Legal Definitions - Broadcast Music, Inc

Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) is one of the primary organizations in the United States responsible for managing the public performance rights of musical works on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers. Essentially, BMI acts as an intermediary, granting licenses to businesses and venues that wish to play copyrighted music publicly. In return for these licenses, BMI collects fees and then distributes royalties to its affiliated music creators and copyright owners, ensuring they are compensated when their non-dramatic musical works (like songs and instrumental pieces, but not full theatrical productions) are performed in public settings.

• Example 1: The Restaurant's Background Music

  A popular downtown restaurant plays a carefully curated playlist of contemporary pop and jazz music through its sound system throughout the day to enhance the dining experience for its patrons.

  Explanation: Since the restaurant is a public establishment and the music is being played for customers, this constitutes a "public performance" of copyrighted musical works. To legally play these songs, the restaurant would obtain a license from an organization like BMI. This license covers the public performance rights for the songs in BMI's extensive catalog, ensuring that the songwriters and publishers of those songs receive royalties for their work being used in a commercial setting.

• Example 2: The University's Campus Radio Station

  A university operates a non-commercial campus radio station that broadcasts a variety of music genres, including indie rock, classical, and hip-hop, to students and the local community.

  Explanation: Even though it's a non-commercial station, broadcasting music to the public still constitutes a "public performance." The university radio station would need to secure licenses from performing rights organizations like BMI to legally play copyrighted songs over the airwaves. BMI collects fees from such stations and then distributes royalties to the creators whose music is broadcast, allowing the station to offer diverse programming while compensating artists.

• Example 3: The Live Music Venue

  A small club hosts local bands and solo artists several nights a week, who often perform cover songs in addition to their original material.

  Explanation: When a band performs a cover song (a song written by someone else) in a public venue, it's a "public performance" of that copyrighted musical work. The venue itself, not just the band, is responsible for ensuring the proper licenses are in place. The club would typically hold a blanket license from BMI (and other similar organizations) to cover the public performance rights for the vast majority of songs that might be performed, ensuring that the original songwriters and publishers of those cover songs are compensated.