Blog
Music Licensing
PROs Directory: Country-by-Country
A country-by-country reference for the Performing Rights Organizations (PROs) and Collective Management Organizations (CMOs) that license public performance rights around the world. Where a country lists more than one organization, a business generally needs coverage from each to be fully licensed. Kindly see our Music Licensing Around the World article for how these fit together.
Published on September 24, 2026
Music Licensing
Music Licensing Around the World
If you operate outside the US, or you're a multi-location group with venues in more than one country, the organizations change, but the underlying obligation doesn't: if you're playing music publicly in a commercial space, you need permission from that country's rights holders, and personal streaming accounts are just as non-compliant there as they are in the US.
Published on September 16, 2026
Music Licensing
Choosing Music That Actually Sounds Like Your Brand
Ask most venue owners how they picked their background music, and the honest answer is usually "it sounded nice." That's a reasonable starting point, but it skips the more useful question: does this music sound like your business specifically, or would it sound just as at home in the venue next door?
Published on September 12, 2026
Music Licensing
What Counts as Music Piracy and What It Costs You
"Piracy" sounds like something that happens on shady torrent sites, not something a restaurant or hotel could be accused of. But in copyright law, piracy simply means using copyrighted material without authorization and several extremely common background-music habits in hospitality fall squarely into that category, even when no one involved thinks of it that way.
Published on September 9, 2026
Music Licensing
How Background Music Affects Your Staff
Every article on hospitality music talks about the guest experience. Meanwhile, it is worth pausing on a second audience that hears the exact same soundtrack for far longer than any customer does: your staff, for the full length of every shift, every day they work.
Published on September 9, 2026
Music Licensing
Do You Qualify for the Small Business Music Exemption?
U.S. copyright law includes a specific exemption for smaller venues playing terrestrial radio or television stations but it's narrower than most business owners assume, and it's easy to accidentally fall outside it.
Published on September 1, 2026
Music Licensing
Why One Music License Isn't Enough
If you've started looking into music licensing for your business, you've probably run into acronyms such as PRO, CMO, blanket license, catalogue and the so on. We break down in simple language the meaning of these acronyms and the one thing that trips up almost every small-to-large business owner who tries to handle these organization(s) themselves.
Published, August 20, 2026
Music Licensing
Why One Music License Isn't Enough
Have you ever walked into a lobby and just felt like it was expensive? You didn't see a price tag, but you just knew. That feeling is not an accident. Music actually influences what ends up in your client’s shopping cart. Without a single sign or a salesperson talking to clients, music becomes a hidden cue that raises their expectations and gets them to make elevated purchases.
Published, August 19, 2026
Music Licensing
The Hidden Cost of DIY Music Licensing (Do-it-Yourself)
On paper, licensing music directly from rights holders sounds simple. The idea that you have to find out who owns the rights, pay them, and play the song. In practice, it's one of the most quietly expensive mistakes a hospitality or retail business can make, not only because the fees are outrageous, but because of what it takes to get complete coverage.
Published on August 16, 2026
Music Licensing
How to License Music for a Public Performance: A Step-by-Step Guide
If you're determined to license background music for your business the traditional way (direct from rightsholders), here's exactly what that process involves. As a caveat, these steps are more involved than most business owners expect.
Published on August 11, 2026
Music Licensing
Performing Rights: What They Are and Why They Matter for Your Business
Of all the rights bundled into music copyright, one shows up in almost every licensing conversation a hospitality or retail business will ever have. This is the public performance right. Here's exactly what it covers, who manages it, and why it's the specific piece of paperwork your venue needs.
Published on July 25, 2026
Music Licensing
Real Lawsuits: What Actually Happens When a Business Gets Caught
It is easy to treat music licensing as a theoretical risk. In other words, something that happens to other businesses, or a rule nobody really enforces. Court records say otherwise. This article highlights real, documented cases brought against restaurants and bars for playing unlicensed music, and what they show about how this actually plays out.
Published on July 20, 2026
Music Licensing
Why Your Personal Spotify/YouTube Account Won't Cut It
It's one of the most common shortcuts in hospitality and retail: open a personal streaming account, plug in a speaker, and call it background music. It's also, quietly, one of the most common legal exposures a small business carries without realizing it.
Published on July 20, 2026