Musicians note risk then dance with devil in detail
MUSIC competitions are increasingly exploitative, musicians say, with some competitions forcing bands to sign over copyright or allow companies permanent free use of their work.
A 20th Century Fox promotion to find an original song for the film Hitman stipulates "the winner will not be entitled to any fees, royalties or any other payments in connection with the inclusion or exploitation of the master". The first prize includes $5000, a party and a games console.
Just entering a song grants Fox "perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive license" without further consent and for any purpose. The Australian competition has had 676 entrants who have agreed to the contract by uploading a song.
Fox denies the competition will be used to collect songs that could be aired without paying artists. It said the winner would only be prevented from releasing their song in the year after the film's release. But the contract says the winning entry becomes "the sole and exclusive property throughout the universe and in perpetuity of the promoters".
The company's marketing director, Marc Wooldridge, said: "I think people are just seeing it as a mixed opportunity. We're providing an opportunity. If it doesn't meet the criteria of certain artists and bands they won't enter."
The Musicians Union of Australia said the competition was the latest development in an industry marked by exploitation. "I think it's very indicative of a mindset in the industry," said the union's federal secretary, Terry Noone.
"All they're really selling is fame, without the fortune."
Mz Ann Thropik, frontwoman of a Sydney punk band of the same name, said she was excited about the competition until she read the contract. "It's something very tempting for young bands to overlook and once you actually read it you realise it has a lot of ulterior motives.
"I think these companies know they can get people like that. They are aware about how desperate people are for exposure."
However, for Luis Rojas, singer-songwriter with the Locus Scene, the deal was worth the potential exploitation as it only related to one song.
"I've conceded to have that song [hopefully] placed in a high-exposure movie and signed away the fact that I will [not] make any direct money from that song."
Other competitions, such as Tooheys' Uncharted, bind artists for the promotion's duration, and the competition can use the song free for a further six months. "If we didn't have these terms and conditions in place, we wouldn't be able to publish their music on the site," said a spokeswoman for the company, Amy Lawrence.
-Erik Jensen
