Playing music in a public space isn’t as simple as playing Spotify on your phone and hooking it up to a speaker. Music for professional use in public or private must be paid for through a license. Yet many business owners don’t know anything about this process. This can often lead them to being charged unnecessary with unrealistic fines for being unaware of the rules. This Direct365 blog aims to give you more information on what the music license is and how to obtain it. We’ll also touch upon what we know about the cost of a PRS fine.
PRS for Music – What is it?
The Performing Rights Society for Music (PRS) is the organisation that manages the licensing of music for public and private, non-personal use. PRS represent thousands of artists to ensure they get the correct fee for their music. The amount of money paid covers music played through various methods. These include radio, listened to in offices, warehouses, all workspaces, and any other settings that music is played. This includes whether the music is played through a streaming service.
How Does the Music Licence Work?
All businesses and venues must sign up for the PRS for Music license. This is done via their website, where you can sign up and pay online. This process includes giving detailed information about your business, how you use music and how many people staff/customers you have. Each year you will need to renew this license. Here, you will be asked for up to date information about your business.
What Happens if I Don’t Get a Music License?
If you play music and don’t have a license, it is seen as an offense and you could be handed a fine. You could also be given a fine if you do not provide the correct information about your business. This information should reflect who and how many people use the music in your business. It is within your own interests to fill in each form correctly.
What is the Fine for Playing Music Without a License in the UK?
There is no information on how much the PRS fine is for the size of the business particularly. There’s also nothing on their website to give you a guide. However, there have been reports in the media about certain companies being given specific fines. These figures may prove helpful for you.
In 2018, Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council were given a fine of £2000 for not having a PRS license for an event that happened on their land.
Similarly, in 2015 the owner of Socialite Bar in London was fined £19k (£4000 in damages and £15,000 in court fees) for not having a license for his bar. He was also warned against further punishment that could include jail time.
Also in 2017, owner of Weston Mill Hotel in Devon was ordered to pay £3200 in fines for operating their venue without a license for their music.
As you can tell, while the actual cost of the time varies (size of business and employees and length of time without a license will be the variables) the fine is often large, moving into the thousands of pounds.
It might feel as though the PRS for Music license feels like a huge cost for something of little significance, but the fines that you can get are huge. And in relation to the artists, the license fee does get divided up between musicians who are signed up for the license. Morally and legally, it is the right thing to do.
What else could my business be fined for?
There’s a lot of different pieces of legislation that your business needs to follow. While PRS is a license, other laws require you to take action yourself to ensure you are legal. Some of the services we offer that you need legally are:
Direct365 offer these services at a great rate and with support from our UK based support team. For more information about how we can keep you compliant for workplace services, call up on the button below.
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