[mhking]

"Hold muh beer 'n watch this!" PING....

If you want on or off this list, please let me know!

[FreeTally]

I am all for respecting musicians and their copyrighted meterial, but I have never agreed with this idea that they should get these fees for "public performance" of the songs. ASCAP has people ride around all over the country going to restaurants, bars and the like looking for anyone with a stereo system without their ASCAP sticker displayed, indicating the owner has paid the extortion fee.

[MigrantOkie]

This either poorly written or a case of bad editing. I have no idea what the club actually did. What do they mean played? On a jukebox? A live band? Kareoki? Drunk cowboys singing Nasty?

[apillar]

Many people don't realize that if you open a restaurant, or any other business for that matter, and play recorded music over a sound system or even a boom box you are required to pay the ASCAP for the rights even if you own the tape/cd because you are considered to be "profiting" from the public performance of the music. According to people in the industry ASCAP is very vigilant and actually sends out agents to search for violations.

[Maigrey]

Maybe I'm missing something, but WTF?

[RightOnline]

"Songs named in the lawsuit include "Justify My Love," written by Madonna Ciccone and Lenny Kravitz; "Erotica," written by Madonna and Shep Pettibone; "Nasty," written by James Harris III and Terry Lewis; and "Get the Party Started," written by Linda Perry.

The suit also asks that the club be barred and permanently restrained from publicly performing the songs named in the suit."

Oh gee. Life without that swell song lineup. Whatever will one do. Golly. The horror.

Might actually have to play some music instead by someone with actual talent.

[FrankR]

This is an age-old argument. I was in radio for 15 years, and detested to pay the monthly ASCAP/SESAC/BMI fees JUST for the priviledge of playing music. It was, and still is, my contention that records would go nowhere without radio exposure (before the days of videos), so they should pay us...but, it doesn't work that way. They would send out people to listen/record your station, in search of unauthorized music. There was the story of one station manager who refused to pay the SESAC fees, as very few musicians/composers were licensed through them...and lo' and behold, they used an obscure instrumental behind a commercial, and the company heard it and fined them.

[Jhoffa_]

Retail stores are subject to this same requirement.

If you're playing it to your customers and you aren't paying for it then you are in trouble. Realistically though, your chances of being caught are slim.

Ever wonder why department stores play that awful muzak? That's why.

[fifteendogs]

There is a solution to this and other problems like this.

Kill all the lawyers.