4 ms·

They are the primary creator of the work. The narrator is not.

plorg 4y ago
The narrator is similarly inseparable from the performative work (as, say, an orchestral recording of a symphony), the only difference seems to rest in who has the power and incentive to claim royalties. None of this explicitly follows from first principles, it's all just negotiation for what, through the vehicle of contract law, will get enforced by social convention and the fist of the government.
- LegitShady 4y ago
  >None of this explicitly follows from first principles, it's all just negotiation for what, through the vehicle of contract law, will get enforced by social convention and the fist of the government. Absolutely. But there are many more people who can voice audiobooks than there are high quality writers, and the writer's work is being the primary author of the work. It doesn't make any sense for the owner to give % of the profit unless the narrator would attract business on their own.
  - taeric 4y ago
    I have tried some books based on the narrator...
    - frosted-flakes 4y ago
      Actually, this is my favourite way to find new authors. As an example, R.C. Bray narrated The Martian by Andy Weir, and I loved his narration so much I looked for other books that Bray had narrated. One such book was Planetside by Michael Mammay, which was Mammay's first and only book at the time. I have since read all 5 of his books, and he's now one of my favourite authors.
DoughnutHole 4y ago
If you release of a cover (ie a performance) of a song someone else wrote you own the copyright on the recording of that performance and are entitled to compensation for use of that recording. There's not real any intrinsic difference between a recorded performance of a song someone else wrote and recorded narration of a book someone else wrote. The audiobook recording has its own copyright, which can be owned by the narrator. It's usually not though, being recorded for hire with the narrator ceding all rights.
- LegitShady 4y ago
  > If you release of a cover (ie a performance) of a song someone else wrote you own the copyright on the recording of that performance and are entitled to compensation for use of that recording. negative. if you're covering a song in copyright you need a license agreement from the owner if you intend to monotize it. You own a copyright to your version but you can't make money from it.
  - DoughnutHole 4y ago
    Not true in the US due to compulsory licensing. [0] There's no permission required to publish or monetise a recording of an existing musical work - you just have to provide notice to the copyright holder and pay a statutory royalty. The mechanical rate for the sale of a recording is the greater of 9.1c for the song or 1.75c per minute of playtime. Streaming royalties are handled by blanket agreements with companies like Spotify. [0]: https://help.songtrust.com/knowledge/what-is-a-compulsory-license https://help.songtrust.com/knowledge/what-is-a-compulsory-li...
sokoloff 4y ago
Is the songwriter or lead vocalist the primary creator of a piece of music?
- LegitShady 4y ago
  almost always the songwriter sells or licenses the music, or otherwise retains controls of it. but they have complex contracts with other terms involved because the industry is complicated by record label contracts.

The narrator is similarly inseparable from the performative work (as, say, an orchestral recording of a symphony), the only difference seems to rest in who has the power and incentive to claim royalties. None of this explicitly follows from first principles, it's all just negotiation for what, through the vehicle of contract law, will get enforced by social convention and the fist of the government.

LegitShady 4y ago
>None of this explicitly follows from first principles, it's all just negotiation for what, through the vehicle of contract law, will get enforced by social convention and the fist of the government. Absolutely. But there are many more people who can voice audiobooks than there are high quality writers, and the writer's work is being the primary author of the work. It doesn't make any sense for the owner to give % of the profit unless the narrator would attract business on their own.
- taeric 4y ago
  I have tried some books based on the narrator...
  - frosted-flakes 4y ago
    Actually, this is my favourite way to find new authors. As an example, R.C. Bray narrated The Martian by Andy Weir, and I loved his narration so much I looked for other books that Bray had narrated. One such book was Planetside by Michael Mammay, which was Mammay's first and only book at the time. I have since read all 5 of his books, and he's now one of my favourite authors.

DoughnutHole 4y ago

If you release of a cover (ie a performance) of a song someone else wrote you own the copyright on the recording of that performance and are entitled to compensation for use of that recording. There's not real any intrinsic difference between a recorded performance of a song someone else wrote and recorded narration of a book someone else wrote. The audiobook recording has its own copyright, which can be owned by the narrator. It's usually not though, being recorded for hire with the narrator ceding all rights.

LegitShady 4y ago
> If you release of a cover (ie a performance) of a song someone else wrote you own the copyright on the recording of that performance and are entitled to compensation for use of that recording. negative. if you're covering a song in copyright you need a license agreement from the owner if you intend to monotize it. You own a copyright to your version but you can't make money from it.
- DoughnutHole 4y ago
  Not true in the US due to compulsory licensing. [0] There's no permission required to publish or monetise a recording of an existing musical work - you just have to provide notice to the copyright holder and pay a statutory royalty. The mechanical rate for the sale of a recording is the greater of 9.1c for the song or 1.75c per minute of playtime. Streaming royalties are handled by blanket agreements with companies like Spotify. [0]: https://help.songtrust.com/knowledge/what-is-a-compulsory-license https://help.songtrust.com/knowledge/what-is-a-compulsory-li...

sokoloff 4y ago

Is the songwriter or lead vocalist the primary creator of a piece of music?

LegitShady 4y ago
almost always the songwriter sells or licenses the music, or otherwise retains controls of it. but they have complex contracts with other terms involved because the industry is complicated by record label contracts.