MUSB 2305 Study Guide 6

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NAME                           DATE

MUSB 2305 CHAPTER 6 STUDY GUIDE

“Synchronizations”

THE PLAIN AND SIMPLE GUIDE TO MUSIC PUBLISHING

by Randall D. Wixen

1. ______ Synchronization license fees are set by statutory rates
2. ______ The most important types of synchronization licenses involve motion picture and television productions
3. _____   Before formulating a quote for a synchronization license, you should always ask yourself, “Is this a film I want my song to be in?”
4. _____    Major film studios and film producers usually don’t want to use a broad rights license.
5. _____    It is common to grant in-context uses within the broad rights motion picture license
6. _____    You don’t need to specify “in- context” on your quotes
7. _____    Broad rights licenses are almost always granted on a flat fee basis
8. ______  To publishers, ROW stands for the “rights of the writer
9. ______  It’s important for a publisher to maintain a respectable minimum value to the copyright

10.  ______ The most common request for ancillary rights for a song is for out-of-context trailers and TV advertising

11.  ______ Filmmakers don’t commonly want to use a song to advertise a film when it doesn’t appear in the film

12.  ______ In a negative pickup, the studio that produced the film also pays for the marketing and advertising

13.  ______  You can quote the same fee for a song used in a trailer as you quoted for it to be used in the film

14. _____    A step deal can be a good consideration for a synchronization license in an independent film

15. _____  Publishers quote about the same fee amounts for TV use as they do for films

16. _____  Quoting for TV use is a pretty simple process

17. __ ___  TV producers generally obtain worldwide television and home video quotes for all new productions

18. ______  Most motion picture licenses already include home video rights as part of the initial flat fee

19. ______  Ephemeral uses usually occur with “live” or “tape delay” shows

20. _____    Ephemeral uses are permitted without the copyright holder’s consent by US copyright law

21. _______ PBS doesn’t need to acquire permission from publishers for synchronizations

MUSB 2305 CH 6 STUDY GUIDE P. 2

22. ______   PBS pays about the same for synchronization licenses as do commercial networks

23. _____     US publishers issue synchronization licenses to productions based anywhere in the world

24. ____   Foreign publisher representatives are called subpublishers

25. _____ Synchronization fees in the UK are about the same as those in the US

26. ______ Some foreign PROs and mechanical rights societies offer blanket rights to use songs in films and videos, requiring no publisher permissions

27. ______ Most studios are now willing to pay additional fees to include “future technologies” in their synchronization licenses

28. _____ Publishers should give indefinite open-ended quotes for their synchronization licenses

29. _____ Production company confirmation letters in response to your quotes usually state that they are “preceding in reliance” of your stated quotes and no further license is needed

30. _____ It can be good to be paranoid in licensing deals

BRIEF OUTLINE/ESSAY

1. Name 6 or more variables that a publisher should ask a potential licensee to spell out when requesting a synchronization license.
2. What is a broad rights license?
3. What’s the difference between in context and out of context in a synchronization license?
4. What does most favored nations mean in a contract?
5. What is a film festival license?
6. What type of TV programs would not make provisions for a home video buyout?
7. Name 5 or more “real world things” that producers will do to avoid paying MFN.
8. Why should a publisher’s quote include “subject to a signed written license, and payment of the specified fees”? Give 4 or more examples.