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Tag Archives: erin m. jacobson esq.

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Speaking Event: Music Licensing in the Digital Age

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Categories: Music Industry, Music Libraries, Music Licensing, Music Publishing, Royalties, Speaking, Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Music Licensing in the Digital Age, Erin M. Jacobson, music attorney, the music industry lawyer

Erin will speak on the panel “Music Licensing in the Digital Age” at the virtual Thriving Roots conference, produced by the Americana Music Association.

Panel information:

“Music Licensing in the Digital Age”
Date:  September 18, 2020
Time:  3:15-4:45 PM Central

Panelists:
Jeff Brabec, Esq., BMG, & Author of Music, Money, and Success
Todd Brabec, Esq., Author of Music, Money, and Success
Erin M. Jacobson, The Music Industry Lawyer
Kirk Schroder, Schroder Brooks Law Firm 

Click here to view the event website.

Click here to register.

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Billboard names Erin M. Jacobson, Esq. to its Top Music Lawyers List for 2020

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Categories: Music Industry, Press, Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Billboard names Erin M. Jacobson, Esq. to its Top Music Lawyers List for 2020

I can finally announce that Billboard has named me to its Top Music Lawyers List for 2020.

It is an honor to be recognized by Billboard, who has served as an authority in our industry for many years, and to share this honor with my colleagues.

Here’s a link to the full article.

Thanks to Billboard and to all of my clients, and you who are reading this!

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Erin M. Jacobson, Esq. to contribute to Synchtank’s Synchblog!

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Categories: Articles, Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I am very happy to announce that I will regularly be contributing articles to Synchtank’s Synchblog! To get started, here is my first article for Synchtank — “Copyright Terminations:  What Rights’ Owners Need to Know“. Synchtank is a software solution that helps music owners organize, maintain, and pitch their catalogues.  For more information on the services Synchtank provides, click here.  To check out their blog, click here.  

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Erin M. Jacobson has been named a 2018 Rising Star and one of the Top Women Attorneys in Southern California by Super Lawyers.

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Categories: Honors and Awards, Press, Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Erin M. Jacobson has been named a 2018 Rising Star and one of the Top Women Attorneys in Southern California by Super Lawyers.

Super Lawyers rates outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. This selection process includes independent research, peer nominations and peer evaluations.

Erin will be featured in Los Angeles Magazine as a Super Lawyers Rising Star, and again later this year as one of the Top Women Attorneys in Southern California.

Erin M. Jacobson, Esq. in Los Angeles Magazine as 2018 Super Lawyers Rising Star

Erin M. Jacobson, Esq.  Los Angeles Magazine  2018 Super Lawyers Rising Star

Erin M. Jacobson, Esq. in Los Angeles Magazine as 2018 Super Lawyers Rising Star

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Spotify May Have To Pay Songwriters $345 Million

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Categories: Articles, Business, Infringement, Legal Disputes, Legal Issues, Music Industry, Music Publishing, Royalties, Streaming, Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

By:  Erin M. Jacobson, Esq.

This article was previously published on Forbes.com.

When you stream music on Spotify, are you aware that as you are enjoying your favorite song, Spotify might not be paying the person who wrote that song?

Spotify has been sued for upwards of $345 million by Bob Gaudio and Bluewater Music Services Corporation for failure to pay mechanical licenses when their compositions are streamed on Spotify. Gaudio, a former member of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, wrote and publishes some of the group’s biggest hits including “Sherry,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” and “Walk Like a Man,” as well as Valli’s solo hit “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You.” Bluewater administers the publishing for compositions like Player’s “Baby Come Back,” Miranda Lambert’s “White Liar,” and Guns ‘N Roses’ “Yesterdays.”

Streaming requires several licenses –sound recording licenses from the record labels; performance licenses for the compositions from performance rights organizations such as ASCAP and BMI; and mechanical licenses for the reproduction of the compositions. While Spotify has deals with the major labels, and blanket licenses with ASCAP and BMI, Spotify has not complied with the requirements for mechanical licenses and payments for all compositions streamed on its platform. Obtaining a mechanical license in the United States is compulsory, meaning that a person or company wishing to reproduce a composition must follow the guidelines in Section 115 of the United States Copyright Act to serve a “Notice of Intent” on the copyright owner and pay said owner the compulsory license fee. Spotify has followed this procedure for compositions affiliated with the Harry Fox Agency (the closest body the United States has to a mechanical rights society), but there are many compositions not affiliated with the Harry Fox Agency that Spotify would need to contact and pay directly – and Spotify largely has not done so.

This is not the first time Spotify has come under fire for its inadequate licensing practices. In 2016, Spotify reached a $30 million dollar settlement with the National Music Publisher’s Association (NMPA) for unpaid mechanical royalties, and Spotify just settled another class action suit for $43.4 million dollars. While maximum statutory damages rates are $150,000 per infringed composition, Bluewater claims that Spotify will only have to pay songwriters $4 per infringed composition after litigation fees are paid. Per the previous settlements, Spotify must also implement a better system to properly track and pay mechanical royalties, and Bluewater asserts this has not yet happened.

The attorney for both Gaudio and Bluewater is Richard S. Busch, most recently in the news for his representation of Marvin Gaye’s estate in the “Blurred Lines” case. Echoing my previous sentiments, a press release citing Busch’s complaint sums up the issue in a single sentence: “Songwriters and publishers should not have to work this hard to get paid or have their life’s work properly licensed, and companies should not be allowed to build businesses—much less billion-dollar businesses—on the concept of ‘infringe now and ask questions later.’”

*This article does not constitute legal advice.

Erin M. Jacobson is a music attorney whose clients include Grammy and Emmy Award winners, legacy clients and catalogs, songwriters, music publishers, record labels, and independent artists and companies. She is based in Los Angeles where she handles a wide variety of music agreements and negotiations, in addition to owning and overseeing all operations for Indie Artist Resource, the independent musician’s resource for legal and business protection. Ms. Jacobson also serves on the boards of the California Copyright Conference (CCC) and Association of Independent Music Publishers (AIMP).

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A Day at NAMM with Erin M. Jacobson

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Categories: Music, Music Industry, Speaking, Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

 

Last weekend I had the pleasure of attending and speaking at the annual National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) convention in Anaheim, CA (right by Disneyland!).  NAMM is a fantastic time to see incredible instruments, hang with musicians and industry folk, and conduct business.

Check out my video above where I take you behind the scenes at the convention, and here are some fun photos from the weekend below.

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