SUISA-free music as background music

The management of performance and reproduction rights in musical works is subject to State regulation in Switzerland and Liechtenstein. That means that these rights can only be managed with an authorisation from the regulatory authorities (IPI or AfV (Amt für Volkswirtschaft, the Liechtenstein regulatory authority)). Whosoever manages these rights and issues licences without such an authorisation is liable to prosecution. Offering licence-free music, for which an authorisation is required but has not been obtained, is unlawful in Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

Time and again we have established that licence-free music is not licence free at all, and that SUISA holds the rights in the works concerned. To avoid misuse, persons who intend to use licence-free music are required to file a list with SUISA of all the music titles involved, indicating the relevant titles as well as the composers and lyricists. This enables us to verify that the music in question is effectively licence-free.

Swissperform’s neighbouring rights, which SUISA manages together with its own authors’ rights, and which are generally incorporated in most tariffs, can – by law – only be managed by Swissperform and SUISA to the extent commercially available sound and video recordings are used. Music recordings which are advertised as licence-free and are offered for sale to the public (e.g. online) are deemed to be "commercially available". Therefore, the remuneration for the use of neighbouring rights stipulated in the tariff must always be paid for these music recordings.