Is your music really protected?

Registering your music with the United States Copyright Office (USCO) is a critical, yet often overlooked, step for any musician or composer. In fact, even those with decades of experience, are unaware of the benefits that registration provides. There’s also a lot of inaccurate advice floating around out there, like Performing Rights Organizations (ASCAP or BMI) can handle copyright (which is not true) or that sending a letter with your music to yourself and not opening it is a workaround (also, not true). This, along with the cost, means that many artists skip registering their music.

Registering with the USCO is a critical step in protecting your work, especially for smaller artists. This is also true for artists outside of the US.

Copyright protection

In the US, and many other countries, copyright protection for creative work, like a song, is “automatic upon fixation in a tangible medium of expression.” That’s the legal definition in the US. This means that once it is recorded in some physical medium (an audio file or piece of paper), it’s protected under copyright law.

However, although your work is automatically protected upon creation, the US offers an optional registration with the USCO. This process involves submitting an application, a copy of the work, and a processing fee. Once it’s approved, your work is added to the Library of Congress and becomes searchable in their database.

This also makes it clear who owns the work and makes it easier to give permission for others to use the work. This process, in legal terms, is known as establishing a chain of title. Under US copyright law, registration is optional.

So, why pay to register your music?

The US government offers significant benefits to incentivize artists to register.

Proof of ownership

The first benefit is Proof of ownership: When you register your music, you’re presumed to be the owner. If someone else claims they own your work, they have to prove it, not you. Without registration, you’d need to prove your ownership, which can be much harder to do.

Right to sue

The second is The Right to Sue in Federal Court: You can’t file a copyright infringement lawsuit in federal court without registering your work. Federal courts typically handle these cases more efficiently and effectively than state courts.

Damages

The third is Damages: Copyright lawsuits are usually based on proving how much money you lost due to infringement, which can be tough and costly, especially for independent artists.

However, if your work is registered, you can claim statutory damages. These predetermined amounts, set by law, range from $750 to $150,000 per infringement, regardless of your actual financial losses. This can make it financially worthwhile to go to court.

Attorneys fees

The fourth is Attorneys Fees: If your work is registered and you win your case, you can also get the other party to pay your attorney’s fees, which can save you a lot of money.

To get these benefits, you need to register your work within three months of its release or before any infringement occurs. So, it’s best to register your music as soon as it’s published.

Why is this so important for smaller artists?

Copyright infringement is often thought of as a big-artist problem, but it turns out that there are a lot of instances of smaller artists sharing their work (like on social media platforms), only for larger artists to discover and use it without proper attribution, sometimes even claiming ownership.

Without registration, as a smaller artist, you are basically at a loss - not only will proof of ownership be on you, but you also have to prove your losses (which can be next to impossible).

What about non-US artists?

Non-US artists should definitely consider registering their music in the US, because not only is it the largest music market, but also where most copyright lawsuits occur.

And, after registration, non-US artists get the same benefits mentioned earlier - with some exceptions based on your country - so it’s important to do your homework first.

Think of your music as a business

We’re often reluctant to embrace the idea that making music professionally entails professional expenses. Running your music as a business means that you need to invest in things that will protect your business and assets, namely your music. This includes paying fees and doing other administrative tasks that can help sustain your business.

How do you register?

One option is to do it directly with the USCO office. Keep in mind that as a government entity, the forms and procedures can be somewhat tedious. Although their website does offer help documents and FAQs, expect to spend a good amount of time completing your application. And, of course there’s the fees. As of today, they range from $65 to $85 depending on whether you’re registering a single or an album.

Alternatively, you can opt to use a service, like Cosynd, to handle the registration for you. While they will charge a small fee (in addition to the federal filing fees mentioned above), it can significantly streamline the process.

Wrap-up

Sadly, the music industry is notorious for taking advantage of and profiting off of smaller, less informed artists, but this small step can help you reclaim some power. Registering your music early helps protect your rights, makes it easier to take legal action, and can provide financial compensation if someone infringes on your work.