Podlaw At The Corporate Podcasting Summit

I'm here at the Corporate Podcasting Summit, where our panel on "Where Next?" issues just wrapped up. With Colette and I on the panel, we covered a good deal of legal ground, but Andy McCormick is now specifically addressing intellectual property issues.

On our panel, we touched on the logistical issues around registering a work (or series of works) like a podcast with the Copyright Office. Andy's view seems to be that it's important to register to trigger the additional rights and advantages that accompany doing so, and that you should take the most conservative approach and get it done — despite what may turn out to be daunting inconvenience and expense considerations. I understand where he's coming from, but I'm still not happy about the conclusion. The conclusion I reach is that the registration process needs to adapt to more readily embrace media like blogs, podcasts, vlogs, videocasts, etc.

Andy also touched on the mind-numbing music licensing issues, and concluded by highlighting podsafe music and other similar alternatives. Absolutely — the most friction-free alternative for podcasters who want to incorporate music is to use music that wants to be incorporated. Like the copyright registration process, the traditional music licensing framework was established without referenced to the sorts of technologies and media we see today, and doesn't (yet? hope springs eternal) accommodate them well.

I asked a question about the myriad ways you can give notice of copyright or licensing information related to a podcast, and Andy thinks probably the best/most effective way to give notice is as part of the program itself. (Watch for my interview with Colette, we discuss these and related issues at some length.)

[Tags: corporate podcasting summit, podcasting law, podcasting legal guide, podlaw]