Contracts & Copyright: Contemporary Musician Income Streams

Abstract

Musicians typically earn revenues from two sources: copyright law and contract. The proportion of revenue derived from each of these sources varies from artist to artist, but an understanding of the general distribution of earnings from each source is useful when considering proposed legislative amendments. Through a series of qualitative interviews with working musicians, this chapter contributes to the ongoing conversation around copyright’s import to, and impact on, musician revenue at different career stages.

Keywords: copyright, contract, intellectual property, legislation, regulation, music, creativity, law and economics, statutory licensing, incentives

JEL Classification: C10, C40, K00, K10, K19, K39