PPCA National Enforcement Program -- Update on Nightclubs EnforcementUpdated 24 June The PPCA operates a nation-wide inspection and enforcement program to protect artists, labels and our compliant licensees. PPCA takes action in circumstances where business owners, despite PPCA’s repeated efforts, refuse to take out the necessary licences for the public performance of protected sound recordings on their premises. In all cases where PPCA inspections have confirmed the unauthorised public performance of sound recordings and which have been pursued by PPCA’s Business and Legal Affairs Department, a successful licensing arrangement has been implemented either through legal proceedings or negotiation. Since PPCA implemented the new tariffs for nightclubs (tariff E1) and dance parties (tariff E2) on 1 December 2007, a number of nightclubs across Australia have been failing to pay their tariff E1 licence fees. PPCA views this behaviour as unacceptable and consequently, has developed a new enforcement initiative to ensure that all nightclub licence holders are complying with their licence agreements and copyright law.
A number of nightclubs which have had their PPCA licences terminated have now been inspected. In particular, PPCA recently visited a popular Victorian nightclub and found unauthorised public performance of protected sound recordings on its premises. In this instance, the nightclub operator has agreed to pay all licence fees owed to PPCA (including all licence fees owing prior to termination of the nightclub’s licence and all licence fees accrued since termination of the licence) along with additional damages.
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