Businesses in the region must play by the rules when it comes to playing music in the workplace or face hefty fines.
That’s according to lawyers in Birmingham who are reminding businesses that they must have a licence if they are playing music that staff or customers can hear.
The warning comes in the wake of a crackdown on unlicensed businesses by industry watchdog, the Performing Rights Society.
“A significant proportion of businesses play music in the workplace – be that via the radio or another means – yet many will be unaware that they must have a licence to do so”, said Helen Williams, a licensing specialist at Hammonds in Birmingham.
“Because music is subject to copyright, any music played within a business that can be heard by more than one person must have permission from the owner or copyright owner.
This permission is achieved via a music licence from the Performing Rights Society, Phonographic Performance Limited or Video Performance Limited which manage the rights of musicians, composers and publishers.”
