TONO in English

Are you aware of the fact that a licence fee has to be paid for all public performances of music?

A music composition is the property of the composer. He or she owns the exclusive right to decide where or when a composition is to be performed. This right is given in the Norwegian law; "Lov om opphavsrett til åndsverk" of May 12th 1961. The only exception to this law is when the last surviving owner of the proprietary rights has passed away 70 years ago or more. Hereafter the composition is in the public domain and can be performed without authorization.

A permit, or licence, must be obtained to perform music in public and a fee must be paid. This applies to stores, hotels, buses, TV, radio, ships, concerts, parties etc.

TONO is the only organisation in Norway to give such a licence on behalf of the composers and authors.

TONO was established in 1928. We protect the performing (financial and legal) rights of Norwegian and foreign composers, authors and publishers of music.

When a licence is given, the owner of the proprietary rights is entitled to compensation in the form of a licence fee. Our task is to make sure the composer, authors and publishers receive the fee due to them.

In cooperation with around 50 similar organisations around the world, TONO is part of an international organisation called CISAC. We protect the performing rights of the music performed in Norway, both international and domestic.

A piece of music is performed over and over again.
Should the composer and author settle for a once-and-for-all time payment?

Imagine spending a year of your lifetime composing a piece of music for which you receive a one-time payment.
Some years later you discover that this piece of music is performed all over the world, and you are not receiving any financial compensation.

This does seem unreasonable?
Yes. A composer or author is entitled to respect for their works, and to financial compensation when the works are performed in public.

The composer is entitled to compensation every time his work is performed, no matter if it is a live performance or mechanical one (CD, Movie, etc.).
The fee paid to TONO is the compensation the composers or authors receive for use of their music.

Who has to pay?

The organiser of a concert has to obtain a licence from TONO and pay the fee. This must be done when performing both Norwegian and foreign music.

An organiser is a person, company or organisation that offers music to the public. It is important to keep in mind that music played in clubs, associations etc is also recognised as public performance.

We might say that the only non-public space is a private home.

Always contact TONO and get a licence to perform music in public. Once you have the licence, you decide the repertoire yourself.

Through contact with TONO you can get information as to who is the concert organiser, and what is considered public performance.

The licence fee is compensation to the composers and authors, not a tax that goes to TONO.

The fee paid to TONO is not a state tax. The money goes back to the composers, lyricists and publishers.

The system for distribution of licence fees is well established.

Which piece of work is played and how often?

In accordance with specific rules, and when the type of performance allows it, the organiser must send TONO a form listing the compositions performed. These provide an overview of the number of times each composition is performed.
This overview forms the basis for royalty payments to the authors, composers and publishers, both in Norway and abroad. Payments are made individually to the proprietors according to a carefully designed system. The system itself is based on international principals determined by CISAC.  

Providing service to all music organisers.

It is easy to get a licence from TONO.

TONO can be reached by phone, or mail or you can drop in at our offices. We give you the licence and inform you of the size of the fee.

We also have travelling representatives who give out information about, and carry out controls of, music performances in Norway.

At the same location as TONO, you will find NCB - The Nordic Copyright Bureau - where licences for recordings (CD, tapes, video, movies, etc) can be obtained.
This makes it easy for you whenever you intend to use music in public.