metaPlexico

Thanks for the responses. We can't afford licensing fees. It makes it not worth it. What we're gonna do, I think, is hand out free copies of EPs when you buy other merch (t-shirts, etc.)

The way I understand it is that for "small runs" (less than 2500 copies), the cost is $.85 per unit per song (under 5 minutes, there's a slight increase per minute after 5). So, assuming a 1000-copy CD run, that's $85 dollars a song or about $1200 for a 12-song CD. Which is steep. Too high, for us, in fact, to add to the already high costs of printing, artwork, etc. However, that's for a "cover song". Like, if I were to play "Let It Be" on the acoustic guitar and felt like recording it and selling it.

Hey there, new user here. I searched the forums for a while but couldn't find an answer to this question. I'm in a video game music band and we want to sell a CD we've recorded. Any idea if this would be considered a "cover"? If that's the case we'd owe royalties to the original composers. Or would it be considered an arrangement? If that's the case, a licensing fee still applies though it's substantially less than if it were a cover. At the same time, though, I wonder if there's any reason why the original composers would care about this sort of thing. A video game music band isn't competing with their product. Nobody buying our CD would then decide not to buy Gradius III or whatever because they have the whole experience right there in their hands (to be fair, though, we are quite an experience ). Has anyone remixing this stuff encountered this domain by selling a CD of their remixes? Or can anyone point me in the right direction here? I see the Minibosses, probably the foremost VG rock band, have CDs for sale. Based on what the licensing cost would be (roughly $85 per song on a 1000-unit run) I find it extremely unlikely they went through that process. In any case, I (we) would greatly appreciate any tips in this regard. Peace!