Background
I operate an online "radio station" of sorts. It works much like
Yahoo's Launch.com, where users can set preferences and hear music
tailored to their prefs. They can also stream songs on demand by
clicking the song name in the directory. I am serviced by almost all
labels/agencies so I have LOTS of music (indie and otherwise). Almost
all albums I receive are either requested by myself or sent directly
via servicing. Basically, I'm not just playing random music from my
personal collection.

Question
Based on the previous facts, am I required to obtain any, or all, of
the following licenses:

ASCAP
BMI
SESAC
SoundExchange/RIAA
Any others?

Remember, this is a jukebox service, not a conventional radio
broadcaster. Your help is MUCH appreciated! It would also be nice to
have information on how to obtain these licenses and which class of
license to seek.

According to the following, you need a mechanical license, a master
use license, and a public performance license for each work included
in the digital jukebox service.  SoundExchange only handles compulsory
licenses for non-interactive services.  The Harry Fox Agency, Inc.
administers mechanical licenses for a number of artists.  The record
companies typically administer the master use license, many of which
can be purchased through E-LicenseClub.com.  ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC
administer the public performance rights.

Sincerely,

Wonko

"I'm thinking of starting a digital jukebox service. What kind of
licenses are required? Can I get the necessary license from
SoundExchange? If not, who did I need to contact to obtain the
necessary licenses?

Due to the fact that digital jukebox services are interactive in
nature (i.e., listeners may select which sound recordings they wish to
hear), these services do not qualify for the statutory license
available to noninteractive services. Instead, operators of such
services must obtain performance and reproduction licenses directly
from each individual copyright owner whose works are included in the
jukebox service. To operate a digital jukebox service, the following
direct licenses are required:



1) For each individual musical work (i.e., the written notes and
lyrics to the song) included in the service, the service must obtain a
mechanical license. Such licenses are available as a matter of law if
you follow the notice procedures established in Section 115 of the
Copyright Act. Alternatively, you may negotiate these licenses
directly with each relevant songwriter/publisher or you may negotiate
a license with the Harry Fox Agency, which coordinates licenses to
reproduce and distribute musical compositions on behalf of a large
number of publishers. It is possible that some of the older musical
compositions you plan to use are in the public domain (i.e., their
copyright has expired), but determining the public domain status of a
given musical work gets rather complicated. If you think the musical
work you wish to use is in the public domain, we recommend that you
review this issue either with a copyright attorney, the individual
music publishers or someone at the Harry Fox Agency.



2) For each individual sound recording you will be using, you must
also obtain a master use license from the individual record label that
owns such sound recording. The name of the relevant record company can
usually be determined from the liner notes that accompany the
commercially-released version of the music. To assist you in this
process, a list of licensing contacts at the major record companies is
included below. Each of the labels will set their own fees based on a
variety of factors (e.g., how popular the song is or was, how current
the song is, the type of CD project, the number of copies that will be
made, etc.) Because the labels receive numerous licensing requests, it
generally takes some time for these licenses to be granted. Please be
aware that labels are not required to license their recordings for use
in third-party projects. Because of differences in the copyright law
as it applies to musical compositions and sound recordings, it is
unlikely (though remotely possible) that any of the sound recordings
you will be using are in the public domain.



Additionally, the venue that hosts a physical digital jukebox is
required to obtain a public performance license from ASCAP, BMI and
SESAC that covers the right to publicly perform the musical works.
Only in the case of online digital jukeboxes are services required to
obtain a public performance license that applies to the sound
recordings. The record labels should provide these licenses along with
any master use licenses they choose to grant."

"Licensing 101" SoundExchange (2003)
http://www.soundexchange.com/licensing101.html#a12

1.  How do I obtain a license to webcast sound recordings? What is the
DMCA statutory license I keep hearing about?
Licenses for webcasting are issued either by the copyright owner or,
for certain webcasters and other non-interactive digital audio
services, through a license created by the Digital Millennium
Copyright Act called a "statutory license."

""" This statutory license permits a webcaster to perform all of the
sound recordings it wishes to perform without obtaining separate
licenses from each copyright owner. """

The webcasting statutory license applies to webcasters that: 
? offer non-interactive programming (i.e., not on-demand or
personalized programming);
? primarily offer audio or other entertainment programming as opposed
to primarily selling or promoting particular products or services; and
? abide by certain conditions spelled out in the statute. 
You can find more details in
http://www.riaa.com/issues/licensing/webcasting_faq.asp#areli
http://www.boycott-riaa.com/webcasting


2. What are the conditions that a webcaster has to meet in order to
qualify for the statutory license?
The DMCA statutory license has the following conditions: 
1. Pay royalties. This obligation is discussed more fully below.

