By Vanessa Kaster
Today, it is almost a given that music you create will easily be copied and used by other people via the internet. And the BETTER your MUSIC is, the MORE LIKELY it is to be copied. This applies to music, photographs, lyrics, poetry, trademarks and all varieties of creative stuff.
If you discover that your sON is being used by someone else on their website, MySpace page or YouTube posting, it’s a good idea to contact the poacher and let them know that it’s YOUR music they are using and let them know how you want them to treat your music The treatment you request can range from:
* asking them to stop using your song and remove it from their site,
* asking for
* letting them how they can buy your music (if it’s for sale.)
The best case scenario is that you know the person using your music and can easily reach out to them to work out how and if you want your stuff used by them. Most of the time however, you may not know the person… BUT don’t rush to attack them too violently… because, these poachers could become your NEWEST and BIGGEST fans. Keep this in mind when you reach out to them, and make a pitch to sell your stuff (ie promote your upcoming gigs and CD’s) at the same time that you ask them to refrain from poaching. About 90% of the time, it’s possible to make this extra sale.
The worst case scenario is that the poacher ignores your attempts to contact them and continues using your stuff. If this happens, look through the ‘Terms of Service’ for the host website and follow the instructions it gives for notifying them of illegal use of copyrighted or trademarked property. To find the relevant Terms of Service, run an internet search on the hosting website’s Terms of Service. (for example: ‘MySpace Terms of Service’)
Be diligent and keep tabs on how and who is using your music!!
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