Sabam retains money for music outside its remit

Belgian authors’ rights society Sabam is collecting payment for works not in its repertoire, without paying any of it back. Eighteen months ago, a television programme demonstrated how the society, because of its flat-charge collection procedure, invoiced music users such as cafe and restaurant owners, shopkeepers, hairdressers and occasional party organisers for the right to play music without checking if the works in question feature in its repertoire. The furore caused by the programme, in which Sabam confirmed controlling the works of fictional artists Suzy Wan and Ken Wood, caused the society to react immediately, promising to pay back all sums collected unjustly. However, there appears to have been a change of plan, with spokesman Jerôme Van Win defending Sabam’s ‘blanket’ invoicing methods, adding that checking collection invoices against the Sabam repertoire would prove too costly.