andrewsgoodrichJan-02-2009 3:47pm
Artists House Vault: Understanding Copyright
Nothing is more integral to your career in the music business than having a solid understanding of copyright. This is the “business” side of the music business that DIYers need to be able to understand in order to compete with the big boys.
To help you understand how copyright works, we have filmed some videos with Maggie Lange, an attorney and Professor of Music Business and Management at Berklee College of Music.
These brief videos cover some of the most basic aspects of copyright law that every musician needs to understand. I’ll be exploring some of these areas in further detail in the future, so be sure to check back here regularly.
Defining Copyright and Intellectual Property
Your Five Exclusive Rights
Next Maggie explains the five exclusive rights that copyright grants to the author:
- Reproduction
- Distribution
- Derivation
- Public Performance
- Public Display
Copyright Terms and Fair Use
Understanding Derivative Works
The Compulsory License Provision
Here Maggie explains the Compulsory License provision. If you are covering other artists’ songs, this is what you need to know.
If you are looking for a quick reference guide for terms of copyright and when a work enters the public domain, check this reference chart.
If you’d like to watch more videos about copyright and legal issues, start exploring the Artists House video database here.
