SOCAN the Canadian RIAA

[Vibecrewangel]

Chimp.....can you back this one up? Or is this overblown?

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNew...279486433_46//

Music biz drills into dentists for royalties

CTV.ca News Staff

The group that collects royalties for songwriters is taking aim at an unusual source: dentists. It's not just dentists, but chiropractors and opticians -- any kind of office space that plays CDs.

"This was a money grab, what is the legitimacy of this kind of request of a license for this purpose," asks Dr. Jack Cotrell of the Canadian Dental Association.

The idea that music is in the public domain is a longstanding one, but it's also completely wrong, according the a musicians' rep.

"Not only is it the right thing to do, but it's also the lawful thing to do, to pick up a licence for what amounts to a mere few pennies a day," said Andre LeBel, CEO of The Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN).

SOCAN is the Canadian copyright collective for the public performance of musical works. The group administers the performing rights of composers, lyricists, songwriters and their publishers.

It says that every time a dentist or other health care practitioner plays music for its patients, he's stealing. The group wants the doctors to pay up for the right to play their songs.

Some will not like the stance SOCAN is taking. However, there are some who welcome the idea.

"Songwriters are hurting because of the perception it's the public domain ... it's about time this happened," said Johnathan Simkin who runs '604 Records' and is the lawyer for the rock group Nickelback.

It’s not just SOCAN taking aim at general music listeners. On Sept. 9, the U.S. recording industry filed more than 200 lawsuits against people who share copyrighted music files over the Internet.

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on behalf of its members, which include Universal Music Group, BMG, EMI, Sony Music and Warner Music, filed the 261 lawsuits in federal courts around the U.S.

"We want people to stop engaging in the theft of music so that people can go on making it. This is a terrible thing where people are biting the hands that make the music and destroying the very music that they want to continue to be created," said RIAA president Cary Sherman.

U.S. copyright laws allow for damages of up to $150,000 US for each song offered illegally on a person's computer.

SOCAN doesn't want to press charges. It just hopes businesses will voluntarily come up with the cash -- so musicians can continue to make life a little more enjoyable.

With reports from CTV's Todd Battis and the Associated Press

[mburbank]

I just want to say that I personlly find this both more outrgeous and more newsworthy than the Rush Limbaugh flap. I'd add that fatty is huge quitter crybaby.

[Vibecrewangel]

You're just saying that 'cause he's carrying some extra weight Max. If he were thin you'd never think he was a crybaby quitter.
You fatist bastard!

[mburbank]

I just think he's overrated and that people make a big deal of him becuase they want to support the idea of fat guy on the radio.

[FS]

Jesus Christ. Maybe the entire record industry should just throw all their music into a big vault and snarl at everyone that passes by their buildings.

[Ninjavenom]

Buncha fuckin' indian givers.

[Rongi]

That's it I'm going to pawn my ears, since I obviously don't need them anymore

[AChimp]

It's true, actually.

This was in the news last week or so when this fat recording agent guy was whining that musicians are having their stuff played in all these other places and not getting a cent.

Thing is, though, he was including places like big department stores and shopping malls, not just offices. Store owners were laughing at him because they said they already pay for special "store broadcast" compilation tapes/CDs, and if they're gonna get charged for extra stuff, they'll just turn on the radio instead.

Copyright laws aren't really a big deal here in Canada (contrary to what the RIAA is trying to make it sound like). It's perfectly legal here to make as many copies of anything you have, as long as it's for private use. If I lend you a CD and you make your own private copy of it, that's okay.

It's in the gray area, yeah, but chances are the government won't get around to looking at it for a few years because of bigger issues like gay marriage, our military and the economy. Plus, with Chretien retiring next year, he's not about to dive into a new issue, and whoever is PM next won't give two shits about some music when their own kids probably download MP3s every night.

[Perndog]

Copyright laws have actually been pretty clear on this for quite a while a while; there are special provisions for Muzak (music in offices, etc.), but it still requires a license. If folks have a problem, instead of bitching at the businessmen for trying to get their legal dues, they should try to get the laws changed.

Oh, and Chimp, I'm pretty sure "private use" means private use of the owner of the copy, not of anyone they feel like lending it to. Whoever has got the original has the right to make and listen to the copies. And that law is more or less the same everywhere; once you own a copyrighted work you can do almost anything with it (without a license) that doesn't include public performance, distribution, or profit.

[AChimp]

Creative interpretation. If I give it to you, you become the owner. You're just giving it back afterwards.

[Perndog]

And once I give it back, if I still possess a copy, the copy is illegal. Amusing, but creative interpretation would hardly hold up in court.

[FS]

heh. I agree that it wouldn't stand up in court, but there is a kind of funny logic to it. You're allowed to make copies of the music you own, and you're allowed to own more than one copy of the music. Basically, you give away your CD, the person copies the CD that is now 'rightfully' theirs, then gives you 'one of their copies'.

[AChimp]

This will never go to court in Canada because the Supreme Court is more interested in hearing discrimination cases. Have you noticed that the RIAA hasn't even tried to sue anyone here yet? They can't find anything that they would be 100% guaranteed to win under, and even if they did, they'd be waiting 5-8 years to appear in court for something that big.

[Zebra 3]

RIAA is one thing, but the CBC's Hockey Night in Canada is quite another. No courts required, Ron MacLean gives all fair warning during every broadcast that anyone who dares to record a game without the written consent of HNIC will end up having Bobby Orr soon at their place so he can carve them a new asshole!