Performing Rights
While England was the leader in the development of the legal protection of copyright, the honor of the development of the collection of performing rights goes to the French.
In 1777, Beaumarchais founded an organization, "Bureau de legislation Dramatique" which later in 1829 became the Societé des Auteurs et Compositeurs Dramatiques (SACD) pursuant to which theatres agreed to pay playwrights a portion of their takings by the Society.
In 1847, the author Ernest Bourget had the idea of claiming the performing right in the Café Concerts and other establishments which used songs and or musical works. A lawsuit won by Bourget and others led in 1851 to the formation of the Société des auteurs, compositeurs et éditeurs de musique (SACEM) – the first performing rights society in the world.
Other countries followed suit. In 1882 the Italian Society SIAE was founded. IN 1899, the Spanish one, Sociedad de Autores, predecessor of the current SGAE. In 1903 the predecessor society to the current German society GEMA was formed by Richard Strauss in 1903, which became GEMA IN 1915 when it merged with another small society.
Thus by the end of the 19th century virtually all the steps were in place to safeguard the rights of a composer and therefore to render the activity of music publishing a viable business.
Read more about this topic: History Of Music Publishing
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