music licence

[megan]

Hi, can anyone help? PPL contacted me on Tuesday regarding having a music licence. I explained I have a radio in my office for personal use and I am the only one listening to it, he asked if anyone else ever came in and I explained there was only one other employee (my significant other) and he hardly comes in the office. We have a small business doing auto paintwork, I work upstairs and he works downstairs in the bodyshop.
The guy at PPL was quite stroppy and said tough, you need a licence anyway, I lost my temper (had a bad day due to the fact we are struggling to pay the bills we already have including HMRC) told him I wasn't getting a licence and to take me to court and then hung up. Received an invoice this morning for£139.64 also saying they can charge a surcharge of 50% if not paid by due date.

The invoice is made out to my partner who used to be a Director of our old Company, and also made out in the old Company name.

Do I have a leg to stand on?

[wales01man]

Re: music licence

I may be wrong but if the invoice is not in the new company name or your name you are not liable if this is the case let them pursue the debt i would not even correspond to them in any way ,when i had a business that needed a ppl licence they wanted it in 4 payments 1 month apart for a yearly licence i told them i would only pay monthly in arrears they refused that after ten months of crap from them and idle threats i gave up the pub they never chased the debt in my opinion they are a bunch of parasites making a fortune out of other peoples talents wait and see what happens

[miliitant]

Re: music licence

charge a surcharge of 50% if not paid by due date.

by what authority can they charge, i think not

the problem you have is the business will be classed as listening to music for non domestic use

you need to write to ppl and ask how they came to the figure of £139.64 by an itemised invoice and quantify any consequencial loss (recorded delivery)

i can invoice you for example this unsubstantiated claim, does not make it legal

[Galahad]

Re: music licence

From what I can remember of this PPL nonsense, you and your partner are allowed to listen to the radio, the only time you incur PPL is when customers can hear it, or it can be heard outside of the premises.

If your customers can't hear it then thats pretty much it, done and dusted, and it sounds like they are trying it on.

[bluebottle]

Re: music licence

PRS are the same. One way of winding these muppets up - and there's nothing they can do about it - is to use music that is intended to be used as background music. One of the leading firms in this field is AKM Music Ltd. Their website is at www.akmmusic.co.uk. Give them a try.

[megan]

Re: music licence

Have received another invoice from them this morning, a surcharge of £69.83 for not paying original invoice on time, I'm still ignoring them. As no members of the public can hear my radio I don't see why I need a licence. Would they have to take me to court or can they send debt collectors after me?

[bluebottle]

Re: music licence

I hate it when PPL and PRS bully people. The onus as to whether you owe PPL anything is on PPL. They have to prove you are publicly performing music, not the other way around. They rely on people not being familiar with the Copyright, Designs & Patents Act 1988. If you and your OH and the only ones listening to the music in your workshop and no-one else can hear it, PPL are on a very sticky wicket, legally. Ask these bullies what legislation they are relying to provide a basis for their demands.

[megan]

Re: music licence

PRS were in touch a year or so ago and they agreed I didn't need a licence and haven't bothered me since. If PPL work on the same criteria I don't understand how one can say I do need a licence and the other one says I don't.

[enaid]

Re: music licence

We got stung by these horrors when we first went into our pub, we did have to pay but it was great fun barring the rep they sent round lol.
http://www.ppluk.com/I-Play-Music/Bu...eed-a-licence/
Have a read of this it does explain everything you need to know

[CleverClogs]

Re: music licence

As you only listen to the wireless in an office occupied only by yourself, you are not playing recorded music in public.

Email the oafs - ppnb@ppluk.com - telling them that and, if they persist, report them to Trading Standards.

[bluebottle]

Re: music licence

You could slap an injunction on them under Section 3, Protection from Harassment Act 1997, if you are sole traders or in an unincorporated partnership. If you are trading as a limited company, limited partnership or public limited company, forget it. The civil remedy provisions apply to individuals only.

[CleverClogs]

Re: music licence

The invoice is made out to my partner who used to be a Director of our old Company, and also made out in the old Company name.

Does the old company even exist any more?

Do I have a leg to stand on?

As Heather Mills reputedly asked her lawyer...

[megan]

Re: music licence

''Does the old company even exist any more?''

No, it went into voluntary liquidation about 3 years ago (not the easy option that some people would have you believe), we're struggling to survive as it is without these dimwits giving us grief.

[CleverClogs]

Re: music licence

If they are billing a company that no longer exists and they don't seem to have the sense to check Companies' House or the London Gazette, how can they cause you any upset?

Photocopy their letters, file the originals (under "N" for "numpties"?) and hang the framed copies on your office walls.

[megan]

Re: music licence

Have received a letter from a collections company who also left a message on answering machine saying we owe £209.47 and that we are acting illegally and could be fined £5000 . Have ignored PPL as I thought they were just trying their luck. The letter is still addressed to the old company but I think I might be pushing it to ignore it now. What would anyone advise me to do? Thanks