F.A.Q.

First, for the richness of its repertoire: a global repertoire of more than 80 million works of all genres. Thanks to Sacem Luxembourg, you can create your own completely personalized and varied musical ambiance, unlike the pre-established playlists of so-called "royalty-free" music providers.

The organizer of a show must request the necessary authorization before the performance and pay the royalties. Similarly, it is the manager of the store or café that plays music (via radio, television, CD player, digital music player, computer, Internet, etc.) who must pay the royalties.

Copyright protects original literary and artistic works of any kind, form or expression, including photographs, databases, and computer programs.

• The author has property rights which allow him to exploit his work and earn income from it.
• The author alone has the right to initially disclose his work.
• The author enjoys the exclusive right to authorize the reproduction and public communication of his work.

The terms "artistic and literary works" are used for all original intellectual creations in the fields of literature, science, theater, music, cinema, visual arts, architecture, photography, databases and computer programs.

Copyright continues for 70 years after the author's death for the benefit of his heirs and beneficiaries.

No, because the author enjoys the exclusive right to authorize the reproduction of their work. This includes the exclusive right to authorize the adaptation, arrangement, or translation of their work.

The author also holds the moral right to oppose any distortion, mutilation, or other modification of their work that could harm their honor or reputation.

Therefore, any reproduction of the work must be authorized by the author.

No, because the author of a work has the exclusive right to authorize its communication to the public by any means, including transmission by wire or wireless, by broadcasting, satellite, cable, or network.

Therefore, any public communication of a work must be authorized by the author.

Any violation of the provisions of the law, including the refusal to pay copyright fees, exposes the responsible party to civil actions as provided in Articles 72 to 81, and potentially to criminal penalties as provided in Articles 82 to 87 of the Law of April 18, 2001 on Copyright, published in Memorial A-No. 50 of April 30, 2001.

In order to ensure mutual protection of copyright, authors' societies from different countries have entered into reciprocal agreements that allow them to manage the international repertoire within their respective territories.

Likewise, authors, composers, and publishers, both Luxembourgish and foreign, enjoy in Luxembourg the rights guaranteed by law, provided that the duration of those rights does not exceed the term established by the law.

Today, creators of musical works cannot assert their rights everywhere their works are used (balls, concerts, cinemas, nightclubs, variety shows, stores, cafes, businesses, etc.), due to the growing development of music distribution methods (radio, television, musicians, music websites on the internet, etc.).
It is thus difficult for an event organizer or for a background music broadcaster to individually request authorization from the creators to broadcast or have their works performed, due to the numerous rights holders (lyricist, composer, adapter, arranger, publisher, etc.).
To avoid these difficulties, music creators have formed collective management organizations worldwide (e.g., SACEM in France, GEMA in Germany, SABAM in Belgium, SPA in Portugal). These organizations have mandated SACEM Luxembourg to represent the works of creators worldwide under reciprocal agreements between authors' societies across the globe.

Music or songs whose economic rights have expired are in the public domain, which occurs 70 years after the death of the original author-composer of the work. For the public broadcasting of these works, you do not need authorization from SACEM. Therefore, no copyright fees are due.

To ensure that the music you have selected for your telephone on-hold system falls within the public domain, and to avoid any risk of unauthorized broadcasting, please consult us.

For the use of music or a song whose copyright holders are not members of SACEM or any foreign authors' society, you do not need SACEM's authorization, and therefore no copyright fees are payable to it.

To ensure that the music you have selected for your telephone on-hold system does not belong to SACEM's repertoire or to that of the foreign authors' societies it represents in France, and to avoid any risk of unauthorized broadcasting, please consult us.

Yes, making sure that this certificate — issued by your telephone installer or sound system provider — clearly states the names of the authors and composers of these works.

Your company paid this composer to create a work for which they grant you exclusive usage rights. However, if the composer is a member of SACEM or of a foreign authors' society represented by SACEM, the payment you made for the commission should not be confused with the royalties they receive as a composer for the reproduction and public performance of their work.

Therefore, the fee you pay the composer for the commissioned work is in addition to the royalties collected by SACEM.

SACEM has signed representation agreements with around a hundred foreign authors' societies. It is authorized to manage the broadcasting of foreign repertoires within French territory. The royalties collected are then transferred to the corresponding foreign authors' societies.

If the author and/or composer is registered with an authors' society, you are required to pay royalties even if the work in question is not yet listed in the CATEL repertoire.

Vous pouvez vous renseigner auprès de votre installateur téléphonique ou encore auprès de votre opérateur de télécommunications.

All lines connected to the on-hold system must be taken into account, whether they are digital or analog. Similarly, each mobile phone with the company’s hold music feature counts as a telephone on-hold line.

Whether the music played on your telephone hold comes from a radio, a CD, or any other source, royalties must be paid to SACEM in the same way.

Since SACEM is not a commercial company, it does not make a profit. After deducting administrative costs, 84.9% of the amounts collected are redistributed to French and foreign copyright holders whose works are used.

If you use a protected work as your hold music without the author's authorization, you are legally committing an act of infringement. SACEM is then entitled to take legal action.

Musical works are created by an author or a composer, who holds property rights over their creations. SACEM Luxembourg, a non-profit civil society, is mandated by authors, composers, and music publishers to grant you the authorization to use their works publicly. It collects royalties and distributes them to the creators of the works that are played. These royalties represent the income that compensates authors for their work.