Set up Publishing Co ?

[larrymagee]

Thanks for all the great info, dudes.

[RockChild56]

Heya, Larry.

I'm with BMI as well.

If you have something that is not going through a publisher, you register it as a separate work and make sure that you register yourself as the writer with 200% shares. This will give the publishing money as "excess writer clearance" to you. You will get your publishing money that way without having to create a separate "Publisher" entity.

Russell Landwehr

Score one for BMI. I don't think you can do that at ASCAP

Not in that way they don't, but I just set up a Pub. Co with ASCAP it took 5 min and $50.00.
They have streamlined the registration so you get it the same day.
I did it with a registered Business Entity (an L.L.C.) and did a DBA.
But I think they will do it as a DBA without IRS/State registration.
And you file a W-9 with them.

I also will register most of my copyrights with/through the Publishing Co.
EJB

[larrymagee]

Hi EJB - your post brings up another point related to my original question. --- It is my understanding that we usually don't register songs with the PRO unless the songs are going direct to the Music Supervisor. If it's going through a Library, they will be the publisher, and we might need to go back and change the publisher registration with the PRO. Who's got time for that?

I'd like to hear what the more experienced guys say about this

[jonnybutter]

Heya, Larry.

I'm with BMI as well.

If you have something that is not going through a publisher, you register it as a separate work and make sure that you register yourself as the writer with 200% shares. This will give the publishing money as "excess writer clearance" to you. You will get your publishing money that way without having to create a separate "Publisher" entity.

Russell Landwehr

Score one for BMI. I don't think you can do that at ASCAP

Not in that way they don't, but I just set up a Pub. Co with ASCAP it took 5 min and $50.00.
They have streamlined the registration so you get it the same day.
I did it with a registered Business Entity (an L.L.C.) and did a DBA.
But I think they will do it as a DBA without IRS/State registration.
And you file a W-9 with them.

I also will register most of my copyrights with/through the Publishing Co.
EJB

Hey EJB,

I did the same thing, and in ASCAP's defence, it is at least easy to register as a pub, as you say. Would be nice to skip the whole thing though.

[Russell Landwehr]

Hi EJB - your post brings up another point related to my original question. --- It is my understanding that we usually don't register songs with the PRO unless the songs are going direct to the Music Supervisor. If it's going through a Library, they will be the publisher, and we might need to go back and change the publisher registration with the PRO. Who's got time for that?

I'd like to hear what the more experienced guys say about this

Yeah, that's the Modus Operandi. Things go much smoother for "most" publishers if the song is not registered yet, so that they can register the song with THEIR publishing instead of updating an existing registration. If the song is for-sure being picked up by a direct-to-supe situation, then you'll need to have a separate registration with a different title to make sure you get the publishing money.

Interesting you brought this up. Just today I had a song NOT picked up by a non-exclusive library simply because I submitted a song to them (that they wanted to sign) where the title I used in my submission was already registered to another non-exclusive library. In this particular Library's case, they want to see the ORIGINAL song title of my submission registered under MY name with NO other publisher attached... even though they are non-exclusive.

rl

[VanderBoegh]

Just today I had a song NOT picked up by a non-exclusive library simply because I submitted a song to them (that they wanted to sign) where the title I used in my submission was already registered to another non-exclusive library. In this particular Library's case, they want to see the ORIGINAL song title of my submission registered under MY name with NO other publisher attached... even though they are non-exclusive.

Whoa, serious? That is a standard - and expected - business practice if you're playing the non-exclusive model. Seems like a silly thing for a non-ex library to get worked up over. Strange that they'd want the original title and not a derivative. Makes me wonder though... how do they know what the original title really is? Perhaps this is a song with lyrics, and the title should obviously be the chorus hook, but now you've changed it to something that doesn't seem fitting? Seems that would be the only issue a library would have with re-titling and might explain why they'd want the original title.

~~Matt

[Russell Landwehr]

Whoa, serious? That is a standard - and expected - business practice if you're playing the non-exclusive model. Seems like a silly thing for a non-ex library to get worked up over. Strange that they'd want the original title and not a derivative. Makes me wonder though... how do they know what the original title really is? Perhaps this is a song with lyrics, and the title should obviously be the chorus hook, but now you've changed it to something that doesn't seem fitting? Seems that would be the only issue a library would have with re-titling and might explain why they'd want the original title.

~~Matt

It's a very well known and long-lived and highly sought after TAXI friendly library. They are very meticulous in making sure they have all their publishing ducks in a row. Their method of vetting the music and registering works with the PROs ran me into this little snag. Next time I submit to them, I will make sure I send music with the Original Title of the instrumental instead of the registered retitle.

Russell