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Forums - Music techology
Subject: anyone know about them stinkin' laws???
Viewing all 10 messages - View by pages of 10: 1
Original Message 1/10 09-Feb-98 @ 04:23 AM - anyone know about them stinkin' laws???
ok heres the trippin' deal. i just started...well,
i just started telling people that i was going to start a record company and now i am. but i really want to know if there are any laws i gotta follow
if i want to start one.
like is there anything about selling my tapes over
the net? is that legal? do i need a license? and
what about distrbution? can i send pamphlets to stores to see if i can sell/distribute or will the
government come and whack me because i am doing something illegal.??? anyone who knows anything
about the stinkin' laws please post or email
i just started telling people that i was going to start a record company and now i am. but i really want to know if there are any laws i gotta follow
if i want to start one.
like is there anything about selling my tapes over
the net? is that legal? do i need a license? and
what about distrbution? can i send pamphlets to stores to see if i can sell/distribute or will the
government come and whack me because i am doing something illegal.??? anyone who knows anything
about the stinkin' laws please post or email
Message 2/10 09-Feb-98 @ 11:02 AM - RE: anyone know about them stinkin' laws???
YOu know, this isn't a bad idea for a thread... Info like this could really come in handy for a lot of people... And Some of us live in America, some in the UK... (Some live on Convict Island, namely that Weird Hip Hop Guy and that Nutty Chick).. So laws might be different... I've given a lot of thought to selling tapes or CDs over the net (Basically because people on the net are the only ones who ask me more than once where they can get one)... But I don't know the laws either... ?
Message 3/10 09-Feb-98 @ 12:55 PM - RE: anyone know about them stinkin' laws???
oiy! who you calling a nutty chick? Actually I have all the legal information you require but since you insulted me so deeply i will refrain from sharing it with you.
Message 4/10 09-Feb-98 @ 01:49 PM - RE: anyone know about them stinkin' laws???
......... i'd say.... if you're thinking of starting a record company, or any company... and you havent even bothered to find out the legalities/procedures for forming/running a company...... well, i'd say, don't waste your time.....
no offence......but it's hardly the attidude to bring success......... consult a business & company lawyer or whatever free resources are available to you where you live........
in essence, you need to form & register the company....... you need a business bank account....a lawyer....an accountant.... then you need contacts between yourself/company and the artsits.... if these contracts are worldwide, then you're legally entitled to sell the product wherever you like.... notwithstanding localised trade and commerce/tax laws, with which you must comply in various territories........
what I'm trying to say is...... a record company is no more different to a chicken pie company.... it's just the sale of a product..... records /cd's etc may seem more glamourous, but in the end, I might as well be pies, cos you're gonna deal with the same shit as you would with selling pies......
you can get a company for 100 (UK) or less...... although off-the -peg companies will NOT have the name you want, you have to apply and re-name at a given interval .... to register a named company in the UK, with the name YOU want, takes a little longer, as submissions are processed at intervals.. (or were last time i looked into it).....
the UP-side is, that you can offset many many things against tax..... all your cd's, tapes, and ANY equiptment you buy can be claimed, as well as travel, clothes, virtually ALL the things on which, as a musician, you spend your dosh !!...etc etc etc....... but to take full advantage you need to register to charge and be re-imbursed for local, or national sales tax...(VAT in the UK)... this requires (in the UK), a separte and additional tax accounting which costs more in accounting fees....... etc etc.....but can be worth it depending on your levels of spending......
the other thing is...... that as virtually EVERY device you buy for tech-music work is registered as a computing device, you can offset a very lage proportion of the cost over 2 or 3 years against tax.... as computing devices are determined to be outdated withing a certain time-span...... thus you can off-set the total purchase cost (not just the sales tax) by a large percentage over time...
in it's simplest form..... form the company... get a logo and name, and register them.....
get a standard artist/company licencing contact agreement.... then tailor it to your own requirements (changes to rates payment schedules etc.....
open a company bank account.......(keep on talking to the bank manager.... always stay in touch every week or 2 if possible...... and choose the bank well, cos the manager is gonna influence things to a certain extent)
licence the tracks from who-ever.......
press the cd's......
promote and sell them.......
keep your 50% or whatever....... hand over the other percentage to the artists at 1/2 yearly, or quarterly intervals or whenever you have contracted to do so.........
