Mechanical Royalties

[Chris Hawkins]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Virginia
I have written a song, copyright thru library of congress. I have been contacted by someone in Australia who wants to purchase the mechanical liscense. Is it a good idea to sell these rights?

[The Occultist]

I was under the impression that here in the states, a mechanical license is compulsory; you don't have a choice in the matter and must sell the mechanical license upon demand.

Sine your new pal lives in Australia, I'm not really sure how that works.

[divgradcurl]

Originally Posted by The Occultist

I was under the impression that here in the states, a mechanical license is compulsory; you don't have a choice in the matter and must sell the mechanical license upon demand.

Sine your new pal lives in Australia, I'm not really sure how that works.

A minor point -- a license is compulsory if the rights have ever been licensed before. The copyright owner has the right to negotiate any deal he or she is able to for the first transfer of rights. Only after the first deal does a mechanical license become compulsory.

That said, if the Australian friend wants to use the song in Australia, you need to look to Australian copyright law (and presumably contract law) to figure out how the license will work.

[The Occultist]

Originally Posted by divgradcurl

A minor point -- a license is compulsory if the rights have ever been licensed before. The copyright owner has the right to negotiate any deal he or she is able to for the first transfer of rights. Only after the first deal does a mechanical license become compulsory.

Interesting! I swear, this is my favorite area of law. Once I get through law school, IP will definitely be my focus. Thank you for the correction!

[FlyingRon]

Yes, to expand divgradcurl's comment...if you never produced any records (cd's,etc...) with the song, there's no compulsory license requirement and you're not bound by the statutory rates.