You need a music service to avoid music royalty infringements, to create brand identity, and to optimize customer shopping experiences within your business location. Music has become a staple in business establishments and speaks volumes about your company.

If you own, manage, or run a business where customers enter your store or location, then you legally need a commercial-music-service, which excludes the ability to use popular streaming services, iTunes, digital files, CDs, local radio stations, satellite radio, or your employees’ devices with whatever music they bring to your office.

Many people don’t understand that the music industry is a business and playing licensed music without a Public Performance License (PPL) is an illegal offense. The Performance Rights Organizations (The PRO’s) will prosecute your company. Sometimes, even an individual artist will prosecute your company and they will win every time. Making this mistake will result in a fee that will vary from thousands to millions of dollars. It all depends on how long you’ve been making this mistake, and how large your company is.

You must pay royalties because you don’t technically own any of the music you’re playing.

Customer: “I bought the songs on iTunes, I own them now?”

Music is never owned by you, unless you were involved in the initial creation of a song. If you didn’t contribute as songwriter, producer, artist, etc., then you don’t have any ownership of the musical composition and therefore must pay royalties to use it in a commercial setting.

When you purchase a song on iTunes, you are purchasing the legal rights to play it for yourself as a consumer with a personal license, not for commercial use in a business location to help your business profit.

Therefore, if you choose to play music within your business and it is helping you make money, then you need a Public Performance License (PPL) from The Performance Rights Organizations (PRO’s). The PRO’s are involved in the enforcement of music royalty laws and the distribution of royalty payments.

Acquiring the licenses is the first step to paying royalties.

There are four main performing rights organizations (PRO’s), ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, and GMR. To legally play music in your business location, you’ll need to obtain a public performance license (PPL) from each of the four performing rights organizations, file monthly reports and follow compliances.

Licenses with all four performing right organizations is a must, because each particular song could have a few songwriters, and/or producers associated to the ownership of that musical copyright. Each songwriter, producer and/or owner of one song could be represented by different performing right organizations. Therefore, just one song may need royalties paid to each of the four performing rights organizations.

Following performance rights regulations and rules can be frustrating, tedious, and a risk to your company if you or your employee is not an expert in this field. Ultimately, the cost of filing for licenses with each performing rights organizations and following regulations will be more expensive than hiring an expert.

We are experts and our service will be more cost effective with no risk. Plus, we offer exclusive music channels, company branding, promotional messaging, and so much more.

Yes, KrossKast is a licensed background music provider. We track every song played from your location(s), submit monthly reports and we can pay the royalties fees for you, while providing the necessary business-to-business commercial license. As a result, we are legally able to cover the music royalties for the vast majority of businesses on a domestic and international level. However, there are some exceptions depending the plan you purchase from us, (Exclusive Music or Commercial Music) and the category of your business.

A. Exclusive Music: Within our Exclusive Music plan all the music royalties are 100% covered regardless of your business category or location around the world. We own one-hundred percent of all the music publishing rights to our KrossKast Exclusive original music that is played within our Exclusive Channels and we are the only streaming service in the world that invests extensively in music publishing. If you have chosen the Exclusive Music Plan, then the answer is very simple, you’re 100% covered, provided that your account is in good standing with us.

B. Commercial Music: Our Elevate or Enterprise plan will cover the vast majority of businesses, but the ultimate answer would depend on your business category. Are you a Fitness Center? Rollerskating Rink? Water Park? There are different rules and regulations for different business categories. Please contact us and we’ll be happy to assist you.

C. Live Performances: We are a background music streaming service, therefore we do not cover the royalties for any live performances, (live cover bands, live singers, or live musicians) within your venue.

Under our service, if any of Performing Rights Organizations inquire or investigate your location(s), please have them contact us and we’ll gladly speak on your behalf. If you have any additional questions, please feel free to read Section 17 in our Terms for more information or please reach out to us to discuss the specific needs for your business. We are music experts and that’s why we are here.

