Karaoke Forums

Read the article, some very interesting stuff. To be honest, they aren't "specifically" going after karaoke clubs, they are simply going after clubs that do not have a license to perform copyrighted material (music or karaoke) in their clubs. what is stupid is that for most clubs it works out to be about $2.50 a day for the license, so for a year of licensing (and more importantly- keeping ASCAP off your back) it would cost the average club $600-800 bucks!!! There is no reason to risk your club over that amount, IMHO, and a ASCAP/BMI licensed club owner may find it more important to hire KJ/DJ's who have paid for the rights (bought originals) to all of the music they play in their clubs. Just one more tool in the battle to move illegitimate operators out of legitimate clubs...- tig

Today, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers filed 24 separate copyright infringement actions against nightclubs, bars, and restaurants in 15 states and the District of Columbia. These establishments (listed below) have publicly performed the copyrighted musical works of ASCAP’s songwriter, composer and music publisher members without receiving their permission to do so, resulting in lost income.

"Informing business owners of their obligations under Federal Copyright Law is one of ASCAP's key roles," said Vincent Candilora, Senior Vice President of Licensing at ASCAP. "We provide any business using music the opportunity to receive permission through acceptance of a license covering the use of over 8 million copyrighted songs and compositions, and we make every effort to educate business owners concerning their music licensing responsibilities. If our good efforts are ignored, then our only recourse is legal action."

During 2004, ASCAP achieved a 100% success rate with its copyright infringement litigation, with all concluded cases resulting in either a cash settlement or a judgment in favor of ASCAP members. This is significant as ASCAP represents over 200,000 member owners who, for the most part, are songwriters and composers who rely heavily on their ASCAP royalties, as well as ASCAP's enforcement efforts on their behalf. Over 86 cents of every dollar collected is distributed to its members, the music creators.

According to Vince Abbatiello, ASCAP Vice President of Sales and Director of General Licensing, “When business owners ignore their obligations and violate Federal Copyright Law, they are actually stealing from the songwriters and composers who created the music compositions that those businesses are using. Individual songwriters and composers are the ultimate small business people, working on their own with limited opportunity for sustained success. We only take legal action when all other means of resolution have been exhausted. But when we litigate on behalf of our members, our success rate is always very high. Business owners who ignore the Copyright Law in the belief that they can escape penalty should treat this very seriously. Don't steal our members’ music.”

Establishment, City and State:

Challengers, Pelham, AL
Back Porch, Tuscalossa, AL
Hard Dock Café, Decatur, AL
Saddlerack, Chandler, AZ
Josh Slocum's, Newport Beach, CA
Joe's Café, Branford, CT
Home Nightclub, Washington, DC
Jade, Miami Beach, FL
Estate (f/k/a Nocturnal), Chicago, IL
Hundred South Grille a/k/a 100 South Chop House, Elmhurst, IL
Le Passage/Yow Bar, Chicago, IL
Costello's, Jamaica Plain, MA
Buffalo Billiards, Gaithersburg, MD
American Sports Café, St. Paul, MN
Buffalo Tap & Grille, Savage, MN
Soulard Ale House, St. Louis, MO
Gilligan's, Surf City, NC
J. Lindsay's, Columbus, OH
Denim, Philadelphia, PA
R.P. McMurphy's, Holmes, PA
Wolfy's, Nashville, TN
Happy Town Karaoke, Houston, TX
OUI Club, Wichita Falls, TX
Scuttlebutts Restaurant and Bar, Lubbock, TX

http://www.ascap.com/press/2005/infring ... 12405.html

Man....thank god i didn't see my state on there....although.....the places i work have their ASCAP licenses!!.....

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I am more concenernd about why a single mother with A mastrers degree in teaching cannot support her family. What chemicals they are putting in the food and why they take baby's away from their mothers in the guise of raising them on a better enviromnment . But ASCAP does not have have the authority to enforce federal copyright laws . I installed jukeboxes for many years and ant bar owner that told them to get the h*** out never had anyu problems with them again. They want their blood money evety mopnth whicjh might be fair.. But let me tell you people something I laid my life on the line all during the sixties to protect your rights as an American and I am sick and tired of you bowing down to big money and giving those rights away. If you want to support the the rich and not the poor working man or woman then I do not like you Do you turn in the bars that buy afew cases of beer from the local liquor store? Do,you rat on the local moonshiner?Do you turn in the local dairyman that sells milk on the side ? If you do then this old country boy despises you with a passion and I guarantee you would not want me for a neighbor If anybody would have ever walked in my shop and asked me where i goty my tools thety would wonder why they are laying in the alley and where al, the blood came from . Why dont you people stand up and and start protecting us instead of somebody that makes a million dollars a month on tours? I can issue u a tin beak and u can pick sh** with the rest of us chickens... Soorry to blow but I get tired of it I love you all..