estimate by accounting, your tax........ and save that up, and pay it.........
musicians union type bodies can supply contract templates, or examples of typical contracts, and can/will in some cases, offer limited legal consultation to members.......
lastly........ alot of banking descisions are made by computer analysis of the rate of flow in your account......... so if you have a few hundred spare, keep aside a few hundred, then pay it through and withdraw it from your account every week....... it's gonna be the same 200, or 300 every week being payed in, and withdrawn...... but..... to the wanky, out of date, antiquated system by which the banks work, this appears as if you have an additional 300 going through your account every week...... so the computer thinks you've got more money..... good when it comes time for a loan..... just a general thing i discovered that allows you to simply fool a bank.... only because they are so crap and lazy at evaluating customers......
you can use this to get foothold at the bank..... but dont be daft enuff to use it to take a loan that you cant possibly re-pay.......(well, unless our planning an extended tour of south america !!)
oh yes......... banks hate musicians...... which is strange, cos in the Uk at least, it's our most successful industry, making more revenue, and creating more jobs than any other...... yet it's weird that the artists around whom all this wealth generation revolves are treated like shit..... both legaly and financially......
no offence......but it's hardly the attidude to bring success......... consult a business & company lawyer or whatever free resources are available to you where you live........
in essence, you need to form & register the company....... you need a business bank account....a lawyer....an accountant.... then you need contacts between yourself/company and the artsits.... if these contracts are worldwide, then you're legally entitled to sell the product wherever you like.... notwithstanding localised trade and commerce/tax laws, with which you must comply in various territories........
what I'm trying to say is...... a record company is no more different to a chicken pie company.... it's just the sale of a product..... records /cd's etc may seem more glamourous, but in the end, I might as well be pies, cos you're gonna deal with the same shit as you would with selling pies......
you can get a company for 100 (UK) or less...... although off-the -peg companies will NOT have the name you want, you have to apply and re-name at a given interval .... to register a named company in the UK, with the name YOU want, takes a little longer, as submissions are processed at intervals.. (or were last time i looked into it).....
the UP-side is, that you can offset many many things against tax..... all your cd's, tapes, and ANY equiptment you buy can be claimed, as well as travel, clothes, virtually ALL the things on which, as a musician, you spend your dosh !!...etc etc etc....... but to take full advantage you need to register to charge and be re-imbursed for local, or national sales tax...(VAT in the UK)... this requires (in the UK), a separte and additional tax accounting which costs more in accounting fees....... etc etc.....but can be worth it depending on your levels of spending......
the other thing is...... that as virtually EVERY device you buy for tech-music work is registered as a computing device, you can offset a very lage proportion of the cost over 2 or 3 years against tax.... as computing devices are determined to be outdated withing a certain time-span...... thus you can off-set the total purchase cost (not just the sales tax) by a large percentage over time...
in it's simplest form..... form the company... get a logo and name, and register them.....
get a standard artist/company licencing contact agreement.... then tailor it to your own requirements (changes to rates payment schedules etc.....
open a company bank account.......(keep on talking to the bank manager.... always stay in touch every week or 2 if possible...... and choose the bank well, cos the manager is gonna influence things to a certain extent)
licence the tracks from who-ever.......
press the cd's......
promote and sell them.......
keep your 50% or whatever....... hand over the other percentage to the artists at 1/2 yearly, or quarterly intervals or whenever you have contracted to do so.........
estimate by accounting, your tax........ and save that up, and pay it.........
musicians union type bodies can supply contract templates, or examples of typical contracts, and can/will in some cases, offer limited legal consultation to members.......
lastly........ alot of banking descisions are made by computer analysis of the rate of flow in your account......... so if you have a few hundred spare, keep aside a few hundred, then pay it through and withdraw it from your account every week....... it's gonna be the same 200, or 300 every week being payed in, and withdrawn...... but..... to the wanky, out of date, antiquated system by which the banks work, this appears as if you have an additional 300 going through your account every week...... so the computer thinks you've got more money..... good when it comes time for a loan..... just a general thing i discovered that allows you to simply fool a bank.... only because they are so crap and lazy at evaluating customers......
you can use this to get foothold at the bank..... but dont be daft enuff to use it to take a loan that you cant possibly re-pay.......(well, unless our planning an extended tour of south america !!)
oh yes......... banks hate musicians...... which is strange, cos in the Uk at least, it's our most successful industry, making more revenue, and creating more jobs than any other...... yet it's weird that the artists around whom all this wealth generation revolves are treated like shit..... both legaly and financially......