U.S. Copyright Office:
101 Independence Ave. S.E., Washington, D.C. 20559-6000

KrossKast’s U.S. Copyright Certification:
Please click on the seal to the left and then scroll down to “KrossKast, LLC”, confirming our Statutory License pursuant to section 370.2 of title 37, Code for Federal Regulations certification with the U.S. Copyright Office.

-Fort Worth honky tonk sued for playing music without paying for it.

-Yorktown business faces the music.

-Arlington Coffee Shope Sued Over Music License Fees.

-ASCAP sues Peninsula bar for copyright infringement.

-Ale House To Face The Music: Copyright Infringement Suit Filed.

-Ham’s Restaurant Hit With Lawsuit For Copyright Infringement.

-Popular Uptown Bar In Charlotte Sued.

-No Jimmy Buffett, Michael Jackson Tunes. Can This Be Coming To A Bar Near You? Villari’s Sued!

-BMI Music Sues Michigan City Restaurant Over Song Copyrights.

-Copyright Giant Sues Springfield’s Galloway Station For Playing Songs By Janet Jackson, Others.

-25 Businesses Were Sued For Playing Copyright Music. Don’t Be Next.

-Restaurants Are Being Sued By Music Industry For Up To $150,000 For Playing Music.

-BMI song lawsuits make rounds in Jersey bars.

-ASCAP sues restaurants over music use.

-Yes, Lady Gaga Is Suing A Bridgewater Bar.

-Tampa Bay businesses are sued for playing copyrighted music without paying fees.

-Listen up: Restaurants pay high price to play copyrighted music.

-Music Industry Sues Restaurants For Playing Music.

-Sued for Playing Whitney: Bar Owners Fighting Relentless Drive for Music Fees

-Restaurateur won’t face the music after losing copyright suit

-Area bars sued for lack of music licenses.

No, you cannot use any of those music streaming services in your business establishment.

Here’s why. There are two different types of music services. One type of music service is B2C (Business to Consumer) and the other type is B2B (Business to Business). Music streaming services offered from Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora, and YouTube are all B2C. The license they have is for private, non-commercial use (personal use only). To play music in public and/or for customers or employees in your business location, you need a Public Performance License (PPL).

We carry a B2B (Business to Business) license and pay all of the music royalty fees for you.

-Entrepreneur.com, (What You Need To Know About Starting a Business)

-Spotify.com, (scroll down to section “5 Using Our Service)

-Apple.com, (scroll down to section “Services And Content Usage Rules)

No, you cannot use CD’s, your personal digital music files, or iTunes music in your business establishment.

Any music you download or obtain from anywhere, only allows you a license for personal use, such as in your car or your house. Playing music from CD’s, digital files, or your iTunes Library in your business location(s) breaks copyright law, is illegal, and puts your business at risk of a lawsuit.

Commercially licensed music in your business location(s) requires a Public Performance License (PPL) for public use.

Yes, there is a small business exception but you must be very careful and be certain you’re the exception. Also, the “small business exceptions” will only allow your small business to play radio or television broadcasts, absolutely nothing else.

1. Any establishment with less than 2,000 gross square feet, and any food service or drinking establishment, (a restaurant, inn, bar or any other similar place of business in which the public is being served food or drink) with less than 3,750 square feet.

2. Any business establishment with greater than 2,000 square feet, and any food service or drinking establishment with greater than 3,750 square feet provided that they use fewer than 6 speakers or TVs, (1 TV per room) and no more then 4 speakers per any one room including adjoining rooms, and with a diagonal screen size of less than 55 inches.

To qualify for these exceptions, the business owner must not charge an admission fee nor play any other music other than terrestrial radio and TV and the transmission of the music does not extend beyond the establishment.

Keep in mind that the gross square footage includes all interior and adjoining outdoor space used to service guests, including the kitchen space, bathrooms, closets, etc., but it does not include the parking lot (unless the parking lot is used for a purpose other than parking).

For more information, please visit Copyright Law Section 110.