How a Game get permission to use Licensed Music

You can get a license to use a composition by asking the music publishing company. Google "music publishing companies" to learn more about those companies.

If you want a license to use a recorded performance, you can ask companies like BMI (bmi.com) or ASCAP (ascap.com).

Start by reading up on music publishers and performance rights before you approach any companies.

If you know some bands, they will likely love your offer to expose their music! You may not require a publishing deal to use music, if you ask the guys who create it, and if they like your game.

4 hours ago, leith said:

If you know some bands, they will likely love your offer to expose their music! You may not require a publishing deal to use music, if you ask the guys who create it, and if they like your game.

Yes,i know,but i mean more or less popular bands ( like Suede/Oasis/DMA ).

Another question i have is,if X game have some original music created for them ( example : the song "Pootang Shebang" in GTA 1 ),asking permission and paying money to the game publisher/developer can let use that music in another game unrelated to that company? or its very complex legally?

3 hours ago, Pascua2019 said:

Another question i have is,if X game have some original music created for them ( example : the song "Pootang Shebang" in GTA 1 ),asking permission and paying money to the game publisher/developer can let use that music in another game unrelated to that company? or its very complex legally?

Each and every use of an outside party's IP must be used under license. A license for use of a song in one game does not grant its use in another.

19 minutes ago, Tom Sloper said:

A license for use of a song in one game does not grant its use in another

Even if "another game" is a re-release of the same game. That would explain why re-released games have changes in soundtracks.

16 hours ago, Pascua2019 said:

Why other media ( like Movies ) can have permission to use songs for forever and games maybe not?

When WKRP (a TV show about a radio station) was released for home devices (VHS/DVD), the licensed songs used in the original TV show had to be removed.

1 hour ago, fleabay said:

When WKRP (a TV show about a radio station) was released for home devices (VHS/DVD), the licensed songs used in the original TV show had to be removed.

Yeah but its rarely to happen.

Its like re release The Godfather and change the music.Breaks the original essence.but maybe dont happens to that type of movies becuase they have a soundtrack made of original compositions.

But how much can cost have a song permission for forever?

1 hour ago, Pascua2019 said:

how much can cost have a song permission for forever?

You have to ask the licensor.

12 hours ago, leith said:

If you know some bands, they will likely love your offer to expose their music! You may not require a publishing deal to use music, if you ask the guys who create it, and if they like your game.

Always, ALWAYS get a contract that is legally binding before using someone's property. Verbal permission, written on a napkin, etc will very likely not hold up in a court of law. I'm not a lawyer, always seek legal advice from an actual lawyer.

19 hours ago, leith said:

If you know some bands, they will likely love your offer to expose their music! You may not require a publishing deal to use music, if you ask the guys who create it, and if they like your game.

I do agree

20 hours ago, leith said:

If you know some bands, they will likely love your offer to expose their music!

I feel compelled to link to @forexposure_txt.

Not paying artists, musicians, or anyone else for their work is not ok.

45 minutes ago, swiftcoder said:

I feel compelled to link to @forexposure_txt.

Not paying artists, musicians, or anyone else for their work is not ok.

? Brings me back to the many times I have had prospective clients that were shocked there would be a fee for services.

Gold content. ?

5 hours ago, swiftcoder said:

Not paying artists, musicians, or anyone else for their work is not ok.

IMO, It's perfectly OK if everyone agrees to it up front . If a musician/composer agrees to do it for expose, I see nothing wrong with that.

15 hours ago, CrazyCdn said:

Always, ALWAYS get a contract that is legally binding before using someone's property. Verbal permission, written on a napkin, etc will very likely not hold up in a court of law. I'm not a lawyer, always seek legal advice from an actual lawyer.

Its a very good advice! Having all the legal papers is esential.

5 hours ago, Gnollrunner said:

IMO, It's perfectly OK if everyone agrees to it up front . If a musician/composer agrees to do it for expose, I see nothing wrong with that.

If you are also doing this "for exposure" (i.e. its a portfolio piece or going to be distributed for free/open-source), sure.

It's straight up unethical if you plan to directly profit from their work. Even the much-maligned "revenue share" model is better.

2 minutes ago, swiftcoder said:

If you are also doing this "for exposure" (i.e. its a portfolio piece or going to be distributed for free/open-source), sure.

It's straight up unethical if you plan to directly profit from their work. Even the much-maligned "revenue share" model is better.

I don't see how something two private individuals agree to, that's completely legal can be unethical. It's the same as saying internships are unethical.

Just my opinion, but I honestly think it would be fair that if any person intends on profiting from a project they should at the bare minimum place a clause in their agreement that will give the other parties who provided assets under "exposure" some form of a royalty deal on NET profit.

If you think about this scenario.... You provided voice acting, or music, or graphical assets, ect... and the project you helped to establish then went onto generate millions of dollars in sales but you netted zero due to your 'exposure' deal. I think it would be fair to say you wouldn't feel too great about that.

It would be the right thing to do by having some way to financially compensate parties that helped bring your project to market, and ultimately added to the overall success of that project no matter how big or small.

Just my 2 cents!

4 hours ago, Gnollrunner said:

I don't see how something two private individuals agree to, that's completely legal can be unethical. It's the same as saying internships are unethical.

"Legal" and "ethical" are not synonyms. An act can definitely be unethical, and still be legal, or even legally mandated - history provides plentiful examples of this.

2 minutes ago, Anthony Serrano said:

"Legal" and "ethical" are not synonyms. An act can definitely be unethical, and still be legal, or even legally mandated - history provides plentiful examples of this.

I worked for a long time in a major corporation. We sometimes we had unpaid interns for a whole summer. There was no guarantee of a job after the internship was over. You did work for the company and they made money from your free labor. If you didn't get the job the internship could even work against you, because if you put it on your resume a subsequent employer might wonder why you weren't hired. Maybe this is unethical to you, however quite a few interns did in fact get hired and they were happy for the opportunity their internship gave them. They rolled the dice and they won.

You are right "legal" and "ethical" are not the same thing. However what's legal is pretty well defined. What's ethical is just a matter of opinion. A hopeful intern might greatly dislike someone else's "ethics" if they bared him from a chance at a job.