This post was updated on June 4, 2020.
For some, the subject of copyright law can evoke a sense of frustration, especially when dealing with license requirements. It is simple enough to purchase a reprint license, but the pressures of everything else on that to-do list may keep some customers from following through with usage reports. This information is essential from the publisher’s perspective, and we are grateful that ONE LICENSE works to streamline the reporting process with convenient online access and attentive customer support.
It is helpful to keep in mind that the license fees paid by each organization for congregational reprint permission through ONE LICENSE make up the total royalty pool from which the affiliated authors, composers, and their corresponding publishers receive compensation for use of their works. With data from accurate and timely reports from customers, ONE LICENSE allocates funds to these real, flesh-and-blood individuals equitably, according to song use in a given period of time.
These reports are an important factor in providing an artist’s financial support, which enables them to create new beautiful texts and tunes for the benefit of worshiping assemblies. This cycle of creativity and compensation is at the heart of the rationale for copyright. Simply put, it is the right thing to do.
The ONE LICENSE team has created a series of tutorial videos, also published in this month’s newsletter, to assist anyone that may be new to usage reporting. The seasoned veteran may discover some tips and helpful tidbits within these resources, too.
