"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...

"RCE" wrote in message
...

"Harry Krause" wrote in message
. ..

What the music industry needs is a copyright pricing structure that
fairly compensates the actual producers of music AND doesn't rip off
consumers of that product...and they don't have it yet.

One of the reasons midi sequencers like myself stopped sharing some files
on the 'net is because of the threat of lawsuits. Actually, not threats,
but real litigation in some cases that shut down most sites that featured
midi files. Midi files are not music recordings like mp3s or .wav files.
They are a series of instructions to a sound board, card or instrument
that can receive midi instructions. The sound card or instrument then
plays the sequence using it's own, on board voices.

Royalty collectors like ASCAP and BMI quickly (and perhaps correctly,
depending on your personal feelings on the subject) started to threaten
web site owners that had midi files of popular music considered to be
subject to copyright protection. Even though it was not technically a
recording or performance by a musician, the fact that someone sequenced a
series of instructions for a midi compatible instrument to reproduce,
they claimed copyright infringement. Original, copyright free
compositions are encouraged of course and often stolen as a basis for new
music by songwriters in the industry.

RCE




I don't recall whether it's BMI or ASCAP, but one of them collects fees
from bar owners who include karioke in their activities. Unbelievable.


Every establishment that has live music entertainment must have a license
for the various musicians to perform copyright protected music. Applies to
professional entertainment by paid bands or amateurs like Karaoke bars. To
simplify matters, the lounge, restaurant, bar or whatever pays a fixed fee,
(not cheap) to give them a blanket license for 6 months or a year. My late
dad played trombone in a Dixieland style swing band was shocked one day to
find out his band was illegally playing some music still covered by
copyrights. They got caught at a outside music festival in Plymouth, MA.

RCE