my profile | my password | search | faq & rules | forum home

» Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE   » Operations   » Ground Level   » Intermission music performing rights (Page 2)

This topic comprises 2 pages: 1  2

Author Topic: Intermission music performing rights Scott Norwood Film God Posts: 8146 From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas) Registered: Jun 99 posted 03-09-2005 06:44 PM                        How do they come up with $2500 per song? There's no way that they could legitimately claim that they "lose" $2500 per song when someone plays the radio in a Dairy Queen without paying the yearly ASCAP fee. Even if half (or more) of that amount is legal fees, it's still completely unreasonable. I would think that a more reasonable way to determine the "value" per song would be to divide the yearly ASCAP fee by the average number of songs played per year and add legal fees on top of that. Am I completely crazy to think that $2500 per song is more than a bit unreasonable?  |  IP: Logged Don Sneed Master Film Handler Posts: 451 From: Texas City, TX, USA Registered: Aug 2001 posted 03-09-2005 07:51 PM                        Think how shock I was to find out I was a paid witness to $2500.00 per songs & listen to 10...but they settle out of court prior to me getting to courthouse for $25,000.00...what is shocking today is this all happen in 1989 or 1990...no telling what music laws in effect today. Back in late 80's ASCAP in Houston went to theatres demanding their fee's , I know two theatre chains argued if they are paying the ASCAP/BMI fee's as stated on the CD labels, then why do they have to pay again...to make a long story short, both chains pulled their CD/cassette player & did not play intermittion music...the larger chains in Houston was going through a background music supplier service...now remember this was background music, foreground music was higher in price, both ASCAP/BMI, & music suppliers...one of those things that make you go Hummmmmmmm...what a  |  IP: Logged System Notices Forum Watchdog / Soup Nazi Posts: 215 Registered: Apr 2004 posted 09-15-2007 07:18 PM                 It has been 919 days since the last post.  |  IP: Logged Geena Phillips Expert Film Handler Posts: 198 From: Norcross, GA / USA Registered: Apr 2006 posted 09-15-2007 07:18 PM                        Sorry to revive this thread after so long, but I would really like to find out how much the licensing fees are to do what Brad mentioned in the original post. We have just switched to ghastly horrible MovieTunes because our CEO had a friend who got pinched by BMI and ASCAP, and as much as I've always hated MovieTunes as a filmgoer, I hate subjecting my customers to it even more.  |  IP: Logged Tim Reed Better Projection Pays Posts: 5246 From: Northampton, PA Registered: Sep 1999 posted 09-19-2007 07:13 PM                       Contract Jennifer Pan to write you some royalty-free music.  |  IP: Logged Richard C. Wolfe Master Film Handler Posts: 250 From: Northampton, PA, USA Registered: Apr 2000 posted 09-20-2007 11:19 PM                        I have an ASCAP license for my single screen theatre. It is based on seat count, although I don't remember how that's broken down. I just know that for our 557 seats it costs us $198.00 per year.I would assume that a multi screen theatre would pay the appropriate rate based on seat count of each auditorium.  |  IP: Logged Thomas Pitt Master Film Handler Posts: 266 From: Leeds, West Yorkshire, UK Registered: May 2007 posted 09-21-2007 03:36 PM                     Does 'seat count' just mean the number of seats in the auditorium (whether occupied or not), or the number of seats that have been sold for a particular performance? I've heard a mixture of non-sync intermission music in cinemas I've been to. Some, like the Leeds Light, just play CDs of commercially available music. Others seem to play more 'ambient' music, often with no lyrics - perhaps these are MovieTunes CDs? I also remember a while ago when they used to just play a local radio station through the speakers during an intermission  |  IP: Logged Richard C. Wolfe Master Film Handler Posts: 250 From: Northampton, PA, USA Registered: Apr 2000 posted 09-21-2007 10:38 PM                        Seat count is the total number of seats that exist, regardless of how many tickets are sold.  |  IP: Logged Frank Angel Film God Posts: 5305 From: Brooklyn NY USA Registered: Dec 1999 posted 09-21-2007 11:05 PM                        Again, we shouldn't talk about ASSCRAP/B.M.(I) as if it is one entity. They are separate and each has enough song titles to last you your entire lifetime before you would ever have to start from the beginning of the list. If you HAVE to go into contract to get intermission music, there is no reason under the sun why you would need to pay BOTH of these thug extortionists. Pick one and then just make playlists of their tunes. If you pick light classical music, the cuts are much longer and you don't have to do as much work getting a good servicable list together. So far they haven't gotten rid of the "One Protection Copy" right, so when you buy the CDs, you can just burn a copy with only the tunes of the one you got in bed with. The bitch is that ASSCRAP and B.M.(I) tunes are interwoven on most CDs so you can't just play an "ASCAP disc" or a "BMI disc".....you will need to burn a CD with only the tunes licensed by the company with which you have arranged to be dry-humped by. Luckily copying once is still legal under the one copy rule. BTW, where is all that arbitrary elephant excrement written down -- you know, the stuff about only two speakers but not in the ceiling....etc.? How do they get away with making up THAT nonsense? I mean, when Gino Tutifraluti buys a CD to play in his pizza parlor, where does it say he is allowed to play it thru 2 speakers but he gets a $25,000 fine if he plays it thru 3 speakers? Is that on the label somewhere? Does he get to know that BEFORE he presses the play button on his CD or does he find out only when Don shows up with Mr. ASSCRAP and they write him up for having six speakers? All I know is, if they asked me to be a snitch witness, I would have told them, sure I recognize those songs, but you gotta pay me 30% of whatever the settlement comes to or my memory is likely going to become VERY foggy on the witness stand when it comes time to remember the titles of the 10 songs I heard months ago in a pizza parlor.  |  IP: Logged

All times are Central (GMT -6:00)

This topic comprises 2 pages: 1  2

Printer-friendly view of this topic

Hop To: Select a Forum: Category: Operations -------------------- Digital Cinema Forum Film Handlers' Forum Large Format Forum Ground Level Feature Info, Trailer Attachments & REAL Credit Offsets Category: Community -------------------- Film-Yak Film Handlers' Movie Reviews The Afterlife Bob Maar's Joke-A-Thon Category: Classified -------------------- Equipment and Supplies Wanted/For Sale Help Wanted/Seeking Employment Category: System -------------------- Software Beta Testing Forum

The Film-Tech Forums are designed for various members related to the cinema industry to express their opinions, viewpoints and testimonials on various products, services and events based upon speculation, personal knowledge and factual information through use, therefore all views represented here allow no liability upon the publishers of this web site and the owners of said views assume no liability for any ill will resulting from these postings. The posts made here are for educational as well as entertainment purposes and as such anyone viewing this portion of the website must accept these views as statements of the author of that opinion and agrees to release the authors from any and all liability.