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Frequently Asked Questions By
Broadcasters
• Who is SESAC?
• What service does
SESAC provide?
• Why Should I Have
a SESAC Performance License?
• If I have licenses
with ASCAP and/or BMI, why do I need a license with SESAC?
• What kinds of
music does SESAC represent?
• Can I determine
through the information on records, tapes, compact discs and
sheet music to see which songs are represented by SESAC?
• If I do not know
if the music being programmed on my station is copyrighted,
can I still be held responsible for copyright infringement?
• What is a blanket
license?
• Do I have any
other option to obtain the required authorization to perform
copyrighted music?
• What happens if
I refuse to obtain a SESAC license?
• What does the
SESAC Radio or Television Blanket License provide?
• How are SESAC
license fees set?
• What is the cost
of a SESAC radio license?
• What if our programming
consists primarily of News/Talk or Sports/Talk format?
• What are the reporting
requirements for radio stations?
• How are SESAC
local television license fees determined?
• Other Broadcast
Licensing Information
Q: Who is SESAC?
A: SESAC was founded in 1930, and at that
time was known as the Society of European Stage Authors and
Composers. Since that time SESAC has significantly expanded
the number of songwriters and publishers represented and its
repertory now includes all music genres. As a reflection of
this change S.E.S.A.C. became SESAC, Inc.
SESAC is the second oldest of the three
Performing Rights Organizations (PRO) in the United States.
The Copyright Law of the United States, Section 101 defines
a PRO as “an association, corporation, or other entity
that licenses the public performance of nondramatic musical
works on behalf of copyright owners of such works, such as
the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers
(ASCAP), Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) and SESAC, Inc.”
SESAC is also a member the international
Performance Rights Organization CISAC, as well as member of
many trade and business organizations and associations. Additionally,
SESAC has licensing agreements with many foreign
PROs.
Q: What service does SESAC provide?
SESAC acts as clearinghouse between the
creators and owners of copyrighted music and those who wish
to publicly perform copyrighted compositions. SESAC offers
a blanket license agreement that is recognized as the most
convenient method to obtain the required authorization to
perform (play) all of the copyrighted music in the vast SESAC
repertory.
Q: Why Should I Have a SESAC Performance
License?
A: If you are using someone’s intellectual
property (song) there is a moral and legal obligation to obtain
the owner’s permission. Under the
Copyright
Law of the United States, anyone who publicly performs copyrighted music
is required to obtain advanced permission from the copyright
owner, or their representative. If you broadcasting any copyrighted
song without proper authorization you are violating the law
and
can be held liable for damages, from a minimum of $750
up to a maximum of $150,000 per song played!
IT'S GOOD BUSINESS! Not only is music an
important component in satisfying your customer’s expectations
and differentiating your business from your competitors, by
displaying your SESAC decal, you show the public that you
recognize the value of music and are complying with the Law.
The Better Business Bureau has developed
a
brochure that provides additional information concerning
the Law and music users responsibilities. You can also contact
SESAC directly at 1-800-826-9996 to speak with one of our
licensing representatives.
Q: If I have licenses with ASCAP and/or
BMI, why do I need a license with SESAC?
A: SESAC, ASCAP, and BMI are three separate
and distinct Performing Rights Organizations (PRO). Each organization
represents different songwriters, composers, publishers and
copyright holders, and each organization licenses only the
copyrighted works of its own respective affiliated copyright
holders. Licenses with ASCAP and BMI do NOT grant you authorization
for the right to use the copyrighted music of SESAC represented
songwriters, composers, publishers or copyright holders.
Since a license with ASCAP and/or BMI does
not grant authorization to play songs in the SESAC repertory,
most broadcasters obtain licenses with SESAC, ASCAP and BMI
to obtain proper copyright clearance for virtually all of
the copyrighted music in the world.
Q: What kinds of music does SESAC represent?
A: All kinds! SESAC has grown over the decades
and currently represents a significant amount of music written
and performed in the United States in every musical genre.
