I have karaoke producing legal questions.

[pcgumshoe]

ASCAP and BMI should generally NOT be paid by a host, or a roaming show UNLESS you are running a show where YOU are responsible for the attendance.

For example, if you want to have a party and invite 300 people where karaoke, or any other music licensed by ASCAP or BMI, or the other ones, you SHOULD have a license.

ASCAP and BMI are for the performance rights which are based on the capacity of the building.

JADDAMS is correct, to create your own version of a song, you need to pay royalties to the copyright owner. You can't, generally, buy one license. They sell them in lots of I believe 1500... don't quote me, but the license is something like 7 cents a piece or something (it has been a while since I checked on this).

The problem with karaoke is that there is no CLEAR category CDG falls into. This is the fallout from Pioneer and the other companies that had moving pictures with the lyrics.

Now, to take it from SHEET music and CONVERT it, is a whole other license all together, then you are talking the arrangement, artists, copyright holder....

I am not a lawyer, but if you can afford it, I would check with a lawyer on the subject.

This is similar to the whole COPYING debate. A big can of worms.