How to Obtain a Compulsory Mechanical License
A compulsory mechanical license is necessary if you intend to record and distribute a musical composition whose copyright is held by someone else. This license is only available after the original copyright holder has released its own version of the song. Anyone seeking a compulsory mechanical license also agrees not to alter the original composition or lyrics in any way, as this would require another license agreement. The reason that it is called "compulsory" is that though the license must be applied for and royalties are usually paid, the holder of the copyright cannot refuse the license.Obtaining a compulsory mechanical license is simply a matter of knowing who and how to ask.
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Instructions
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Apply for the License
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Find out who holds the copyright for the music you want. ASCAP, BMI, SESAC and the Harry Fox Agency are the main performance rights organizations in the United States. Each of these has similar websites with searchable databases of the artists whose work they represent. Because the Harry Fox Agency is the largest agency collecting and distributing mechanical license fees in the United States, its website provides an example.
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Open the Harry Fox Agency website and click on the Songfile link. Songfile will allow you to search the whole library of songs for which the Harry Fox Agency administers the mechanical license rights. You will need to know the name of the composition and the last name of the writer or composer -- not the name of the group or singer who is most famous for performing it.
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Register with Songfile if you find the song you need. Once you are registered, it will ask you for information concerning the license you requested. You must fill in the release date of your recording (when you plan on distributing it), how long your performance will last and how many copies of the recording you are making. As of 2010, the royalty rate is 9.1 cents per copy for a composition five minutes or less in length and 1.75 cents per minute for songs over five minutes, according to the National Association for Music Education website.
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Read the terms of use contract Songfile creates for the song license. It will clearly state what rights you are purchasing. If everything looks correct, pay for the license with a credit card.
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Print the license Songfile produces. You will need to show this to the company or individual you use to burn or duplicate recordings.
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Tips & Warnings
If you can not find the particular song you are looking for in any of the major performance rights organizations databases, it might be in the public domain. Check the Public Domain Information Project website to search its database. Songs in the public domain do not have to be licensed.
