Download License?

Sounds quite funky to me, I have never needed to provide anything to a club/client in the UK (however havent DJed there in 5 or 6 years) as usually the client/club has to have the license to play music in the venue.
So my guess is that they want you to obtain something they should care for themselves…

I replied to your question in another thread, but i will answer it here aswell in case you miss it.

Q) What Licenses do I need to become a Mobile DJ?

A) If you are a Mobile Disco intending to use original CD’s or Vinyl in order to provide the music at private functions within venues and to carry out Weddings, Children’s Parties, Anniversaries, Family Functions etc or any other event where guests are by invitation only, then no license will need to be purchased, as you will be fully covered for this performance by the venue, who should already have obtained an annual valid music license, for the playback of music and dancing within their premises.
The only exception to this rule, are Office Parties and Functions which are either open air or open to the general public, such as Fete’s, Carnivals, Sports Days’ etc where music will be played. This also includes events where a hall is hired for a public event and then tickets sold / admission charged for entry to that venue. An example of this would be a Soul Night or an Under 16’s function which is open to any member of the public, rather than invited guests. In these instances then it is up to the promoter / organiser of the event or the actual DJ to obtain a PPL License. These can be purchased either as a one-off occasion or a block annual license for regular weekly events.
Remember this PPL license is ONLY required, if the function is either open air or where an admission fee is charged. If the function is a private one, where the guests are invited friends and family of the client, then you will not need one!.
One thing to remember however, is that it will always remain the responsibility of the DJ to check that the venue you are working in, is correctly licensed for music before working there. If the venue is not licensed, and if it happens to be visited by the license enforcement team or an inspector then you may find yourself being held jointly liable with the venue owner should a prosecution be considered, so its always wise to ask, if their music license is not visible in the premises or above the door.
A PPL License, and further information can be obtained by calling the PPL Licensing team on:- 020 7534 1070
THE PRO-DUB LICENSE
If you are a Mobile DJ who uses MP3 or other digital media to provide the music as part of your set, then you will need to obtain a license which will enable you to convert music from one format to another (Called Format Shifting). This means that if you choose to ‘rip’ original music from CD to MP3, OGG, WAV or any other digital format, then you will need to pay a fee in order to license the process and make the music licensed. However, you cannot license digital tracks which are converted from CD’s which are borrowed or not owned by you and neither can you use the original CD’s and the digital tracks at the same time
Please note that this ‘Pro-Dub License’ is the name given to a fee applied to the actual conversion process and effectively gives permission to legally rip the music from a physical means to a digital file. It does not license the actual playback of the music once it is ripped, which means that the same requirements apply to the playback of the music once it is ripped, as generally applies to the use of CD’s or Vinyl.
At the time this article was written, the cost of the Pro-Dub License is £250 for a first year license to convert upto 5000 tracks. If you convert more than 5000 tracks then existing subscribers (license holders) can buy ‘top up’s to license tracks at a cost of £100 per 1000 additional tracks converted. However you should check the current pricing on the Pro-Dub website

link to this article is here: http://www.djsite.info/idx/0/054/article/DJ-Licenses–What-Licences-do-I-need-to-DJ.html

if you really want confirmation from PPL themselves i looked up their site http://http://www.ppluk.com/I-Play-Music/Businesses/Why-do-I-need-a-licence/

under the “Do I need a licence?” section click on “Show more FAQs and you will see ” When would I not need a PPL licence to play music?”
it explains the following:

There are a number of circumstances in which, despite playing music at business premises, you may not require a PPL licence. Some of the more common situations are set out below. For more information about other situations in which a PPL licence may not be required, please contact us at 020 7534 1070.

A PPL licence is not required where a business or organisation does not play recorded music or where it is not playing it ‘in public’ (such as where it is only played at private family events such as weddings or birthday parties). Where only live music is played, a PPL licence is not needed but a PRS for Music licence will usually be needed to cover the use of the musical compositions and lyrics.

A PPL licence is also not required if none of the recorded music you play is owned by any of PPL’s members – such as recordings where the copyright has expired, or recordings sometimes referred to as ‘copyright free’ music (although the ‘copyright free’ music provider may still charge you a fee to use their recordings). The vast majority of recorded music is licensed by PPL – you can use the PPL Repertoire Search as a guide to what recorded music is covered by a PPL licence.

PPL also operates discretionary licensing policies for lone workers and home offices. If these apply to your business then (despite the strict legal position) PPL will not require you to obtain a licence. Details can be found in these FAQs, or you can contact PPL for more information.

What crap is that ?!? Pay to convert from one format to another ???? PFFFFFFFFFFFF

When you buy a record/CD you don’t buy the actual song of course, just the right to play it. To limit that right to be allowed to ONLY play it in the original format you bought it in is totally and utterly ridiculous!. I think that once I paid for the right to play a certain song (like all the stuff I bought on vinyl in the old days), I am entitled to now download the same song in WAV format and change it to whatever format I like. And I would, as a matter of principle, refuse to pay for conversion “rights”. T

Sue me.

Someone in government figured a way to make a few bucks?

My head is still reeling … unbelievable.

We have some comparable issues here. If you are a business, even a 1-person business, you have to pay a fee to play music (recorded or radio) in your “office space” even if that is your own attic. So, let’s say you are a writer and you sit in your “office” all day and write for a living, you have to pay to listen to the same music that you can listen to for free in the same space when you are not “working” anymore like at night and on weekends. How silly is that.

You have to state if you DO or DO NOT play music. And if it is DO, you get charged. Regardless if you play music you paid for, stuff on the radio, anything. If you say you DO NOT and they ring your doorbell, you open and they hear music in the background, you are toast. Big fine. Stupid.

If I walk in an office building where there is music playing in the foyer, or while on ‘hold’ on the phone and I hear a tune I like, I might go out and buy a copy. If I were an artist I’d want people all over the world to hear my music in (semi-)public and commercial environments. As long as it is not offered in a way that allows high-quality recording of it, I’d be fine with it.

This is the whole reason you hear bloody Muzak in elevators! You get cheezy orchestral remakes of already shitty music. Why? Because they can escape paying fees for music being played in a public space. Not because it is such nice music.

It never ceases to amaze me how short-sighted people in legislative positions can be when it comes to setting up rules and regulations. They are always ment to keep control and/or make you pay for what you are doing. Never geared towards creating a good working environment. They are always limiting, never enabling.

A miracle there is still growth despite all these silly rules and regulations. 🙂

Greetinx,
C.

LOL. Resident DJ didn’t use his brains, bought and paid for a license he didn’t need and now figures he can use it to leverage other witless DJs out of the place or at least have them pay for this unneeded and unwanted license too!.

Ha! He must not have heard of the power of Digital DJ Tips yet … s*ckah
!

Greetinx,
C.

Jupp tell him to fire that DJ he obviously fell for a prank.