Who Owns What?

[Jud]

It will be easier to just talk about the US....

 

My quote above is to trigger the issue of sampling musc by an artist later on - Sugar Hill Gang started this AFAIK, and it is the core of rap, hip-hop...

 

You have to get permission (which may involve a license and money) for actual samples -

 

When You Need Permission to Sample Others' Music | Nolo.com

 

 

So the business has moved on from straight lifting of samples to stuff that sounds similar, which requires a bit more proof if the creator/rights holder of the original decides to sue. That (suing) occasionally does happen.

[CatManDo]

When you purchase a CD you have obtained a license with which to use it.

 

It's not exactly a license i.e. a contract between the artist/label and the buyer

 

Software comes with licensing terms, that say for example you can install it on 1 or 5 computers, etc. The copyright owner can decide how the buyers use the software, while being forced to allow certain acts by law (the right of the buyer to make a backup copy for example)

 

When you buy a CD, you own a physical product, and there are no licensing terms. You can use it in all the ways that the rightholder cannot prohibit by law. What is generally forbidden is making copies for sale, offering it for rent, etc

 

For example, if the CDs state "copying prohibited", but your national copyright law has a private copying exception, you can ignore that broad restriction, since there is no legal basis for it.

 

So the best thing to do is to read your national copyright law, and check the jurisprudence (in the US on the "fair use" principle in particular)

 

The question "Do I own the music?" is actually beside the point. Copyright owners have rights and CD buyers have rights.

[Ralf11]

stuff that sounds similar always brings up the issue of how similar and then you fall into the morass of fair use