Music Business 101

Miscellaneous Membership Issues: Copyright

A copyright owner has a number of different exclusive rights contained within a single copyright (often referred to as a “bundle of rights”). One of those exclusive rights is the ‘Performance Right’ or the right to “perform the copyrighted work publicly.” See the U.S. Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C § 106(4). ASCAP licenses the non-dramatic public performance right of its members’ works to music users for a fee and distributes the license fees received as royalties to ASCAP members.

For more information about music licensing, please visit our Licensing FAQ. For more information about copyright, please visit the U.S. Copyright Office’s website at http://www.copyright.gov. If you have any questions or concerns about your copyrights, you should consult an experienced attorney.

Latest News

VERSED: The ASCAP Podcast / Ep. 24 - Yasmin Williams and the 2021 Newport Folk Festival

In celebration of the return of live music, we talk to the talented Yasmin Williams, a virtuoso composer and musician who has been praised by The New York Times as “one of the country’s most imaginative young solo guitarists." She is set to make her debut at this year’s Newport Folk Festival. We also check in with Jay Sweet, Executive Producer of the Newport Folk and Jazz Festivals, about why Newport has endured as one of the oldest and most meaningful music festivals. PLUS: some Sound Advice about how pressure and deadlines can be a good thing when creating music, excerpted from our recent ASCAP Experience session with film/TV composers Segun Akinola, Ruth Barrett and Isobel Waller-Bridge.

ASCAP Hitmakers Amy Grant and Buddy Cannon Named to Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame Class of 2021

The new group of inductees-elect will be honored alongside the previously named Class of 2020 that includes ASCAP members Steve Earle, Bobbie Gentry, Brett James and Spooner Oldham.

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Global ASCAP Family Scores 21 Nominations for 73rd Primetime Emmys

Nominations for the 73rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards dropped on July 13, and 19 songwriters and composers from the global ASCAP family were recognized for their phenomenal work by the Television Academy with a total of 21 noms across all music categories.