Perhaps you want to find music for your business' latest radio or television commercial. Or maybe you're working on an industrial film and need background songs. Or perhaps you've been hired to create a wedding DVD or a video slide show with music in the background. In each case, you need to understand the pricing and costs of music licensing.

While you're looking for music to use in the business setting, keep in mind there are three legal possibilities when it comes to music licensing. You may consider:

1. Purchasing rights-managed music from music licensing companies

2. Buying royalty-free music from a music licensing service

3. Using copyright free songs in lieu of licensing music

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Obtain music licensing services for rights-managed songs

If you want exclusive use of a piece of music, or need high-end music by popular artists for your commercial, demo, industrial film or similar work, you'll probably need to pay for rights-managed songs. Prices vary from about $2,000 to $200,000, depending on how famous the artist is and where you plan to use the music. (For example, if some people in your ad have radio music playing faintly in the background, the cost is closer to $2,000, but a well-known song used as a commercial theme is around $50,000 to $200,000.)

I recommend: For a good explanation of small business use of music, read "Small Business Videographer" at The Music Bridge. Be sure to also read their article on buying verses leasing rights, found under the "Music Clearance & Licensing" button near the top of the page. Getty Images is also a music licensing company featuring popular music.

Look into royalty-free record licensing

For music by unknown artists, prices are much cheaper. Often such songs can be obtained royalty-free, costing you a one time fee of $50 to $75. The biggest downside to royalty-free music is that you cannot obtain exclusive use rights. But the greatest upside is the music is inexpensive and need only be paid for once.

I recommend: Shockwave-Sound.com is a music licensing organization with royalty-free music. See also Creative Support Services not only for downloads, but for a detailed explanation of what royalty-free music is and how you may use it.

Take advantage of music copyright license-free songs

Copyright free (also called public domain) music requires absolutely no license. However, you may pay a service to find such music for you. This cost varies, depending upon whether the service is custom or not. A website with downloadable copyright free songs generally charges less than $10 a song, while a service that does custom searches for you may charge more.

I recommend: Haven Sound is a good place to find copyright free music; search through categories like "popular hit songs" (from 1900 - 1922, which is the era most public domain recordings fall into) to "patriotic songs." MusOpen is a good source for classical public domain music that is free.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  If you want to play background music in your restaurant, or wish to host a public performance of some music, you must also work with a music licensing agency.

Music licensing services help you navigate the complex process of intellectual property clearance to obtain that piece of music you're looking for. Whenever you hear music performed, whether on the radio, in an elevator or even in a street performance, know that the music is licensed, usually through the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP). As music is often a vital component to marketing, especially in television and radio advertising, you may at times need to obtain record licensing. Fees vary depending on the usage or popularity of the song. For example, in the United States, the licensing fee for a popular song in a commercial can run from $75,000 to $200,000 for a year's usage on television or radio.

Even if you manage a public venue like a restaurant, tavern or hotel, you still need to obtain licensing to play background music. Here are some things to do to get a music copyright license:

1. Search music licensing companies to get a music license for television and radio.

2. Get general music licensing for a variety of venues.

3. As an alternative, consider purchasing royalty-free music.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Find a music licensing service that can get you the music rights for advertising

Find a music licensing agency or service that provides a variety of pre-cleared music genres that you can use in your television or radio commercials. Search through catalogs and sample works for other clients to get a feel for what you are looking for.

I recommend: Getty Images offers a large catalog of songs, from independent artists representing jazz, country, pop, rock, R&B, ambient, classical and other genres. All songs are pre-cleared and ready to license, and payment is through credit card or a Getty account. The Music Bridge provides clearance and licensing on various projects, including television and commercials. Contact them for free consulting.

Find music broadcast licensing for general venues

Whether you own or manage a health spa or a restaurant or are planning a festival, ambient music creates an atmosphere that entertains your clients and customers. Find a service where you can obtain music licenses for general venues.

I recommend: Sesac offers music licensing for country clubs, health clubs, malls, restaurants, taverns and festivals. Create an account for a variety of premiums, including an extensive song catalog. BMI is in the business of licensing music for thousands of member businesses, including restaurants, hotels and stores. The service represents millions of musical works, making licensing very cost effective. Online invoicing simplifies administration.

Find royalty-free music for your projects as an alternative to music licensing

You can find hundreds of online libraries containing royalty-free music. Some you can instantly download, or you can subscribe to a service. This is preferable for projects that require simple tracks like websites, presentations, telephone hold music or software demos.

