Copyright & Music

Organizations Involved in Copyright Issues

Getting Permission

Permission to use materials, including music, must be obtained IN ADVANCE of the intended use.

Print Music

MPA Copyright Search Center, a guide to finding who owns the copyright to acomposition. Includes a form that can be printed and submitted to the owner.
ASCAP, the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers. Includes a searchable database of songs and composers.
BMI, Broadcast Music, Inc. Includes a searchable database of BMI-represented composers and artists.
SESAC

Recorded Music

ASCAP has an extensive licensing FAQ at http://www.ascap.com/licensing/licensingfaq.html
Harry Fox Agency
RIAA, Recording Industry Association of America
The Golda Meir Library has a policy on Public Performance of Music at http://www.uwm.edu/Library/Music/pubperf.html

Digital Materials

Most Internet Service Providers require that you 'sign' a non-violation agreement, also called "Terms of Service" or TOS. Here are a couple of examples of such agreements:

xoom.com
Yahoo!Geocities
UWM

yes, this means that you must have permission to use any copyrighted materials on your own pages. You can, and will, be stopped by campus computing adminstrators for violating this agreement.

Reporting someone who has violated your copyright:

The Library of Congress Directory of Service Provider Agents lists contact information for all "Internet Service Providers," including universities and colleges. (see "Case Law" below for examples of how this has been used recently)