bmi.com
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BMI.com is the official site for Broadcast Music, Inc., a major U.S. performing rights organization that administers licenses and collects royalties for songwriters, composers, and publishers. It provides licensing information, member tools, rights and royalty resources, submission guidelines, and educational content about music copyright and licensing.
More resources on Music Copyright & Licensing
Music Business Foundations
This course has been developed to provide students with the latest instruction on the best way for creators, consumers, and facilitators to navigate the resurgence of one of the world’s most exciting industries: the music business. Three things are clear about today’s music industry: The consumption of music is expanding at the greatest rate in history and from the most portals ever imagined, the cost of producing music is decreasing, and the number of artists creating and seeking to expose their work and develop careers through the Internet has increased dramatically. Whether you’re a music creator, consumer, or facilitator of this process, you’ll want to understand the history, underpinnings, and basics of the music business. Course author John Kellogg—administrator, educator, entertainment lawyer, performer, and radio and television personality—offers students the opportunity to learn the fundamental principles of the developing new music business, for now and into the future. What you'll learn: -- The basic history of the music industry and today's business trends -- How recording agreements are formulated -- The basics of copyright law as it pertains to the music business -- The role of agents, managers, attorneys, and specific business entities
ASCAP
Website of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, a US performing rights organization. Explains how public performance royalties are collected and paid, how licensing works, and how to register works, so writers understand how their songs earn performance income.
ASCAP Knowledge Base
ASCAP's FAQ section on public performance licensing: what a blanket license covers, which venues and uses require one, how fees are set, and how the society engages licensees. Useful for understanding the performing-rights side of music rights.
U.S. Copyright Office
Official site of the U.S. Copyright Office, covering registration procedures, fee schedules, searchable public records, and circulars explaining what copyright protects. Use it to register a work and to check the statutory basis for claims you read elsewhere.
All You Need to Know About the Music Business
Standard reference on how money moves through the music industry, written by an entertainment attorney. Covers recording contracts, publishing splits, streaming royalties, touring deals and management agreements, so you can read a real contract and know what each clause costs you.
Music Law: How to Run Your Band's Business
Nolo legal guide for working bands, covering partnership agreements, band name ownership, trademark, songwriting splits, sampling clearance and performance contracts. Includes model forms, so you can set up the legal structure of a group without hiring counsel first.