I recommend: PremiumBeat.com offers a library of royalty-free music that is downloadable. A variety of genres is available for new media and multimedia platforms. Find music for promotional materials, even online video games. Fresh Music provides a library of quality royalty-free music that you can simply purchase online.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  An attorney experienced with intellectual property law can also give you a breakdown on the type of music licensing you need and when you would need it so that you will not violate any copyright laws.

Although almost all businesses that serve the public use music in some way, few really know about the need for music licensing. Big pro companies are showing businesses how to get compliance for licensing the music they use continually. But there's still a real knowledge gap out there.

Businesses will often want to read up on the idea themselves to make sure they are not getting a raw deal. That's when music licensing education and training resources from the web can really be worth their weight in, well, gold (Or its similar value in any world currency). Businesses can use web resources on music broadcast licensing to:

1. Find a third party company to assist with music licensing and help keep a business compliant.

2. Find out about what music licensing companies and agreements are best for their specific kind of business.

3. Make direct deals, including music licensing opportunities, if a shop is involved in any part of the music business.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Look for handy online guides to music licensing

Some of the easiest online resources are in the form of a music licensing 'guide' that steers readers through some of the elements that need to be in place between musicians and the businesses that use their tunes.

I recommend: This Songwriters Guide to Music Licensing from eStock Music lays out some of the finer points of getting music licensing solutions in place. Find more of this guidance from sites like All Music Library. The Harry Fox Agency represents recording rights for most music publishers and its site has a large amount of information explaining how the business works.

Read more on music licensing from other agencies through online info pages

Other venues, such as film production companies, background music providers, and many others will have timely information about all of the intricate parts of the music licensing service industry, where pros (ASCAP-BMI-SESAC) administer their own kinds of music and record licensing for composers, and additional types of licensing agreements add complexity to the process.

I recommend: The pages at Film Music Magazine get into some of the details over what kind of licensing music agreements are generally found when a film takes on the music of a specific composer. Learn more about specific "direct" or "source" options from Music On Hold.

Find guidance from eBooks and music licensing training

Those looking for more in-depth guidance about how to navigate the world of music licensing services can obtain volumes, ebooks, or other manual type sources that will give a business more wisdom regarding all kinds of music copyright license agreements.

I recommend: Find eBook options online like this How to License Your Music into Movies and Television. Get more of these resources, such as Kohn on Music Licensing. For workshops on music licensing, try BMI, the royalty collecting agency.

When songwriters create music, the law protects their work so that others cannot profit from it without the copyright holder's permission. Today, most songwriters allow a special organization, like The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP)or Broadcast Music Inc. (BMI), to handle such legal permissions for them. But before you purchase the right to use a piece of music, it's vital to know what you are paying for. There are many different types of rights available, but each is specific to certain circumstances.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Berne Copyright Convention

The Berne Copyright Convention is an international treaty that says creators of music, books and other works don't need to file for copyright; their work is automatically protected by copyright law the moment of creation. Therefore, copyright law covers music without a copyright notice, and the creator or publisher must give permission before you can use it.

I recommend: At the Cornell University Law School website, you can read the complete text of the treaty.

Blanket license

A blanket license is issued by a performance rights society, such as ASCAP, and allows public performance of any and all songs in that society's catalog.

I recommend: For details on exactly what a blanket license is, visit the website MediaPositiveRadio.com.

Mechanical rights

Mechanical rights, also called a mechanical license, allow an individual or a company the right to record music and distribute it with the copyright holder's permission.

I recommend: Visit SAMRO, which explains in detail what mechanical rights are.

Performance rights

Performance rights, sometimes called public performance rights, allow the performance of copyrighted material in a public place. They can also allow the transmission of a song to the public via television or radio.

I recommend: Go to Royalty-Free.TV for an explanation of performance rights. The website also tells you how to obtain them.

Synchronization rights

Synchronization, or synch rights, allow the use of copyrighted music as background sound for a movie, commercial, television program or similar production.

I recommend: Attorney Wallace Collins discusses the importance of synchronization rights.

Public domain

By law, creative works can only remain under copyright protection for a certain number of years. Once that time passes, the work falls into public domain, which means people may use the music however the like without obtaining permission from the copyright holder.

I recommend: Haven Sound explains what public domain music is and how to know if a song is in the public domain.