The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 states that copyright subsists
in original literary, dramatic, artistic, musical works, sound recordings
and films. The act confers upon copyright owners the five restricted,
exclusive rights to control how, when or if their copyright works may
be used. The restricted acts are as follows:
- to copy the work
- to issue copies of the work to the public
- to perform, show or play the work in public
- to broadcast the work or include it in a cable programming service
- to make an adaptation of the work or to do any of the above in relation
to an adaptation
MCPS guidelines suggest there are three 'rights' which must be taken
into account when sampling:
1. The copyright in the original musical work
Permission must be given by the copyright owners of the musical works
to be sampled (usually the music publisher). It is best to contact them
directly but if details of the sample use are declared on an MCPS Application
For Licence form, then MCPS will contact the copyright
owners concerned to help establish the initial contact.
2. The copyright in the sound recording or the 'Phonographic Right'
Permission must be given by the copyright owners of the sound recordings
to be sampled (usually the record company).
3. The moral right
These are designed to protect an author's reputation. The author now has
certain statutory rights including the right not to have his or her work
subjected to derogatory treatment. This moral right is particularly important
with regard to sampling as it gives the original author the right to decide
if a copyright may be used. A further moral right is that of paternity,
the right to be credited as the author/composer of a work.