> Ho Jeff, How're you doin'?
There's been worse weeks ;-)
 > On 09-Apr-98 at 20:25:00, Jeff Edmonson wrote to
 > Moderator about new rules
 >  JE> How about the "Bono" bill?
 > I've not heard about this - I assume it's something
 > peculiar to your side of the pond?
Sonny Bono, half of the one time popular duo "Sonny & Cher", later tunred 
Congress-Critter, enacted such a bill that is -at best- controversial.
 >  JE> If a band goes in a beer-joint and sings "Peaceful Easy
 >  JE> Feeling", do they owe money to The Eagles
 > This is a public performance and, strictly speaking, the
 > owner/organiser of the event owes money to the collection
 > organisation - PRS in our case, ASCAP in yours - not
 > the artist/s.
Ok, a little more specific.
Some Friday, Saturday night, at a beer joint in Texas
and a local band comes in and plays covers all night long.
Does the bar owner/manager pay the monthly fee to ASCAP/BMI/PRS whoever, or 
does the particular artists that the band is covering get the money?
I say it's the former, because who can keep track of all the songs that a 
band does in a night?  Maybe for one or two sets, but the third and any 
encores?  There's no script...
And, to keep this topical, the keyboard player is playing to a Midi.  Another 
kink in the situation - the Midi is a cover, arranged by the guy at home on 
his keyboard/computer. What happens with the midi cover of the song?
 >  JE> If a person sits down and performs a cover and/or converts a
 >  JE> song into Midi format, is it still theivery
 > Theft is a bit of a strong word to apply in this instance -
Imagine this...
Go write a song, get it published, produced and played.
Listen to it play on Radio and Juke boxes and then realize you're not getting 
paid for it.
Strong or not, where exactly -does- theft come into play in a situation like
this?
 > perhaps 'unauthorised performance' might be a better phrase  .
that's punishible, here.
 > It depends on what you mean by 'perform' - if it is in
 > front of a paying audience, that would be a 'public performance'
 > and fees would be due.  Note that a paying audience does not
 > necessarily have to pay for a seat or whatever.
A "paying audience" isn't paying for a seat, not even through the cover 
charge at the door?
 > A performance in a public place (such as a bar) would also be public.
erm... yeah... ;-)
 > If I sit at home and do a midi arrangement of a published work
 > for my own amusement, providing it is not subsequently
 > performed in public, no fee is required.  In this case a
 > 'perfomance' would include radio airtime, etc as well as
 > a live performance.
I somehow don't think that's the case, Graeme.
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