2. Sound recording performance complement. A webcaster may not play in
any three-hour period...
? more than three songs from a particular album, including no more
than two consecutively, or
? four songs by a particular artist or from a boxed set, including no
more than three consecutively.

This limit is called the "sound recording performance complement."
Retransmitters of over-the-air radio broadcasts are required, upon
notice, to cease retransmissions of digital broadcasts that regularly
exceed the sound recording performance complement. For analog
broadcasts, retransmissions must cease, upon notice, if a substantial
portion of the broadcast transmissions exceed the complement.
(View the actual statutory language) 
3. Prior announcements not permitted. Advance song or artist playlists
generally may not be published. However, a webcaster may name one or
two artists to illustrate the type of music on a particular channel.
DJ "teaser" announcements using artists' names are permitted, but only
those that do not specify the time a song will be played.
(View the actual statutory language) 
4. Archived programming. Archived programs - those that are posted on
a web site for listeners to hear repeatedly on-demand - may not be
less than five hours in duration. Those that are five hours or more
may reside on a web site for no more than a total of two weeks. Merely
changing one or two songs does not meet this condition.
(View the actual statutory language) 
5. Looped programming. Looped or continuous programs - those that are
performed continuously, automatically starting over when finished -
may not be less than three hours in duration. Again, merely changing
one or two songs does not meet this condition.
(View the actual statutory language) 
6. Repeat of other programs limited. Programs under one hour in
duration that are performed at scheduled times may be performed only
three times in a two-week period, four times if one hour or more in
duration.
(View the actual statutory language) 
7. Obligation to identify song, artist and album. When performing a
sound recording, a webcaster must identify the sound recording, the
album and the featured artist, if receivers of the service are capable
of displaying this information. This requirement took effect October
28, 1999.
(View the actual statutory language) 
8. Prohibition on falsely suggesting a link between recordings or
artists and advertisements. A webcaster may not perform a sound
recording in a way that falsely suggests a connection between the
copyright owner or recording artist and a particular product or
service.
(View the actual statutory language) 
9. Obligation to take steps to defeat copying by recipient. A
webcaster must disable copying by a transmission recipient if in
possession of the technology to do so, and must also take care not to
induce or encourage copying by transmission recipients.
(View the actual statutory language) 
10. Requirement to accommodate technical protection measures. A
webcaster must accommodate the transmission of measures widely used by
sound recording copyright owners to identify or protect copyrighted
works, if it is technically feasible to transmit them without imposing
substantial burdens on the transmitting entity.
(View the actual statutory language) 
11. Obligation to cooperate to defeat scanning. A webcaster must
cooperate with copyright owners to prevent recipients from using
devices that scan transmissions for particular recordings or artists.
(View the actual statutory language) 
12. Transmission of bootlegs not covered. The statutory license is
limited to transmissions made from lawful copies of sound recordings.
It does not cover transmissions made from bootlegs or pre-released
recordings (unless the performance of a pre-released recording is
otherwise authorized by the copyright owner).
(View the actual statutory language) 
13. Automatic switching of channels. The webcaster must not
automatically and intentionally cause a device receiving the
transmission to switch from one program channel to another.
(View the actual statutory language) 
14. Transmission of copyright management information. If technically
feasible, transmissions by the webcaster must be accompanied by the
information encoded in the sound recording by the copyright owner that
identifies the title of the song, the featured artist and other
related information (if any).

if you need more help let me know..

thanks

Thanks for the information. I see that the license applies to
"non-interactive" webcasters. However, I believe my station is
interactive in nature. Users customize their preferences to hear music
tailored to their tastes, AND they can select any song to stream at
any time. Does this mean the statutory license does NOT apply to me?

Also, what about ASCAP, BMI, SESAC? Let's say I am not required to
obtain the RIAA license? Do I still need to register with these
organizations and pay royalties?

Don't know if you're still wondering about this, but I can give you
some more information.  Because your service is interactive, you would
actually need to secure licenses from each record label and publisher.
 There is no blanket "RIAA license".  Obtaining these licenses is not
a process for an individual to undertake - major Internet music
services like Napster, Rhapsody, etc. have full-time licensing
departments, specialized attorneys, etc.  The fact that you've been
operating this service means that you've actually been infringing on
the labels (and publishers) copyrights.  If the labels haven't sent
you cease-and-desist letters yet, I think it's just by luck that
you've managed to fly under the radar.

I'm not being judgmental, by the way, just wanted to lay out the facts
clearly.  I worked for an Internet radio service which managed to
provide a "personalized" feel (similar to Launchcast) but stayed
within the DMCA definition of a non-interactive service.  My advice
would be to alter your service so that it too falls within this
definition so that you can take advantage of the statuatory license.