Can I play the radio on my phone hold system, or play music straight from my MP3?An eye-opening Fact Sheet based on Music Copyright, brought to you with the compliments of McGirvanMedia Messages on Hold

No, you cannot use the radio as music on hold.

Everyone knows that it is isn’t good for business to have clients and potential customers listening to silence when they are on hold.

[“Have they cut me off, or forgotten all about me?”]

It is so tempting to take the easy option and simply plug the radio in to your phone system, isn’t it?

That way people on hold can reassuringly listen to great music and know that they haven’t been left in limbo…

and of course the radio is 100% free, right? Wrong. Dead wrong.

Even though all radio stations are bona fide members of APRA (Australasian Performing Right Association) and AMCOS (Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society) and are licenced to broadcast any song they want, you are not.

What you are doing is technically creating a RE-broadcast – and that requires a separate licence.

By using radio on hold, you are in breach of the Digital Broadcasting Act which is a very litigious situation to be in.

If you are discovered to be playing unlicensed music (and copyright lawyers have a vested interest in pursuing this with gusto), you will receive a letter from APRA/AMCOS’s legal representatives informing you that you are in breach.

Chances are that if you are a first offender and cease and desist playing unlicensed music immediately, you may be let off with a warning.

However, this is not guaranteed, and ignorance of the law [“but doesn’t everybody do this?”] is NOT an acceptable excuse.

Can you use an MP3 player for music on hold?No, it’s the same story.Unless you have paid for the rights to use that music – each and every track in fact – and your licence is up to date, by doing so you will be breaking the law.

As well as APRA/AMCOS, some record companies are believed to aggressively monitor and prosecute businesses and individuals that infringe on the copyright of their artists.

This doesn’t just happen to large companies in metropolitan areas, but can also occur in smaller companies in regional centres too.

Violators of mechanical licences will be prosecuted whether the music emanates from a CD, iPOD, MP3 Player, internet download, or whatever.

1. Copyright is free and automatic. As soon as a person creates a new song or piece of music, they have copyright in it.

2. Composers/owners do not need to register their songs with APRA/AMCOS, to have their rights protected.

3. Songs are protected by copyright, even without the © symbol (this only shows who owns the song).

4. Songwriters/composers own the right to have a recording of their music used by a business, including phone calls on hold.

5. Buying legitimately purchased music (eg. a CD) only gives you the right to own the physical disc, play it privately and pass the disc on…it does NOT extend to use of the music commercially.

6. All public performances of music must be licensed. You might think that playing music to your clients via a phone call is a private performance, however music on hold has legally been deemed a public performance.

7. Fines for infringing copyright aren’t just ‘one-offs’…they are based on the number of phone lines you are running, and on the number of locations.

8. According to Music Rights Australia, “individuals can be fined up to $60,500 and serve up to 5 years’ imprisonment for each offence. For companies the fines are up to 5 times as much.”

9. Even if you use an on-hold service, the onus is still on YOU to ensure that all music played is licensed.

little-known facts about music copyright and infringement

9

As if substantial fines for playing unlicensed music weren’t reason enough not to use the radio as a phone call on hold medium, there are a host of sound marketing reasons to avoid radio on hold like the plague.

For starters, there is the lost opportunity to promote your business.

With seven out of every ten of your customers being placed on hold every day, on hold time becomes a very valuable opportunity to engage with potential clients and promote your goods and services.

If they aren’t aware of everything you can help them with, this is the perfect time to let them know.

It’s also a great opportunity to turn a nuisance into a positive; to build your brand, cross sell and keep them up to date with your latest news and promotions.

Furthermore, by using the radio, you could end up promoting your competitors by accident.

Either that, or annoying the hell out of your callers – especially if you choose a radio station that doesn’t gel with your target market.

The last thing you want is to subject your 50+ audience to a radio station pumping out loud, expletive-laden death metal tracks…

or send a younger audience to sleep re-broadcasting boring ‘elevator music’.

Marketing: Yet another reason not to use Radio On Hold.

The answer? Licensed music from McGirvanmedia Messages On Hold (the cost is covered with your Message on Hold Service Fee).

If you’d like to stay within the law and promote your business professionally, we have the perfect solution.

At McGirvanmedia, we own ALL of the music we offer you, from composition right through to actual recording…therefore there is never any danger of a copyright lawyer in a shiny suit tapping you on the shoulder.

Couple it with well-written scripts and you’ll have a message on hold that is interesting, informative, engaging and persuasive.

Additionally, it will be subject to a quality check every three months or so, depending on how often you update your message.

For more information about music on hold, musical copyright, or messages on hold generally, the friendly team of professionals at McGirvanmedia would be delighted to hear from you.

Call us now on 1800 777 428 or simply click here to contact us and we’ll get straight back to you.