Let me show you a piece of news. If someone sues you for this, you will be infringing the copyright.

A specialty store plays background music to create a relaxed and comfortable shopping atmosphere for customers. I know "playing" a lawsuit. The day before yesterday, Wenzhou's first case of infringement of background music by a store was filed and accepted by the Lucheng District People's Court.

The plaintiff in this case is the China Music Copyright Association, and the defendants are Zhejiang Red Dragonfly Shoes Co., Ltd. and "Red Dragonfly" Wuma Yidian.

What kind of unit is the China Music Copyright Association? Some readers may still be unfamiliar with it. In fact, it is a music copyright collective management organization jointly sponsored by the National Copyright Administration and the Chinese Musicians Association. Some music copyright owners authorize the association to protect their legitimate rights and interests.

Background music refers to music played through technical equipment in shopping malls, restaurants, bars, supermarkets and other commercial places. Its main function is to cover up noise and create a relaxed and harmonious atmosphere.

On the morning of January 14 this year, the China Music Copyright Association asked a notary to come to the "Red Dragonfly" Wuma No. 1 store to record the background music played in the store. Shortly thereafter, a lawsuit was filed with the court. .

The association claimed that the Wuma Yi store operated by "Red Dragonfly" publicly played the song "Dream Water Village" as background music without permission. According to the relevant provisions of the Copyright Law, The copyright owner's right to perform the musical work has been infringed (i.e., the right to perform the work publicly and publicly broadcast the work by various means).

Qiu Linfeng, deputy director of the Hangzhou Copyright Protection Management Center of the association, said that Wuma Street is an iconic shopping pedestrian street in Wenzhou, and the "Red Dragonfly" store has never played the song "Dream Water Town" for business needs. Permission was obtained from the song copyright holder and no corresponding fees were paid. They filed a lawsuit in court, demanding that the song be stopped from being played in public and that they be compensated 20,000 yuan in damages and related expenses.

The teacher heard that the association had negotiations with the "Red Dragonfly" company on the background music before the lawsuit was filed, but there were differences on the cost and the negotiations came to no result.

What is Red Dragonfly’s view on this lawsuit? The person in charge of the legal department of the company said that whether the background music played in the store constitutes infringement is not clear in the relevant laws and is worthy of discussion. What they purchased was a genuine music disc, and it should be said that they had paid the copyright holder. Besides, the fees charged by the China Music Copyright Association are too high, and there is no clear charging standard. At present, they have not received relevant documents from the court.

In response, Qiu Linfeng said that the charging standards are actually very clear, approved by the National Copyright Administration, and have a legal basis. For example, shops are charged according to their business area. The annual fee per square meter is more than 2 yuan, and the annual fee for a shop must not be less than 200 yuan. After paying the fee, the merchant can play in the store any song that the music copyright owner has licensed to the association.

Qiu Linfeng also said that the association started relevant charging work many years ago, but most businesses turned a deaf ear to it, and it was helpless to defend their rights through the courts. Through rights protection in recent years, many companies and merchants have begun to change the old concept of playing background music without payment.

According to reports, currently in Wenzhou, only Shangri-La Hotel has paid the copyright fee for background music.

Relevant people from the China Music Copyright Association said that the association will fully launch charging work for large chain companies, shopping malls, supermarkets and other places in Wenzhou. If companies refuse to pay relevant fees, they will safeguard their rights through the courts.