shops. If you're doing web design or involved in running a web site, it might be worth talking to an IATSE organizer. They send people to ACM SIGGRAPH meetings in SF, so they're not hard to find.

A union shop is a great advantage in an industry with heavy time pressures. It gives the employees an effective way to push back. Anybody in those unions who works a 12-hour day gets paid major overtime. Get called in for a weekend emergency, and big bonuses apply. This discourages employeers from understaffing and overworking their employees. If a job needs to be done 24/7, it takes four full-time employees.

Organizing in the US is very tough. Over 90% of employees who try to organize a union are fired, even though this is illegal. Canada, for example, has stronger labor laws, and it's much easier to organize there. This is the main reason for declining union membership in the US.

Despite the obstacles, temps at Microsoft have successfully organized a union, and won a lawsuit against Microsoft.

"Radio stations are licensed (probably by the RIAA or a similar group) to play CDs on the air. It's very difficult, if not impossible, for a single person to get such a license."

Here are the clearances you have to play music on the radio:

Music Copyright. This covers the composer's ownership of the songs played. In the US, the principal agents for administering these clearances are ASCAP and BMI, although some songs (example: Mannheim Steamroller's music) are handled by SESAC. These folks aren't connected with the record companies or the artists... they're only interested in the songs. Most radio stations buy a blanket license for unlimited use of music, although you can pay on a per-performance basis. (BTW, ASCAP operates under an antitrust settlement going back a number of years, so what they do is subject to monitoring by the court.) You need this license unless: (1) You're not broadcasting ANY music (DOH!) or (2a) ALL the music you broadcast is public domain (major genre: Classical) or (2b) you (or someone else) have made arrangements directly with the copyright holder (You don't need a license for jingles if you pay the jingle company directly, and commercial advertisers are supposed to take care of rights issues themselves. You also don't need any license if the music is 100% your own work.).

Performance Copyright. Yeah, performances are copyright, too (that's the (P) mark you see on CD boxes). Performance copyright is relatively new in the US... IIRC, it started sometime in the 80s. Also note that you can copyright a performance even if the music performed is public domain. AFAIK, there's no performance clearance requirement in the US (although I've not studied the latest copyright revisions). If this is still the case, you don't have to pay anyone if commercial recordings are involved: Artists (and record companies) are supposed to make their money from the increased record sales that resulted from the stations playing their music. But there's one important exception: Live performances. If you want to broadcast a concert (or just a set from the local jazz club), be prepared to pay your friends at the Musician's Union for the privelege of doing so. [Warning to performers: Your local may still want its cut, even if you'd like to do a performance-in-exchange-for-exposure. Check with your business manager before making any deals!]

Grand Dramatic Rights. The only reason to worry about this is if you're going to broadcast a musical (also applies to operas and plays) in its entirety. Individual songs are covered by the music copyright rules above, but beware if you want to play the 3CD complete recording of Les Miz all at once. This is a real gray area, and the law has been unclear as to just where grand rights kick in... if you're thinking of doing this, consult a good IP lawyer first. Grand rights clearances are usually negotiated directly with the publisher/producer/holding company that controls the particular show.

Other comments: If you're a licensed radio station, you should have no trouble whatever getting an ASCAP or BMI license. (In fact, they should be glad to talk to you.) Unless the law has changed significantly, that's all you need to do the kind of broadcasting most people on this thread are talking about. Billboard publications has a good reference that explains all of this: This Business of Music. Most libraries have a copy.

Disclaimer: IANAL, and (at the moment) NOT in the radio business, so don't consider this as gospel! The penalties for copyright violation are severe, and the law is complex (with special provisions for not-for-profit or educational organizations, for example), so don't sign anything or do any broadcasting without the advice of a good intellectual property lawyer.