[Fmpro] Mechanicals

[Michael Leahy]

I know I tend to bang on about this, but I think it's worth repeating. 
You do have mechanical rights in your music - in Europe. Mechanicals are 
non-negotiable here. So no matter what you sign in the US, mechanicals 
are being paid by someone to someone else in Europe. It would be nice to 
have the opinion of a lawyer on the fine print, but waiving the 
mechanicals is a choice not an obligation. In the latest synch contracts 
I signed in the US, I stipulated that the fees paid cover the US and 
that for any reproduction outside the US, the producer must contact the 
relevant authors rights society. This is not just me being demanding. 
The European authors rights society will go after any copies made 
outside the US no matter what I sign. So by specifying this in the 
contract, I'm just making an existing situation ultra-clear for the 
producer.
>  If there are no
> performances, the PROs might as well close up shop. If the world moves
> towards downloads, where there currently are no performing rights paid, that
> is a direct loss of income for those, especially composers, who do not have
> any mechanical rights in the music they wrote. It's a great reason why
> composers should start including mechanical rights clauses in their
> contracts IMMEDIATELY.
>
> Best,
>
> Mark Northam
>