Music Users' Licence

Any venue, business or person that plays background, recorded, broadcast or live music in public, or that makes a copy of a musical work, must get a music usage licence from NASCAM. This includes businesses and people such as the following:

Radios Broadcasters Television broadcasters Pubs/ Bars Nightclubs Live music venues Beer Garden Entertainment Launch Restaurant Shebeen Shopping malls Retail Store Supermarket Mini shop Cinema

Hairdressers Spaza shops Shebeens Car washes Mobile Disco Jocky- DJ Community Hall Tents Music Festival / Concerts Trade fair/ Exihibition show Car Racing Fun Day events School Hall/ tents Airbus Buses Train

Taxi Tourist Truck Lodges Hotel Bed & breakfast Parks Theatre Car warehouse Weddings parties Corprate company events Fashion show Sport ground Offices any public place use background music

Types of Music User Licences

Do you want to know more about music licences? You’ve come to the right place! There’s a music licence for every occasion.

NASCAM offers two basic types of licences for Music Users to make use of the protected works of our members. They are Broadcasting and General Licensing (Blanket license)

Broadcasting Licences

The name says it all. NASCAM issues Broadcasting Licences to broadcasters such as TV and Radio broadcasters to enable them to broadcast music. The licence fees are calculated on an individual basis according to the size and nature of the broadcaster. The big players pay more than a small community radio station. So it works out fairly in the end.

General Licensing

General Licensing covers every other type of Music User. That’s your clubs, bars, malls, restaurants, music venues and other establishments that play music. Again, we assess your licence fees fairly, according to the nature of your business using our knowledge and experience to arrive at the most appropriate fee structure.

In both cases, as a first step, a NASCAM consultant will visit your business and conduct a site inspection and an assessment of the nature of your operation. The consultant will take many things into account including the use of the music, the seating capacity and audience size that can be expected to benefit from the use of the music.

What happens to the licence fees I pay NASCAM?

Royalties gathered through licence fees are passed on to NASCAM Music Creators. Many people play a role in the creation of every piece of music. From songwriters and composers to recording artists and music publishers – they all play a role in creating the final musical product.

Thanks to NASCAM’s experience and the information we collect about the usage and value of every musical work, we are able to fairly calculate the royalties that are passed on to the different players. NASCAM deducts a 10 % for members social responsibility, 30% for an administrative fee on all the royalties collected in return for managing the music rights of our members, therefore the remaining 60% is distributed amongest all our members. We’re completely transparent about how our fees are managed and shared.