The Performing Rights Society (PRS)

The Performing Rights Society (PRS) are up to their old tricks again, calling small businesses with menaces and demanding payment for playing the radio as it is “providing entertainment”. Royalties should be paid to composers and songwriters and we should all accept and agree with this. However should we pay the composers and songwriters twice? After all when you listen to the music the radio station has already paid PRS for the performance, so why should you and everyone else where the radio can be heard by more than one person at a time? If you listen to CDs or legal downloads then the royalty has been paid in the purchase price of the disk or download.

 

PRS paid its top fat cat a salary of £425,000 in 2007, so before you think that perhaps the small time musician is entitled to a second bite of the cherry remember that much of the money collected goes to PRS salaries and admin costs.

 

If you have a small business and want to avoid paying PRS then you have options. Either play the radio for personal use only, ensuring that no-one else can hear it, or play PRS free music. Older classical music or music from companies such as Global Journey (the company I work for) sell music that it not registered with PRS. Play their music, even as in-store music for entertainment and you're in the clear. Don't forget that if you've got music on hold PRS will seek you out for that too, so change your hold music to royalty free music too!