Performing Rights Society:
The owner of the copyright in a work may either exercise the rights in that work himself or transfer them to some one else, such as a publisher or collecting society to exploit them on his behalf.
The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act (CDPA) 1988 also enables the copyright owner to limit the scope of that assignment to one or more, but not necessarily all, of the restricted acts that collectively form the bundle of rights known as copyright.
Composers assign the rights in their compositions to PRS in order that PRS can act effectively on their behalf. The composer is required to enter into this assignment upon election to membership. This means that PRS is then the owner of these rights. The following rights are assigned upon membership:
To perform the work in public
To broadcast the work
To include the work in a cable programme service
Film-synchronisation (copying on to the sound track of a specific film a musical work specially written by the Member for that purpose)
The CDPA allows a copyright owner to assign not only the copyright he has in his current works but also the rights that will arise in any future works which he creates. PRS stipulates in its Articles that the assignment given by the member must include these future rights - this means that the copyright owner does not have to enter into a new assignment every time he creates a new work.
Collectively the assignments that PRS takes from its members, together with the licences from its affiliated societies around the world, form the vast repertoire of copyright works which the Society is able to administer in the UK on behalf of its members and affiliates. As owner of the performing rights in its members' works and licensee of the rights otherwise vested in its affiliates, the Society is able to exploit its repertoire by granting licences for the public performance, broadcast, inclusion in a cable programme and film-synchronisation of the works. PRS grants such licences in return for royalties, which after deducting its administration costs, it then allocates and distributes to its members and affiliates in accordance with their respective interests in the works performed.
Does that answer the question.
:wink:
