I had music stripped from a video I made for a conference and I disputed it, claiming Fair Use.  I won the dispute and the music was returned.  It’s hard to say whether I was within my rights or not.  I’m not a lawyer.  I claimed that I was using the video for educational purposes, that I was not infringing on their ability to make money off the music, and I wasn’t making money off it either.  On the other hand, I did use at least one entire song, and fair use guidelines do suggest using only a small percentage of a work.  I thought about asking permission, but it’s a hassle and the company often asks for money.

I like the idea of asking permission, but people don’t for fear of hearing no, or of hearing yes, but you’ll need to pay us a thousand bucks.  Perhaps they could make this process easier or have a smaller fee for use–like 25 cents.  Or they can accept just getting credit, a full cite as one might do with academic work, with a link to the song so that someone might buy it.  How much would it cost WMG to buy 375,000 impressions on Google? A lot.  And yet they got it for free–or would, if they let the music stand.

As an academic, I appreciate getting and giving credit where credit is due.  But individuals who are expressing themselves or making a point, using pieces of copyrighted material can’t afford the fees one might charge to a tv, film or advertising producer for the use of a song or a clip of video.  We need more flexibility and we need for companies to recognize when they’re truly losing money and when they’re gaining something.  I think the remix culture will win eventually, but it will be a long battle.