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no more caffiene for you...

and I fought for my country in the eighties... to allow everybody to continue their rights as Americans.

Big money doesn't have anything to do with it. ASCAP / BMI and other enforcement agencies are supposed to distribute their earnings to the artists under their interests...

This same agency you're so quick to put down has CLOSED bars via federal closure.... I'd rather not play with those dice. It's a gamble I can't afford to play with. When a bar is closed down, usually it's LOCKED down, and if my equipment is in that bar at that time, I stand a chance at having my equipment not accessible while a court battle decides what's happening.

Nooooo thank you!

Luv ya man

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I l ove u all just expressing my thoughts ineed to get gig instead of beinmg here luvya man

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Does this mean I am cut off
86'd? It is beer not caffiene Luv ya man and it is bud lite I am an entertainer andwill do anything for a joke..

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The ASCAP and BMI fees are not a question of copyright. It's a question of licensing.

If you have a jukebox, the jukebox manufacturer usually takes care of the licensing - FOR THE JUKEBOX. If you also have live music then there is another fee altogether seperate. So if all you have is a jukebox and they come knocking on your door chances are you can tell them to get lost (check with the company your jukebox comes from and with legal counsel first though).

Read the warning on a movie or CD the next time you purchase one. It says that the product is licensed for personal use only and not for public playback. Playing a CD/movie for public performance under this licensing is illegal. It requires a sepereate license which is what the ASCAP and BMI fees are for.

Hope this makes a little bit of sense. Just remember that your'e dealing with both a copyright issue and a licensing issue. They are not the same thing.

I know of a Karaoke bar that has an ASCAP sticker on one of the pillars on the corner of the Karaoke DJ pit. Now this same place has about 250 Karaoke discs that belong to the barand are used for the karaoke shows. 1/2 of these are actual real store-bought original Karaoke discs-Sound Choice, Legend, Chartbuster etc.. The other half are BURNED COPIES, most without manufactuter labels---Ie: labels printed off a home computer. One of the DJ's has boasted that he makes copies of discs on a burner and also makes his own pirated discs off the internet--he actually bragged about it! These are the only discs the bar uses for karaoke night in night out. The DJ's DO NOT bring their own collections/books in to supplement the bar's stuff. So I wonder where this places this establishment in terms of liscensing/copyright violations and liability. In any event half of their stuff is copied/burned discs and the other is legitamate store bought discs. Any comments??

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"You know that I sing the Blues and I do not suffer fools. When I'm on that silver mic, it's gonna cut ya, just like a knife"-The SWINGCAT

ASCAP does not care one whit about burns... they care that they get a check.

Pretty much!

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Remember when I said 2 different issues?

ASCAP got their check so play the music. The license was paid.

But now the flip side shows where copyright infringement is coming into play. This isn't a licensing issue, it's a legal one. The problem is that the people that should be policing this stuff are busy with other things letting it slide. Even the main agency (KAPA) that really stresses the issue and helps to prosecute the offenders haven't done anything to stop this sort of thing in the last couple years. If they have they haven't posted it on their website.

They've pretty much admitted there isn't anything they can do (on another forum). They've put heavy $$$ into investigations, legal/court fees, etc..but the return costs weren't worth the cause especially since the majority of manufacturers didn't jump on board with it - just the one original, which was SOund CHoice. The rest of the manus have pretty much said there isn't much that can be done & it's too cost prohibitive to go after offenders - yet many of these same companies are the same ones saying - don't copy, they just want others to do all the legwork.

All that's going to happen is more & more bands/publishers are going to continue to pull their karaoke rights - this is a trend very much on the upswing, so eventually the only music that will be available is the older stuff because the companies will pretty much die off & karaoke as we know it will be done!

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Too bad the the CD-G companies couldn't have made their discs "burn-proof" back in the day. I've heard it's been seriously discussed in my neck of the woods, but not sure what's become of it. Might not be cost effective, or might be too late in the game to make a huge difference, as opposed 10-15 years ago. Still would be nice though.

there is no such thing as "burn proof"... if I can play it in ANY kind of player, I can burn it...

Josh Slocums is Dennis Rodmans bar. I hope he can pay the fine.