The development of MP3 players and other modern portable and electronic music-playing devices has changed the way that people listen to music. People who utilize these technological advances are generally not in danger of infringing U.S. copyright law. Businesses, on the other hand, may very well be. If a business plays stored and reorganized music in a public space, they may infringe the public performance rights of the rights holder. In this helpful essay, G.S. Hans of the University of Michigan Law School examines how licensing pertains to public performance rights in the digital age.
Read the essay here.