SESAC has been serving music users throughout the U.S. and
abroad for over 70 years with a diversified repertory including
Folk Music, Big Band, Jazz, New Age, Easy Listening, Adult
Contemporary, Urban, R&B, Top40, Pop, HipHop, Rock, Rap,
Blues, Country, Bluegrass, Gospel, Contemporary Christian,
Latin/Hispanic, Tejano, Salsa, Caribbean, Polka, Band, Choral,
Classical, Educational, and Children's music, as well Radio,
Cable, TV and Internet jingles.
SESAC represented songs have been awarded
Grammy, Clio, ACM, Soul Train, Emmy , Dove, MTV, VH-1 and
CMA awards, as well as scores of Gold and Platinum records.
Artists and performers from all genres of music have performed
SESAC represented works.
Q: Can I determine through the information
on records, tapes, compact discs and sheet music to see which
songs are represented by SESAC?
A: NO! Relying on label information to determine
PRO affiliation is often an ineffective stratagy.
Performance Rights Organization (PRO) information
on record, CD and tape labels, when present, is frequently
outdated, incomplete or inaccurate. This results from several
factors:
PRO information on label copy becomes outdated
when a songwriter or publisher changes affiliation and joins
a different PRO.
Due to the space limitations on cassette
tapes and compact discs, many times PRO information is omitted
all together.
Often songwriters will collaborate, and
the names of all of the co-writers of the song may not be
listed.
Record companies are under NO obligation
to furnish the correct PRO affiliation information on label
copy, as it would be impractical for them to attempt to recall
and correct all records, tapes and CDs every time a writer
or publisher changed affiliation. Additionally, the U.S. adherence
to the international Berne Convention in 1989 removed the
requirement for notice of copyright and correct PRO affiliation
on label copy. As of March 1, 1989, copyright notice is not
required on published works.
Q: If I do not know if the music being programmed
on my station is copyrighted, can I still be held responsible
for copyright infringement?
A: As the owner/operator of a radio station,
it is your responsibility to make sure that you have obtained
All of the required copyright clearance authorization for
All copyrighted works broadcast from your station(s)
Q: What is a blanket license?
A SESAC license authorizes you to perform
any and all of the songs in the vast SESAC repertory as often
as you like, without having to worry about trying to obtain
permission for each individual song performed. This is called
a blanket license.
The blanket license is very practical. If
you were able to identify the author of every song that will
be used on your station(s), it would be extremely challenging
and expensive for you to contact each copyright owner of each
song you plan to play in order to obtain their permission.
The blanket license has long been recognized
as the most efficient and convenient way of clearing rights
of copyright holders in the United States. In fact, the U.S.
Supreme Court summarized the virtues of the blanket license
in CBS v. Broadcast Music, Inc., 441 U.S. 1 (1979) as follows:
"... the blanket license developed
... out of the practical situation in the marketplace: thousands
of users, thousands of copyright owners and millions of compositions.
Most users want unplanned, rapid and indemnified access to
any and all of the repertory of compositions and the owners
want a reliable method of collecting for the use of their
copyrights...
"A middleman with a blanket license
was an obvious necessity if the thousands of individual negotiations,
a virtual impossibility were to be avoided. Also, ...(individual
licenses would pose) a difficult and expensive reporting problem
for the user and policing task for the copyright owner. Historically,
the market for public performance rights organized itself
largely around the single-fee blanket license, which gave
unlimited access to the repertory and reliable protection
against infringement." Id. at 20-22.
The SESAC blanket license offers freedom
and convenience to music users across the country. Due to
difficulties encountered in anticipating musical performances
and in locating all of the songwriters, composers, publishers
and copyright holders in order to negotiate individual licenses
in advance of each performance, the SESAC blanket license
is an efficient, time-saving asset.
Q: Do I have any other option to obtain
the required authorization to perform copyrighted music?
A: Yes, while SESAC offers the convenience
of a blanket license authorizing the performance of all of
the songs in the SESAC repertory, as an alternative to a blanket
license you can negotiate a separate license agreement directly
with each copyright owner of each song you will play.
Q: What happens if I refuse to obtain a
SESAC license?