Message 5/10 09-Feb-98 @ 04:07 PM - RE: anyone know about them stinkin' laws???
try this for a taster: http://www.interlog.com/legalguide.html
Message 6/10 10-Feb-98 @ 06:02 PM - RE: anyone know about them stinkin' laws???
try this.... very comprehensive:
http://hyperreal.org/music/library/business/
http://hyperreal.org/music/library/business/
Message 7/10 14-Feb-98 @ 11:29 PM - RE: anyone know about them stinkin' laws???
No offense, Kilo, what you're saying is helpful and all, but you're way off-base tellin' the kid he can't start up a label unless it's some kind of corporate crap entity.
The underground scene's all about startin' it up and just doin' it, 'n I've met enough guys from Liquid Sky, V Records, Quango, and Barakka who've started from nothing to developing into well-respected labels.
Once you've got the ball rolling, then deal with all the technical shit. Kilo's right, you're going to need it eventually, but for the first couple of years you're not going to make enough money for any taxing agency to notice but the reputation you earn on the scene will be invaluable. It's a popularity contest, and everybody likes someone with history.
Also, the more underground you are, the less you've got to worry about clearing samples or getting sued (they might try, but you can't get blood from a stone).
The underground scene's all about startin' it up and just doin' it, 'n I've met enough guys from Liquid Sky, V Records, Quango, and Barakka who've started from nothing to developing into well-respected labels.
Once you've got the ball rolling, then deal with all the technical shit. Kilo's right, you're going to need it eventually, but for the first couple of years you're not going to make enough money for any taxing agency to notice but the reputation you earn on the scene will be invaluable. It's a popularity contest, and everybody likes someone with history.
Also, the more underground you are, the less you've got to worry about clearing samples or getting sued (they might try, but you can't get blood from a stone).
Message 8/10 18-Feb-98 @ 02:53 PM - RE: anyone know about them stinkin' laws???
[this stuff is from a u.s. perspective - i don't know how it might relate to the uk]
it might not seem as cool to do all the business side of things but it is worth it. esp. for, as
kilo said, a 100 pounds. in the u.s. i'd say it'd be around $100-$200 to do it cheaply(it can
be much more if you don't use a company which specializes in forming new corporations).
Unless you are underage(and therefor can't really be prosecuted), you really MUST
incorporate or LLC your company. If you don't, you could eventually be sued by someone
for any little thing and if you aren't a corporation they can take all of your personal stuff.
If you incorporate, you become only an employee of the company(even if you're the only
employee). In the case of any legal problems, only the company's assets can be taken. Not
your personal assets.
it might not seem as cool to do all the business side of things but it is worth it. esp. for, as
kilo said, a 100 pounds. in the u.s. i'd say it'd be around $100-$200 to do it cheaply(it can
be much more if you don't use a company which specializes in forming new corporations).
Unless you are underage(and therefor can't really be prosecuted), you really MUST
incorporate or LLC your company. If you don't, you could eventually be sued by someone
for any little thing and if you aren't a corporation they can take all of your personal stuff.
If you incorporate, you become only an employee of the company(even if you're the only
employee). In the case of any legal problems, only the company's assets can be taken. Not
your personal assets.
Message 9/10 18-Feb-98 @ 04:16 PM - RE: anyone know about them stinkin' laws???
Hilvelt mate.... there's nowt corporate about starting a limited company,.............. like the guy asked about starting a company..... he didnt ask: "How do I make some tracks, press 'em and sell 'em and make a few hundred/thousand dollars per year".....hence the answer.....
Message 10/10 18-Feb-98 @ 10:59 PM - RE: anyone know about them stinkin' laws???
If any ones thinking about opening up a UK Ltd company remember you will probably need an accountant (I think you
HAVE to have one if you want to be LTD)
A retainer for a UK accountant is gonna cost you 600-1000
pounds a year.
HAVE to have one if you want to be LTD)
A retainer for a UK accountant is gonna cost you 600-1000
pounds a year.
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