If you hold copyright on a musical piece or sound recording, you have legal ownership of the work.
This means that you, as the copyright holder, have rights to redistribute and replicate it, as well as earn royalties through licensing rights.
You can also perform the work and share it online, on TV or the radio without issues.
However, the copyright law on music does not come without its complexities.
Master and composition
There are two main kinds of copyright when it comes to music.
Master covers the master recording, as the name implies. The artists and their label are usually the copyright holders in this case.
Composition, on the other hand, refers to the arrangement of notes, melodies, and chords. This type of copyright tends to be owned by songwriters and composers.
Is copyright automatically applied?
The short answer is yes, it is.
When it comes to compositions, copyright applies automatically when the music is created or written down.
However, master copyright is not created until the recording is stored digitally, or in a disk, tape, and other formats.
Is your work original?
A common issue in the world of music copyright, and something important to bear in mind, is that your work must be original.
In order to own copyright, and to avoid breaking copyright laws yourself, it must be a unique creation of your own.
If you have created music or lyrics that are seen as a copy of something else, this can result in a lengthy copyright infringement lawsuit.
How long does the copyright last?
Copyright remains in place for 50 years from the year the recording is created.
If the work is distributed or made available to the public during that time, copyright lasts for 70 years from that year.
Need further legal advice on intellectual property matters? Contact us today.