What constitutes a ‘public performance’ of music?

guest commentary by Nick Pipitone

Just what is ‘public performance’ when it comes to music? It may not be what you think.

A word of warning to all you music geeks out there: be careful where you listen to your music. You might find yourself stuck in the middle of a lawsuit.

Such is the case for a car repair firm in the UK, Kwik-fit. The technology blog Techdirt is reporting that the Performing Rights Society (PRS) in the UK is suing Kwik-fit because, as they are claiming, when their mechanics listen to the radio while working on cars in the shop it constitutes public performance.

This case really pushes the limits of the definition of public performance and could be a precedent setting case if the PRS gets their way. So what is ‘public performance’? Techdirt astutely asks :

“What if you live in an apartment building with thin walls?”

“What about when you’re driving with the radio on and the windows open?”

“What if you’re in your cubicle and the folks in the cubicles around you can hear the music?”

I like listening to my music at work. It keeps me motivated and I get to choose what I want to hear. I am not pretending to be an expert on public performance, but it’s cases like these that send the music business further into the abyss.

If the music industry really wants to sue someone over public performance, why not sue a cover band? You just know they’re not paying for the right to play Proud Mary.

If the PRS wins this public performance case, expect headphone companies to cash in big. [np]