Does anybody have experience, what is process of making your megamix legal and to sell it (of course and where)?

My friend and I discussed it today so he would like to sell his megamix which is in my opinion amazing.

Thx!

Have a look at THIS TOPIC.

In particular, pay attention to the subject of licensing (one of Moto's recent posts goes into some detail about this issue.) It is a long, difficult and expensive process to get all copyright owners to sign off on a license for using their work in a mix available for commercial exploitation. In fact, that is one of the handful of things that a record label is much better positioned to do than the actual artist ... it helps to have attorneys on retainer, since the process requires the negotiation of legal contracts.

What she says...

...of course, if your friend was using MixMeister, he could air his mix on mmRadio for free...

HI to make your mix legal you need to license the tracks you are using. This is a long prcess as you have to contact the owners of each track and request a license to use ad sell that music in your territory. this can cost anything from £100 to £1000 a track depending on how big the tune is at that time. If you want to do it as a demo disc you can get round the license by not selling it for profit, and marking your cd's "demo use only" usually a run of 100 units is small enough to be used for this.

quote:

Originally posted by Tonker Tim:
....If you want to do it as a demo disc you can get round the license by not selling it for profit, and marking your cd's "demo use only" usually a run of 100 units is small enough to be used for this.

I think this is a common misconception ... there is no basis for this idea in copyright law.

Copyright law, as the name implies, governs the right to "copy" something irrespective of whether or not you sell that copy for profit. The only person with the right to copy material is the owner, except under some fairly restrictive "fair use" policies.

The fact that people, including DJs, make a small run of 100 units or less to use as demo material and don't get sued is NOT because the law says that's OK to do ... it's more because the use is too obscure to be readily detected by the copyright owner.

Handing out your demos to your friends and some local club owners is not likely to rise to the notice of an international star ... but hand those same 100 units out at a convention of copyright attorneys representing musical artists, and I assure you there could be a cease and desist letter in the mail to you the next morning.

AS FOR THE TOPIC SELLING MUSIC..... ON MYSPACE.... PLENTY OF PEOPLE SELLING REMIX'S .... I BET THEY DONT HAVE ALL THE COPY RIGHTS..... CHANGE THE TITLE CHANGE BPM.... SOLD..... ALL OF MY MIXES ARE FREE AT.... myspace.com/djoxide ...... I LUV MUSIC AND I WANT TO BE HEARD..... FREE MUSIC IS THE BEST MUSIC... PEACE

Actually, the answer lies somewhere in between all these views. As a musical artist, trying to promote your business as a DJ, you do have a "fair use" right to distribute a limited number of samples, e.g. mixsets, of your work to other professionals and/or persons who could be of assistance to you in gaining rightful employment in your chosen profession. This is guaranteed under U.S. copyright law. These are legitimate "demo" (not promo) CDs.

HOWEVER, the extent of "fair use" is not clearly defined in copyright law, and lately the music industry has been attacking that right. Be aware that if you choose to distribute such samples, you could be subject to litigation, and whether that litigation is rightful or not, could be subject to the determination of a judge or jury.

Nevertheless the concept of "fair use" under U.S. law should not be discouraged and it is up to the individual to determine what constitutes fair used based on individual decision and legal consultation, as necessary.

The idea that one can distribute "100 units" of one's DJ work containing the works of other artists seems excessive, however, such a "fair use" determination would be entirely dependent on the circumstance of the distribution, as well as the artistic use of the copyrighted material. How unique is this use? For what purpose is this use? Etc.

However, in general, distributing more than a few copies as samples of your DJ work is risky, and samples should always be distributed to other professionals or others through whom you're seeking employment, unless you are prepared to defend yourself in court.

What I see mostly today is a wide variety of DJs who make their simple mixsets freely available on the internet for anyone to obtain (or even selling them, which is COMPLETELY ILLEGAL). These are mixsets that are pretty much standard DJ mixes--e.g. do not have significant artistic uniqueness in and of themselves (not mash ups, production remixes, etc.) That is a clear violation of U.S. copyright law. That is definitely not "fair use," hence it is completely illegal.

Just to say to you all it's a long winded process, not worth bothering!

You could try and create your on style (be it) your on music. this is how you can copyright that.

Copyright Licences To Your Own Works

Copyrighting a musical work or musical lyrics arises automatically once it is recorded either in writing or by some other means. Musical works or lyrics can be recorded and then copyright may arise in a variety of ways including making a CD recording, tape or video, of the work, as well as by the traditional notation of a musical score.

No official registration is necessary in the UK to secure copyright in a work.

Under the Copyright, Designs & Patents Act 1988, both musical and literary works are automatically protected from the time they are fixed in some material form. Consequently in the event of a dispute over authorship, ownership or originality, there is no standard method of proving that one work was in existence before another.

There are however two methods to help prove that the work was created on a specific date:

1) Deposit a copy with a solicitor or a bank manager.

You must obtain a receipt. Charges are likely to be incurred using this method

2) Send a copy of the work to yourself by registered delivery and write the date on the envelope and sign your name across the seal.

You must leave the envelope unopened upon receipt.

Also, on any sheet music, lyrics or middle/cover of cassettes & cds ensure you have placed the copyright symbol © followed by the year and your name.