Preparing a Recording of Holiday Favorites? Use HFA's Songfile(R) to get The Licenses You Need

Preparing a Recording of Holiday Favorites? Use HFA's Songfile(R) to get The Licenses You Need

NEW YORK, Nov. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Holiday concert season is in full swing in schools and houses of worship across the country. Many of these performances will be recorded to make great keepsakes and presents -- but to avoid potential legal issues that derail these plans, music directors, fundraisers, and the like, should make sure to obtain the proper mechanical licenses for the recordings.

Mechanical licenses are required by U.S. law when you manufacture and distribute a recording of a song that is written by someone else. This includes many popular songs of the season such as "White Christmas," "Frosty the Snowman," and "Feliz Navidad," and even modern arrangements of classics such as "Little Drummer Boy." Not-for-profit organizations are not excluded from the requirement to obtain these licenses.

The Harry Fox Agency (HFA) is the leading source for mechanical licenses in the U.S., representing over 2 million songs from almost 36,000 music publishers. The company has created an online licensing service, Songfile(R), at www.harryfox.com, just for those who plan to make 2,500 or fewer copies of their records. Licenses can be obtained for CDs, cassettes, LPs, or permanent digital downloads (DPDs). Customers can create an account, search HFA's database of songs, and complete their mechanical licensing transaction in minutes. The royalty per song is determined by law, and is currently 9.1 cents per copy for songs 5 minutes or less in length, or 1.75 cents per minute (rounded up) per copy, for songs over 5 minutes. A handy royalty calculator is on the HFA website at www.harryfox.com/calculator. There is also a processing fee on each song licensed using Songfile. If a user just wants to conduct research, there is a separate Songfile Public Search tool available free of charge.

"Every year, HFA receives panicked calls from music teachers trying to deliver CDs for the holidays after they were turned away from a CD duplicator because they don't have the proper licenses," said Maurice Russell, Vice President of Licensing and Business Affairs for HFA. "We always encourage anyone planning to record their event to obtain necessary mechanical licenses in advance. Songfile is a fast way to research songs and secure the proper licenses before the big day to ensure that the recording can be distributed without a hitch."

"Accurate licensing not only ensures that your project will be completed on schedule, but also makes sure that the songwriter or arranger who created this great music receives proper payment for its use," continued Paul Wallace, Licensing Director for HFA. "Songfile licenses are completed in minutes, and the service has features that allow you to pay online from a checking account or by using a credit card. In addition, it's simple to reorder more licenses should your release be a smash hit!"

About HFA

Established in 1927 by the National Music Publishers' Association, HFA represents almost 36,000 music publishers for their licensing needs in the United States, issuing licenses and collecting and distributing the associated royalties. In addition to being the premier mechanical licensing agent in the U.S., which includes CDs, ringtones, digital downloads, interactive streams, limited downloads and more, HFA is dedicated to finding new ways for its affiliated publishers to recognize value for their catalogs, including lyrics and tablature. Further, HFA provides collection and monitoring services to its publisher clients for music distributed and sold in over 95 territories around the world. For more information about HFA, or to become an affiliate publisher or a licensee, see www.harryfox.com.

Songfile(R) is a registered trademark of The Harry Fox Agency, Inc. All rights reserved.

Source: HFA

CONTACT: Laurie Jakobsen of The Harry Fox Agency, +1-212-922-3297,
press@harryfox.com

Web Site: http://www.harryfox.com/
http://www.harryfox.com/calculator

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