Exclusive Rights

In-Depth Explanation

What Are Exclusive Rights?

When a songwriter creates a new song, or a producer records a new track, they are immediately granted copyright protection (assuming the work is fixed in a tangible medium). But what exactly does "owning the copyright" mean?

In legal terms, copyright is not a single right; it is a "bundle of rights." These are called Exclusive Rights, meaning the copyright owner is the only person legally allowed to exercise them. If anyone else wants to do these things, they must get permission (a license) from the owner.

The Six Exclusive Rights in Music

Under U.S. Copyright Law (and generally mirrored internationally), the owner of a copyright possesses the exclusive right to do and to authorize any of the following six actions:

1. The Right to Reproduce

The right to make copies of the work. In music, this covers manufacturing physical formats (CDs, vinyl, cassettes) and creating digital copies (MP3 downloads, or the temporary digital copies made on a server when streaming). Permission to exercise this right is granted via a Mechanical License.

2. The Right to Prepare Derivative Works

The right to adapt, alter, or build upon the original work to create a new one. This includes remixing a song, translating the lyrics into another language, or sampling the audio to create a new hip-hop beat. See Derivative Work for more details.

3. The Right to Distribute

The right to distribute copies of the work to the public by sale, rental, lease, or lending. You cannot legally sell someone else's CD or upload their MP3 to Spotify without their permission.

4. The Right to Publicly Perform

The right to perform the work in a public place or transmit it to the public. For a musical composition, this includes playing the song on the radio, playing it over the loudspeakers in a grocery store, a cover band playing it at a bar, or a streaming service transmitting it to a user. This right is usually managed and licensed by PROs (ASCAP, BMI, SESAC).

Note: In the U.S., terrestrial radio (AM/FM) does not pay a performance right to the owner of the master recording, only to the owner of the composition.

5. The Right to Publicly Display

The right to display the work publicly (e.g., hanging a painting in a gallery or putting lyrics on a website). While more relevant to visual arts, this applies to music when printing sheet music or displaying song lyrics on screen (like in a karaoke video).

6. The Right to Perform by Digital Audio Transmission

Added in 1995 specifically for sound recordings. This gives the owner of the Master Recording the right to perform the work publicly via digital transmission (like SiriusXM satellite radio or Pandora non-interactive streaming). These royalties are collected by SoundExchange.

Infringement

If someone exercises any of these six rights without obtaining a license from the copyright owner (and if the use doesn't qualify as Fair Use), they are committing copyright infringement. The copyright owner can issue takedown notices or sue for financial damages.