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When Dr. Alfred Dean, a dentist in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, treats his patients, he often plugs his iPod into the office stereo system and plays songs from his collection.
The island where he lives is a hub of Celtic music, so his digital music player is stocked with local artists, as well as bluegrass and 1970s music.
"The great thing about the iPod is you can put it on random and just play song after song after song," Dean said. "It's a beautiful thing."
But dentists like Dean -- who play their iPods, CDs or the radio and broadcast it through the office for patient enjoyment -- are now required to pay licensing fees on the copyright music they play. The Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada, or SOCAN, recently started enforcing the rule. Dean, who is also president of the Canadian Dental Association, first heard about the fee in September, as members of the professional group were notified by SOCAN.
They wondered, "Is this for real?" Dean said. "Some were bemused, some were, I guess you could say, upset. We were just caught off guard."
Those offices that pipe music through speakers are now paying about $100 to $200 per year, depending on the square footage of the office. Dentists do not need to pay a fee if they play AM or FM radio in separate rooms for individual use.
Similar copyright laws exist in the United States. Some dentists, doctors and law offices choose to use background music services like Muzak or DMX Music, which take care of the licensing drudgery via subscription fees. Those who opt to play their own iPods, CDs, records or tapes are required to pay the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers; Broadcast Music Inc., or BMI; and SESAC, a performing-rights organization. These organizations represent songwriters, composers and publishers. Because these groups represent different copyright owners, professionals who play their own music in their offices must pay fees to some or all of the organizations.
Music played through headsets worn by patients may be considered public performance, too, since multiple patients use the headsets throughout the day, according to Jerry Bailey, a spokesman for BMI. If the office is particularly small, they may be exempt from paying fees for radio.
"Most people are quite shocked when they find out," said Scott Hervey, a Sacramento attorney.
Songwriters and publishers are compensated "any time music is used in a public setting as a public performance," said Laurence Godfrey, regional sales manager for SOCAN in Toronto. "Dentists seem to be the ones that have complained a little bit, but I think it's because it's new to them. We're trying to educate the public."
Dean said he was unaware of how the rule came about, but agreed that music creators should be paid.
"SOCAN is within their rights to ask for this fee," said Dean, who has already paid to play music in the office. "We're advising our members to pay and we understand that people deserve to be compensated for the work that they do."
He does not believe that dentists were singled out and said physicians, retailers and other businesses will surely be advised to pay the fee, if they haven't already.
Godfrey said that while it takes a long time to reach out to different groups, SOCAN has contacted some doctor's offices, eye clinics and professional practices to inform them to pay up.
So far, the U.S. performing-rights groups have not made a blanket effort to collect fees.
Vincent Candilora, senior vice president of licensing at ASCAP, said tracking down license fees from dentists is "not something that we actively pursue."
http://www.wired.com/news/digiwood/0,1412,64397,00.html
The island where he lives is a hub of Celtic music, so his digital music player is stocked with local artists, as well as bluegrass and 1970s music.
"The great thing about the iPod is you can put it on random and just play song after song after song," Dean said. "It's a beautiful thing."
But dentists like Dean -- who play their iPods, CDs or the radio and broadcast it through the office for patient enjoyment -- are now required to pay licensing fees on the copyright music they play. The Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada, or SOCAN, recently started enforcing the rule. Dean, who is also president of the Canadian Dental Association, first heard about the fee in September, as members of the professional group were notified by SOCAN.
They wondered, "Is this for real?" Dean said. "Some were bemused, some were, I guess you could say, upset. We were just caught off guard."
Those offices that pipe music through speakers are now paying about $100 to $200 per year, depending on the square footage of the office. Dentists do not need to pay a fee if they play AM or FM radio in separate rooms for individual use.
Similar copyright laws exist in the United States. Some dentists, doctors and law offices choose to use background music services like Muzak or DMX Music, which take care of the licensing drudgery via subscription fees. Those who opt to play their own iPods, CDs, records or tapes are required to pay the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers; Broadcast Music Inc., or BMI; and SESAC, a performing-rights organization. These organizations represent songwriters, composers and publishers. Because these groups represent different copyright owners, professionals who play their own music in their offices must pay fees to some or all of the organizations.
Music played through headsets worn by patients may be considered public performance, too, since multiple patients use the headsets throughout the day, according to Jerry Bailey, a spokesman for BMI. If the office is particularly small, they may be exempt from paying fees for radio.
"Most people are quite shocked when they find out," said Scott Hervey, a Sacramento attorney.
Songwriters and publishers are compensated "any time music is used in a public setting as a public performance," said Laurence Godfrey, regional sales manager for SOCAN in Toronto. "Dentists seem to be the ones that have complained a little bit, but I think it's because it's new to them. We're trying to educate the public."
Dean said he was unaware of how the rule came about, but agreed that music creators should be paid.
"SOCAN is within their rights to ask for this fee," said Dean, who has already paid to play music in the office. "We're advising our members to pay and we understand that people deserve to be compensated for the work that they do."
He does not believe that dentists were singled out and said physicians, retailers and other businesses will surely be advised to pay the fee, if they haven't already.
Godfrey said that while it takes a long time to reach out to different groups, SOCAN has contacted some doctor's offices, eye clinics and professional practices to inform them to pay up.
So far, the U.S. performing-rights groups have not made a blanket effort to collect fees.
Vincent Candilora, senior vice president of licensing at ASCAP, said tracking down license fees from dentists is "not something that we actively pursue."
http://www.wired.com/news/digiwood/0,1412,64397,00.html
