Website Music (Legalities Question, not opinions lol :D)

I would have thought anything would need a license to be honest. Playing it is broadcasting it really - would be very suprised if that is true.
 
not only that, but websites which have background music irritate the heck out of a lot of people, me included. ;)
 
You will need to pay a licence for any commercial music you use. It looks like the rules are not clearly defined but see the quote below from the PRS-MCPS website

"Some online music uses cannot be covered by our joint MCPS-PRS blanket licences. Examples include; Online Advertising, background music to a webpage and music offered as an incentive to purchase goods or services.

In such cases individual MCPS and PRS licences are required. The MCPS application has to be approved by the publisher via MCPS licensing (on 020 8378 7500.)

PRS licensing is handled by the Online & Mobile Department (on 020 7306 4991).

In some instances the mechanical clearance may have already been granted, in which case only a PRS licence is required. Examples include situations where music has already been approved directly with the publisher, or where a production music licence has already been obtained. PRS will shortly be launching a licence scheme to cover these types of uses with licence fees starting from £50 + VAT. For More information please call the Online & Mobile Department on 020 7306 4991."

You'll probably find more if you look at the MCPS-PRS website or contact them directly.

My opinion on music on websites is I don't like it, particularly if browsing at work as it clearly shows you're not working. I'm also presuming a lot of people that aren't big businesses would probably not bother paying as the chance of getting prosecuted I would guess is low.
 
I'm with the "go somewhere else as soon as I hear the first note" brigade here.

But one option is instead of having the music start whenever the page is loaded, give users the option to play the music. You could even give them the option of several tracks to listen to, if you get the copyright sorted out etc.
 
One other thing, F-Stop, I doubt US laws are too different from UK/European laws when it comes to copyright but I quoted from the UK performaing rights society website. The laws in the US may well be different and more defined regarding website use of music. It's a really funny area as there are no geographical restrictions when downloading so I would think the laws apply to wherever the site is hosted.
 
whiteflyer said:
:agree: I normally leave the ASAP
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I think the general consensus is that music is bad on websites but we've established that now. It does have some uses and the OP was only asking about the legalities. Perhaps we should lay off the opinions about its use now.:) Only saying before I get flamed.
 
Lol. Thanks ranarama. :D

I honestly just want music on personal proofing galleries. Maybe while making small talk with the client, hint about what their favorite artist or song is. Then when they go to their gallery, boom, personal song they weren't expecting. Just an added touch.
 
Im not a fan of website music,i use the volume buttons on my lappy :lol:
 
For anyone who was actually interested. lol....

Looks like the only websites to purchase from are second-rate performers. Good music, but noone famous and fairly expensive for $60 (not something I would spend for a gallery that might be up for a month or two). Have to request major players songs through their record labels. I didn't even request a quote as I was scared. :D
 
afaik the laws that govern the content of a website are those which are in effect in the country\state where the server it is hosted on is based.
 
Do not use music on your website unless it directly relates to the content on the site. Anything else is tacky and basically a no no. Especially when people are spending time waiting on images to load, the last thing they want to use their bandwidth on is unrelated and irrelevant music loading in the background. Can you imagine how annoying it would be to be listening to your music with your headphones on and going on someones site only to have their choice of music imposed on them? Dreadful. If you must include music then have it stopped and offer the user the CHOICE of playing it.
 
Oops, I think I just stated the obvious. Didn't realize you were wanting the legalities.
 
hepburn said:
not only that, but websites which have background music irritate the heck out of a lot of people, me included. ;)
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:agree: DON'T DO IT it's so annoying :nono:
 
Keltic Ice Man said:
I agree F-Stop I had difficulty find anything decent, at a price I could afford.

You could always ask a local band if you could use something of theirs. Might be cheaper, but might not be to everyones taste.

"Pub Singer anyone" (Where's Marcel when you need him)
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Lol. Honestly, I had thought about that. I play the guitar myself and my brother fronts a band, but not sure we could get very good quality recordings.
 
F-Stop said:
Not very many up and comers around here unfortunately. :(

Screw it. I'll just do it like everyone else does. Illegally. :D
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not really the best way is it - why not just post all your best photography work here and we can all use it on our websites????

if you want to use music legally it's easy - i looked into this last year for some videos i made - do some searches for royalty free music in google and that will give you some other options

the ones that i have used (i have brought around 10 disks from these guys) and recommend are: -

http://www.akmmusic.co.uk/catalogue.htm

http://www.notepadmusic.com/

http://www.nvmdigital.com/nvmusic/nvm.html
 
sportysnaps said:
not really the best way is it - why not just post all your best photography work here and we can all use it on our websites????

if you want to use music legally it's easy - i looked into this last year for some videos i made - do some searches for royalty free music in google and that will give you some other options

the ones that i have used (i have brought around 10 disks from these guys) and recommend are: -

http://www.akmmusic.co.uk/catalogue.htm

http://www.notepadmusic.com/

http://www.nvmdigital.com/nvmusic/nvm.html
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Anyone can use my photos whenver they want to be honest. I doubt many people would though. :D

If those sites are anything like the ones I've found so far, there are no mainstream artists on there. I want some good music. Not some music from someone I've never heard of.

If the recording artists are going to make it difficult to obtain there music for websites, serves them right I say. I would gladly buy (and probably already have) every CD with songs I would like to have. I honestly think if I buy it once (on CD), I should at least be able to use it for a personal gallery on a website.

There is a particular song I would love to have for a personal gallery. Noone would be hearing it other than particular clients. I've requested usage of the song and the quote was ungodly. No way in hell I'm paying that much money for a song that I'll only use for a month or so. No way in hell.
 
If those sites are anything like the ones I've found so far, there are no mainstream artists on there. I want some good music. Not some music from someone I've never heard of.
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there is no question as to whether there is good music on these sites, although maybe not the artist you want.

the cost of licencing the music for professional use (which is what you are doing when playing it to "clients" ) should not be expensive - i think i remember seeing a generic licience on a professianal video body that allowed you to use any music for a set fixed fee. This was for wedding videos, i will try and find you a link
 
D I V O R C E on a wedding gallery might not go down well though:)
 
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