Licensing Music in Karaoke Machine businesses
Karaoke machine is highly popular in business establishments such as bars, restaurants, beach clubs, and even in malls. These machines contains thousands of song databases which if any person who wishes to sing a specific song in the catalog, all they need to do is to drop a token or a coin.
I received a call several months ago about how to secure proper licensing when it comes to operating a karaoke machine in public. I was kind of impressed because it shows that the karaoke machine manufacturer is really concern in protecting musician’s rights in their own business venture. It was a blurred phone call and it was drop out.
I made a follow up answer by email, and this is how I answer if I remember it correctly. I am not an entertainment attorney and this is not a legal answer, so take my disclaimer.
First and foremost, you are exploiting the song commercially because you earned income from the karaoke machine from every drop of a coin or token. This commercial exploitation requires you to secure a license from the music publishers or public performance societies they are represented.
It might seem complex at first and is too broad to imagine, let’s break down the rights exploited by the karaoke machine owner and manufacturer:
Public performance rights – since karaoke machine is playing songs to every person in a commercial establishment in a public environment. This constitutes the “public performance” of every song that is played by the machine.
Mechanical rights – since karaoke machine has songs embedded in mechanical form such as chips, DVDs or CDs, so the mechanical rights of the song have been exploited.
Synchronization rights – the music has been played in a television with visual background, so it makes sense that sync rights of the song have been exploited also.
Printed rights – lyrics has been commercially exploited because it guides the karaoke machine user to properly sing the song with the lyrics.
All in all, there are 4 rights I have known to be exploited. In the end, the karaoke machine manufacturer should pay for the mechanical royalties, synchronization royalties and print music royalties while the renter/owner/business establishment will be paying for the public performance royalties to either ASCAP/BMI or the any country designated public performance societies (like Filscap) in Philippines.
I hope that public performance societies will be roaming around these commercial establishments and collecting public performance royalties for karaoke machines. The music publishers as well as the songwriters have the right to earned because the owners of these machines are earning income from the songs.
