Originally Posted by dynac0mp
Mike, I have followed with interest your many posts here on the topic of copyright, publishing, distribution, etc.

I have a specific question regarding "publishing" a work. I typically make demos of my original tunes and songs that are not "produced final product" that I intend to record properly in the future. If I upload these and share my recordings with a handful of people using a secret link on SoundCloud, are these then considered "published"? I have heard you say that the copyright owner has the right of first performance. Would this online posting be considered equivalent to "performance".

My motivation in asking this question is two-fold:
(1) I want to share my demos with musicians who may work on the final track
(2) I want to protect my interest in the work

Any guidance here is much appreciated

I'm not a lawyer but I have stayed at a Holiday Inn Express so maybe that qualifies me to speak on things I don't exactly have all the answers to? With that said......

So.....Publishing is essentially making something public. Copyright is considered automatic upon the initial recording into a "tangible" form. That is not to be confused with the copyright registration with the US LOC.

Is posting online considered a "first performance"? I'm not a lawyer but I would think it would be. Lawyers thrive in the grey areas of the law and your example is in a grey area. Online but private.......Anyone wanting to cover that would necessarily require a license from you the copyright owner and publisher. You can deny the license.

Protecting your work.... Best way.... don't post it if you're shopping the demo. Get a US LOC copyright if you are going to self publish. Your outside publisher will do the copyright paperwork if they agree to handle the song and sign the agreement with you to do so. That's literally how I have done it for the past however many years. I let the publisher handle the copyrights.

Regarding the topic of the thread..... If you wrote it, you can copyright it. If it's AI in any way or shape in the creative process, that is not eligible for US LOC copyright protection at this point in time. It doesn't mean you can't use it commercially, it's just that you can't legally protect your music with a copyright. It means that anyone can use it and they don't have to pay you and there's essentially little to nothing that you can do about it. The way I look at AI is that it's pretty much equivalent to public domain music.

regarding (1) & (2)..... only share with people, writers, and publishers you trust completely.

You can find my music at:
www.herbhartley.com
Add nothing that adds nothing to the music.
You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.

The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.