BAJAN SUN MAGAZINE
DEC 2014
Obviously, this would be impractical, if not impossible
licensees, in most cases as a blanket licence. This means
given the time, effort and certainly the cost of identifying
that with the COSCAP licence the user will be able to
all the rights holders, who could be anywhere in the
access all of the musical works in the COSCAP
world and negotiating permission (a licence) from each.
repertoire.
This is the reason why CMOs were first established as
they function to license the rights of their members and to
COSCAP has to monitor the use of the musical works so
facilitate those persons who need to license these rights
that it is able to determine who are to be paid royalties
so that the process is easier and more economical. There
and how much. Though this activity in computerised it is
are 227 CMOs worldwide from 120 different countries
very costly because there is reliance on a combination of
representing over 3 million individual creators from all
methods; including samples of the music which has been
the artistic disciplines: music, drama, literature, audio-
broadcast and taken at various premises and a census of
visual, graphic and visual arts.
live performances at large concerts. The rights holder is
paid according to the number of times his music appears
In the case of COSCAP, rights holders – songwriters,
in the samples or live performance data.
performers, record companies and music publishers join
royalty payments depend on: the number of popular
the organisation and agree to have COSCAP manage
works the rights holder owns and the number of persons
certain
public
who are sharing the rights in a work (the more
performance and reproduction rights on their behalf as
songwriters there are for one song, the smaller the share
these are the most difficult to be managed on an
of royalties for each). Of course, it also helps if the songs
individual basis. COSCAP through a global system of
are performed or broadcast outside of Barbados so that
reciprocal contracts with sister societies also administers
the rights holder earns royalties internationally.
the
rights,
rights
specifically,
the
broadcast,
of
international
rights
holders in Barbados
while
rights
Barbadian
holders
are
represented by sister
CMOs
in
territories.
their
Together,
the works of the local
and
international
rights
holders
comprise
the
COSCAP
repertoire
which it in turn makes
this
available
to
101
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Typically,