Music licencing - advice for salons
Music is an integral part of a hairdressing salon, it creates the right ambience for your prospective customers and is proven to play a big role in what we buy.
Now imagine walking into your salon and the quiet hits you like a wall of silence…
You wouldn’t drive without a licence, so why risk your business and all your prospects for an oversight?
In this post, I am going to get into why it is vitally important to have one for your premises if you play any music at your salon. I also cover what a music licence is and how to get one.
So on that note…let’s jump right into the first verse!
For those of you that are short on time there’s a short summary video below, but I would really advise taking the time to read the whole post to get all the information you need.
What is a music licence?
A music licence is much like a television licence, in that it is a requirement if you own a television and use it to watch or record live television.
If you play recorded music in public for example; a radio, CD or music channel on your business premises. You will need a PRS for music, to You and I that translates to a ‘Licence to play background music’.
This also allows you to play live music on your premises. Which would probably be more fitting for a Pub, Restaurant or Bar than a Salon? But hey, at least you have options!
PRS for Music collects and distributes money for the use of the musical composition and lyrics on behalf of authors, songwriters, composers and publishers.
As stated on the Gov.uk website, you will likely also need a PPL licence for your salon (Phonographic performance ltd licence in plain English)! This is needed to legally play recorded music in public. PPL collects and distributes money for the use of recorded music on behalf of record companies and performers.
Why do you need one in your salon?
What are the consequences of not purchasing a music licence?
As purported on the official Gov.uk website, you are infringing copyright and could be sued for damages if you play recorded, copyrighted music in public without a licence. Not really worth the risk if you ask me!
So how do you acquire one?
You can easily apply for a PRS licence online directly from their website. To elaborate, they provide bespoke licences tailored to your needs by discussing your position so give them a call. They even have a detailed section stemming from ‘playing music at work’ just for hair and beauty salons. Alternatively, you can drop them a line and they will be in touch.
How much does a music licence for a salon cost?
PRS offers simple and effective licencing and even conduct a consultation on the charging structure used to licence the use of copyrighted music within the hair and beauty sector.
The scope of the proposed tariff will cover; Hairdressers, Barbers, Beauticians, Nail Bars, Tanning Salons and all other establishments offering similar services.
This tariff will allow customers to purchase the use of background music irrespective of the number of devices instead of the current charge of per device.
The price ranges from £79 right to £350 depending on the size of your salon and how many chairs you retain. (Please note: These prices are lifted from the PRS hair and beauty consultation PDF and are exclusive of VAT indicative based on 2015 figures and will be adjusted annually in line with inflation).
It is an annual fee like with most of these things and covers unlimited use of background music throughout the year with a flat fee dependent on the total number of stylist chairs/treatment tables.
The removal of charging per device, allows premises to use multiple devices (radio, computer system etc) whilst the charge for background music remains unaffected. Therefore creating a ‘future proof’ tariff that allows premises to change, add or remove devices to suit their individual needs. For more information please see here.
The Outro…
So to conclude this piece, seriously look into this if you are starting out in the hair salon world. Or if you are already immersed and don’t currently own a music licence, please consider your options and choose wisely my friends! For more information on music licencing please see here for help and FAQ on this topic.
