I have a compulsory use mechanical license for my remix. Can I use my song in a video for a commercial advertisement?

My company remixes popular songs for fitness music. I have mechanical licenses for all of them. Can I use excerpts of the music for a commercial advertisement on TV or internet? How about radio? Is there a limit to how long the excerpts can be?
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Well, the product for sale IS the songs, and that is why I am confused. If I remix an artist's song to a specific BPM as a workout tool, can I not advertise my own product without getting a synch license? What if the music is played behind a static banner ad of our logo... is that still considered synch?

Also, I had heard once that any rebroadcast of video footage was allowable without permission as long as it is kept under 6 seconds (I worked at an Indie music TV station when I heard this). Is this true and would it apply to my situation?
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Answers (1)

Pamela Koslyn

Pamela Koslyn

Contributor Level 10
You need to look at the terms of your mechanical licenses. They probably give you the right to record the published songs and sell them and pay the songwriters a pre-set royalty rate per unit sold. You probably don't have the right to alter the lyrics or remix the songs, unless you've negotiated and paid for that right.

You don't have the right to use the songs, remixed or not, with images and for ads, since that requires a "synch" license to use any song "synched" with any image. Ads often require special licenses, because the songwriters sometimes have restrictions (e.g., no guns, no politics, no feminine hygiene products) for uses that their publishers/song owners aren't allowed to license, and many have approval rights over all uses.

Disclaimer: Please note that this answer does not constitute legal advice, and should not be relied on, since each state has different laws, each situation is fact specific, and it is impossible to evaluate a legal problem without a comprehensive consultation and review of all the facts and documents at issue. This answer does not create an attorney-client relationship.
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