Q: Do I need to worry about copyright violation?
I am the part-time owner of a dance studio. I have very few clients and play very few songs and only for a small part of the class time, most of my time is spent teaching without music. I have ensured that my music does not violate copyright, but I have a few questions. I am an independent contractor and I rent space from other dance studios, I do not own my own location. So what if 1. I am teaching a couple a private lesson at a studio and they request to play a song from their phone to dance to? 2. If I am teaching a couple a private lesson at their home and they ask to play a song from a personal cd that they own? 4. If a song is copyrighted through a foreign agency and not through one of the three P.R.O.s in the US? 5. If I play a song after a lesson (when I am not charging for time), maybe to hear a couple's first dance song but without using it at the actual lesson or charging for the time during which they are hearing it or dancing to it? I'm trying to avoid breaking the law!
A: I do not think that you are going to get this question fully answered unless you actually go see a copyright attorney. I do not see a violation in what you have written, but I could be wrong.
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