Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/1223463
50 / MARCH.APRIL.2020 USICERINKS.COM RINK ISSUES Music Licensing Business package on their proprietary hardware, but the business owner has to purchase a MOOD Media player in order to access Pandora For Business. With any of these offerings, including satellite radio such as Sirius XM, it's important that the business owner confirm that their version of the service is the version that is subscribed to for business use. Also, the Commercial Music Service license only covers ambient background music and does not include any additional music use— usually accompanying an activity which in this case would be skating—like live entertainment, DJ, karaoke, etc. Note: The following scenario works off of BMI's listed fee schedule on their website. Q: The rink regularly charges pub- lic skate admission at $7.00 for an adult, and $5.00 for students for all weekly public sessions (roughly $20 per week). The first Friday of each month, they do a special theme skate, of which prizes and giveaways are incorporated into it. Admission is $15.00 for this event (12x per year). Based off Section 1 Definitions, this rink should be the highest possible rate, correct? A: You are correct, $15.00 would be the highest price of admission, and the licens- ing fee would then be determined by the square footage of the actual skating rink itself (based in the $15.00 category). (Thanks again to Jessica and Jodie for their time!) In Conclusion… Now the big question: "Why do I need to pay all three?" The short answer is that multiple PRO's could represent the copyright holders of the song. It's not unusual for there to be two types of copyright on an individual song. One copyright will cover the composition of the song, while the other covers the actual recording. A PRO could represent just the composer(s), or the performer(s) of a song. A musician like Ed Sheeran is a prime example. He performs his own music, and also composes music for other musicians. BMI could represent the performer(s), while ASCAP secures royalties for Sheeran. Some facilities have managed to fly below the radar of performance rights organizations, while others have paid fees for years. Regardless of where your facility currently stands, compensating artists for the use of their copyrighted works in our facilities shouldn't be debatable. J Editor's Note: Answers provided only represent BMI. We are greatly appreciative for the time they gave to clear up a hot button topic for ice rink managers across the U.S. , Even if your facility is simply the host for a Figure Skating club event, it's your job to secure the music license.