Music Licencing

Music Licensing

If you are using commercial music in your pantomime, make sure your venue holds a valid PRS and/or a PPL licence. If it doesn’t you need to apply for one.

PRS for Music and PPL (Phonographic Performance Limited) are separate organisations who license different sets of rights in the use of music. You may need a licence from both organisations. PRS for Music is a society of songwriters, composers and music publishers who license the use of their members’ musical compositions and lyrics when they are played in public, broadcast on radio or TV, used on the internet or copied onto physical products such as CDs or DVDs. PPL licenses the use of recorded music where played in public, broadcast on radio or TV, or used on the internet, on behalf of record companies and performers. PRS for Music has a repertoire of over 10 million songs from every genre. So if you’re using music, it’s highly likely to be music from within their repertoire and includes popular music, classical music and film and TV media songwriters. A licence from PRS for Music covers the vast majority of copyright music being played, but there is some music which is not covered by your PRS for Music licence.