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Films for TV, cinemas, festivals, and VoD

Apply for a licence

You are producing a film with music and offering it to professional users

Online form

Is one of your film productions with music being shown on TV, at the cinema or a film festival, or as a video on demand? To be able to use the music, you must make sure that you have the necessary rights.

If you intend to produce a video and make it publicly available, follow this link.

How to acquire the necessary music rights:

  • Existing music: synchronisation rights must be obtained from the authors or their representatives, as well as from the label if the music was published on vinyl, CD or on streaming platforms. This must be done before the film is produced.
  • Commissioned music: if you are commissioning music from a composer, the rights of use must be regulated by a contract. If the composer belongs to a collective management organisation, SUISA manages the authors’ rights.
  • Production music: beware of purportedly free music from websites. Certain providers claim that all rights are included, but that is not always true. SUISA manages the rights for uses in Switzerland and Liechtenstein in particular.
    Production music specificities: No further action required as regards synchronisation rights. Favour our contract partners of production music to avoid paying twice for rights.

How to proceed:

Fill in the online form. You can save the form and finish filling it in later.

After checking your application, SUISA issues you an invoice. The licence is valid as soon as payment is received.

From the payment proceeds, SUISA distributes the corresponding royalties to the entitled composers, lyricists, and publishers.

Questions et réponses

  • Royalty rates vary depending on how music is used. For example, the rate for concerts is higher than for the rate for background music in retail outlets. This is because of the different value of music in these contexts:  people go to a concert primarily for the music, whereas when they go shopping, the music played in the background is of secondary value. You may contact SUISA's customer service at any time for a non-binding estimate of the fees for any given use. 

    The fees for the various types of music uses are regulated in our tariffs. 

    Overview of tariffs
     

  • Do I have to pay royalties 

    • when admission to an event is free?
    • for events that are not commercial?
    • for events that make a loss?

    Yes. The economic success of an event is the organiser’s affair. Royalties are fixed costs like beverages and lighting, and must be paid whether or not the event turns a profit. 

    Do I have to pay royalties for

    • private events, or
    • club events that are not open to the general public?

    For private events you do not need a licence and you do not have to pay royalties. However, the term “private” is restrictively defined by law: it applies only to a single individual who enjoys music with a small circle of close friends or relatives (Article 19(1)(a) of the Copyright Act). It follows that, even though they are not open to the general public, events organised by clubs, associations, companies, army units and the like are not private events. In case of doubt, it is advisable to contact SUISA and inquire whether royalties are payable for the planned event. 

  • Productions must always be registered before the audiovisual recording is produced.