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music rights for internal corporate video?
I have a client who wants to create an employee video using a pop song but changing the lyrics and singing it karaoke style. The video will be used in-house only, sung by current employees. It will be far from musically professional. Likely more tongue-in-cheek.
My question is, do we need to secure copyright for this? And if so what might be the ball-park fee? Years ago I remember the fee being close to 25k. I appreciate any insight. I can’t seem to find a definitive answer on this.
Thank you!b
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6 Replies
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There is no such animal any more as: “internal use only”. EVERYTHING finds a way to get “into the wild”, i.e. some idjit or a member of his family WILL post the video somewhere, and it WILL get on the internet. You can bank on it.
So, what happens, legally, when that occurs? Do you want to be the one left holding the bag for any damages?
I may be overly cautious, in that these days, people flout copyrights all the time. There may even be a Fair Use argument, correct or not, that this is protected appropriation because it’s parody.
I would never bet my income on it, though. “Fair use” doesn’t prevent you from getting sued; it is just the excuse you give the judge after you’ve been found to have appropriated copy-written material. He may or may not buy it. Then, where will you be? Where will the client be?
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It depends on the song. Sometimes you can find a sound-alike instrumental version. Do a google search to see if it’s available. You may also find a Karaoke version of the song. In which case you may just purchase the song, or pay the owners for the rights.
I worked within an internal corporate video department for over 20 years, and used popular song instrumentals many times. We would re-write the lyrics and either have employees sing the new version or have a professional audio studio bring in singers so we could record.
We paid anywhere from $1,500 to $3,500 for the instrumental version. You may wish to contact BZ Rights for more information.
If your legal department says it’s okay to use, get that in writing from them. I was often told that it was okay to use a song by the legal department, but interestingly enough, they would never put that in writing. Also keep in mind that an “internal” video rarely stays internal, as everyone shares it with family and friends on line.
Greg Ball, President
Ball Media Innovations, Inc.
https://www.ballmediainnovations.com -
Thanks Mark and I agree with you about internal videos finding their way out.
The question I’m still puzzled by is: are there different rights for the Karaoke music and if so, is that in addition to the rights that should go to the original artist?b
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Thank you, that’s very helpful!
b
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This has always been such a grey area, and I love these posts, always hoping that something more definitive will come out in one.
One thing you can definitely count on – if you use client directed copyrighted music in ANYTHING, when the hammer comes down, IF it comes down, your client will claim total innocence and the onus will be on you.
Steve Brame
creative illusions Productions -
Yeah, you’re right Steve, CYA is always the wise choice.
Thanks for your input.b
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