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If you signed their agreement with the aforementioned terms, I would consider it a lesson learned and move on. I signed a few tracks away under such terms and could shoot myself for not being more careful. Lesson learned.
You can get out of the deal. I have had two exclusive, in-perpetuity contracts terminated. But this is because my songs had not been used. Email the library and ask them can you have the rights to your songs based on the fact that they have earned no revenue. They will either say yes or no.
Moral: ASK!
I’m sure Michael will know the answer to this, but suppose a composer challenged a library in court and said,ok, the deal is exclusive but for 5 years 10 years or whatever you have made no attempt to get my work known or used and I signed on the basis you would do this.
I am not talking about the real world where you would get blacklisted forever but in a legal sense a law has to be fair to both parties.
Just a thought.
I hope he does comment on that subject. My impression is that there’s no recourse unless a clause is mentioned in the contract, or unless there was some sort of breach of contract on their side. An exclusive deal is either a timed exclusivity or flat out transfer of ownership.
100s of my earliest tracks sit on a shelf collecting dust because I picked the wrong libraries to make exclusive deals with at the beginning of my career.
100s of my earliest tracks sit on a shelf collecting dust because I picked the wrong libraries to make exclusive deals with at the beginning of my career.
Trust me guys. These deals can be terminated without going to court. Most contracts have a clause stating that the deal can be terminated if both parties agree to the termination. That is how I got my music back. You just need to contact the party and see if they are willing to terminate the contract. Most companies do not want to hold on to music that makes no money. Publishers and music libraries are business entities and want to have assets that generate revenue.
@Desire Inspires,
This is great to hear, as I had never entertained that thought. If you don’t mind me asking, how long did they collect dust before you pulled the plug? I was thinking that 5-7 years should be enough time for the library to make a placement.
This is a marvelous way of mopping up and launching in to perpetual obscurity tens, maybe hundreds of thousands of tracks, thus cutting out the competition.
Quite brilliant if you take the conspiratorial view and your not a victim.
@Desire Inspires,
This is great to hear, as I had never entertained that thought. If you don’t mind me asking, how long did they collect dust before you pulled the plug? I was thinking that 5-7 years should be enough time for the library to make a placement.
I had tracks signed for a little over two years.
With one deal, I asked if my songs were being used. I was told that they were not and was offered the option to have the rights revert back to me. I was sent a termination form which I signed and got control of 12 tracks.
The other deal was a bit different as a few songs were being actively marketed to clients. I did not get the rights to those songs back. But there were 7 others that were not being used and I was offered the chance to have those tracks released to me.
I tried the same thing with another company and was told “no”. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. But it is worth asking. The worse thing that can happen is being told “no”. Once they refuse, you can either take legal action or choose to move on.
Going to court, especially with an overseas entity is probably cost-prohibitive unless those songs hold a tremendous potential value. Many contracts state that any dispute would be settled in the home court of the publisher and would be decided by an arbitrator. The deck is stacked against the composer in those cases. A careful and detailed cost-benefit analysis with appropriate legal counsel would be the best bet to formulate a strategy.
@DI right, you obviously did not read the OP. He has asked the library and they said NO. Better to read carefully before posting things like:
“Moral: ASK!”
He did ask.I think the OP still has an option. Since the library has not delivered they can also be considered a breach of contract.
Instead of “going to court” there is the option of having your lawyer simply send them a letter. You would be amazed at the effect that can have on a company. I have done it many times.Instead of “going to court” there is the option of having your lawyer simply send them a letter. You would be amazed at the effect that can have on a company. I have done it many times.
Yes. There are two sides to every contract and each party must perform their part of the bargain for there to be a contract.
In this instance, it really depends on the contract language, and whether the library made its duty to perform affirmative or vague.
Saying we will place your music, is different than we will use our best efforts to place your music. The latter leaves open the possibility that it might not happen. You might somehow have to prove that the library didn’t actually use its “best efforts.” If, for example, the library has done nothing to make the OP’s music available, i.e., it’s not online, hasn’t been distributed to editors on a hard drive, or hasn’t been published on a CD, you have a strong argument. They shouldn’t just be warehousing the OP’s music.
A physical letter with a law firm letterhead can have amazing effects. Your lawyer would of course need to look at your contract to see if there is any verbiage that says “no matter what we own your music from now on” and if not he can probably find something to threaten them with.
You can find lawyers on elance.com who will do this for you for $200 – $300. I’ve spent up to $2000 to do this but it is worth it not have to “go to court” (in quotes because it is just a phrase that people throw out there pretending to be actual advice)
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