A: Music users who have declined to obtain
authorization to perform copyrighted music or who have refused
to obtain a SESAC Performance License may be determined by
the courts to be willful infringers. This status subjects
the unlicensed music user to damages ranging up to $150,000
for each song performed without proper authorization.
It is much more practical to simply secure
a SESAC blanket license and be assured that you are covered
for any and all SESAC represented copyrighted music that is
performed on your premises.
Q: What does the SESAC Radio or Television
Blanket License provide?
A: Immediate and unlimited access to SESAC’s
vast repertory, including music in commercials and jingles.
Q: How are SESAC license fees determined?
A: Generally, the scope of the public to
which the SESAC repertory is being performed is the main factor
in SESAC license fees for broadcasters. For example, a station's
MSA or DMA are used in determining radio and television license
fees, respectively.
SESAC Radio Licensing
Q: What is the cost of a SESAC radio license?
A: Unlike other Performing Rights Organizations,
SESAC does not determine fees based on revenue. Fees are calculated
based on the stations market and spot rate. schedule of fees
for commercial radio stations.
Q: What if our programming consists primarily
of News/Talk or Sports/Talk format?
A: SESAC offers an “All-Talk”
amendment. Stations featuring programs consisting primarily
of news, narration, sports, or dialogue, devoid of feature
musical presentation may qualify for the SESAC all-talk amendment
resulting in a reduction of fees by 75%.
Q: What are the
reporting requirements for
radio stations?
A: For the sake of convenience to our customers,
very little reporting is required. On an annual basis, SESAC
does require that a station report its current spot rate and
any possible change to its market.
Q: What if I have one or more stations that
are simulcasting?
A: All individual broadcast entities require
authorization
Q: What if my station(s) is being operated
under an LMA or JSA?
A: A SESAC license is required for each
entity licensed by the FCC
SESAC Television Licensing
Q: How are SESAC local television license
fees determined?
A. SESAC's local television license fees, negotiated with
the Television Music License Committee, are based on the
station's average Nielsen ratings and the Television
Households in the station's DMA.
Other Broadcast Licensing
Information
PBS/NPR –
SESAC, the Public Broadcasting Service and
National Public Radio have entered into an agreement that
grants to NPR, PBS and CPB affiliated stations authorization
to perform publicly in respect to public telecommunications
services the compositions represented by SESAC for the period
January 1, 1998 through December 31, 2002. Each January SESAC
is supplied with a current listing of the PBS/NPR/CPB affiliates
to be authorized under the license.
The SESAC agreement with PBS also grants,
on an experimental basis, the right to publicly perform the
musical compositions in SESAC’s repertory by PBS/NPR/CPB
non-commercial Internet, websites or home pages.
Non-Commercial Radio Stations
In 1978 the US Copyright Law was revised
removing the not-for-profit exemption with regard to the payment
of performance royalties to copyright owners. Section 118
of the Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C., provides that non-commercial,
non-profit broadcasters must obtain authorization to publicly
perform (broadcast) copyrighted musical compositions. The
annual fees to be paid SESAC are established by the Copyright
Office as follows:
The 2000 annual fee to be paid SESAC by
a non-commercial public broadcasting station licensed to a
college or university and not an affiliate of NPR is $63.00.
Fees for each subsequent year through 2002 are adjusted by
the change in the Consumer Price Index.
The annual fees to be paid SESAC by a non-commercial
public broadcasting station that is not licensed to a college
or university and not an affiliate of NPR are:
2003
$98.00
2004
$100.00
2005
$102.00
2006
$104.00
2007
$106.00
Payments are due SESAC by January 31st of
each year.
CABLE OPERATORS
On behalf of cable operators that are members
of NCTA and CATA, the NCTA and SESAC entered into an interim
agreement that authorizes the public performance of SESAC
music in locally originated cable television programming (leased
access and PEG channels).
CABLE NETWORKS
SESAC has licenses in effect with
the major premium and basic cable networks. License fees are
generally based on the network subscriber base, net advertising
and subscriber revenue, Nielsen ratings and the type of programming
provided by the network.
To
request a Cable License, click here |
