The B$I cordially invites you to the Loft at 939 Boylston St. on Thursday, May 2 for a Great-Gatsby Themed Party!
Time: 7PM
Dress code: 1920′s Glam (formal)
$10
All proceeds go to Amirah! Amirah (\a-meer-ah\) is a non-profit organization located in the Boston area dedicated to providing effective, whole person aftercare for survivors of commercial exploitation.
A young businessman had just started his own firm. He rented a beautiful office and had it furnished with antiques. Sitting there, he saw a man come into the outer office. Wishing to appear the hot shot, the businessman picked up the phone and started to pretend he had a big deal working.
He threw huge figures around and made giant commitments. Finally he hung up and asked the visitor, “Can I help you?”
The man said, “Yeah, I’ve come to activate your phone lines.”
Extracted from http://www.badgerassociates.co.uk/recruitment-jokes.htm on 21 May
The 6 Compulsory Licenses:
Cable Television Rebroadcast – The cable television compulsory license requires the local broadcasting stations to allow the cable companies to retransmit their signals in exchange for payment of set fees. Without the license, the broadcast would be an unauthorized distribution of copyrighted programming.
Public Broadcasting System- The PBS lobbyists did a terrific job requiring copyright owners to license works to them at cheap rates.
Jukebox – Before 1976, the copyright act did not make jukeboxes pay for their rights to use music; they were considered toys in 1909 copyright act. Currently, they pay a set licensing fee.
Digital Performance of Records – It requires the owners of recordings to allow performances of masters on digital radio, which includes webcasting (which are radio shows on the Internet).
Phonorecords and Digital downloads of Nondramatic Musical compositions- Once a song has been recorded and released to the public, the copyright owner must license it: (a) to anyone else that wants to use it in a phonorecord (a material object that embodies sound; i.e. an mp3 file stored on a computer or CD); and (b) for a specific payment established by the law. All the following conditions must exist before you get a compulsory license:
1. The song is a non-dramatic musical work; and
2. It has been previously recorded; and
3. The previous recording has been distributed publicly in phonorecords; and
4. The new recording doesn’t change the basic melody or fundamental character of the song; and
5. The new recording is only used in phonorecords.[1]
[1] Passman, Donald. All You Need to Know About the Music Business. 7th edition. p. 208-209.
In the article, “The “Lean” Mean “Creative” Marketing Machine“, by Dean Davis, the author discusses how to create a marketing plan for an album release. The artist is releasing his first album and is starting out with no fans. The artist’s day job is alligator wrangler, but he’s finally pursuing his life-long dream of being a pop star. The article assumes some knowledge of the “Minimum Viable Product“, or MVP concept detailed in The Lean Startup, by Eric Ries. Also, the reader should understand the “Creative Commons” license. Essentially, a Creative Commons license allows a licensee to recreate, remix, or cover someone else’s song.
Dean details a marketing plan centered around the release of singles and creating a steady flow of content. The album would be split up rather than released as one package. This enables the artist to gain feedback, pinpoint a demographic, and see the retention rate. If it ends up feedback is poor, that’s O.K. It allows the content creator to refine and sharpen his or her craft. This could mean re-writing the songs. It might mean adding a different instrument or creating a re-mixed version. Better to release songs one by one than to release a polished final product that no one wants.
The use of inbound marketing will aid in the album’s promotion. “Blogs, podcasts, video, eBooks, eNewsletters, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), social media marketing, and other forms of content marketing form the foundation of inbound marketing. Create a constant flow of content via social media. Street teams are also great ways to interact with potential customers. For example, you can attach download cards to a cookie (chocolate chip or oatmeal raisin anyone?) and charge a “Smile” to receive the cookie. A group in Australia reached 1,200 people in one day using the cookie method. This is a form of buzz marketing; people will talk about this when explaining their day to someone” – Dean Davis
To compliment other marketing methods, consider allowing your songs to be published under a Creative Commons License. This allows other creators to “re-write” your creation. Your name is still attributed to the original work, but it allows fans to re-mix, mash-up, and cover your song. The Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license is one option. Typically, a licensee would have to pay a licensing fee to use your work, dissuading them from re-creating your song. Now people can re-create your works without any financial burden.
The great thing about creating an “MVP” and inbound marketing is that you don’t have to invest a lot of money in them. Consider the Lean Startup method for your next album!
Library of Congress Reading Room
The 6 Exclusive Rights (listed in the Section 106 of the copyright Act)
Reproduction (ex. recording a song and manufacturing a CD with the song)
Distribution No one can sell, rent, or lease copies of your songs without an agreement in place. It doesn’t matter whether the songs are in CD, download, or vinyl formats. There are both physical and digital mediums of distribution.
Public Performance(s) this means a performance in front of 10 or more people. The copyright owner joins one of these 3 public performance societies (ASCAP, BMI, SESAC) and charge ALL public places that play songs (bars, schools, concert halls, radios, EVERYWHERE) and they collect those performance fees and pay the artists the royalty monies.
Derivative works Ex. A movie based on a book. Copyright Law, section 107 discusses derivative works.
Public Display (applies not to music but works of fine art)
In the case of song recordings, right to digital performance
The Library of Congress is the legal repository for copyright protection and copyright registration. “Click” on the image of the Library of Congress Reading Room above to explore more of the copyright law.
Steve Berlin Johnson is the author of 8 books regarding science, technology, and individual perception. His book Where Good Ideas Come From ranked as one of the top books of 2010 by The Economist. His YouTube video also titled, “Where Good Ideas Come From,” outlines the subject matter of his book and provides great insight for entrepreneurs.
Most good ideas take a lot of time to develop; certain spaces and technologies allow for the development of ideas. Tim Berners Lee, creator of the World Wide Web (WWW), spent 10 years formulating his idea before it became reality. What started off as a side project to better organize his own data transformed into the Internet we know today. Often, people begin with “half” ideas, or small hunches. English coffee houses in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries served as spaces that fostered creativity. People of all walks of life could discuss political, social, scientific, or other matters. When people are more connected, one person’s small hunch and another person’s small hunch can form a larger idea. Cell Phones, iPads, computers, radio, and television all provide connectivity. Steve Berlin Johnson argues that technology helps people expand their creativity more than ever before. A good idea might not arise over night, but with patience, anything is possible.
