German Music Venues and Clubs Face Big Royalties Collection Increase

摘要

German clubs and music venues face being forced out of business over increased tariffs set to be imposed on January 1 by one of Germany's biggest royalties collection agencies - Gema, which represents around 65,000 artists in Europe's biggest economy, plans to introduce a fee system based on the size of the venue as well as a percentage of the ticket prices. "Anyone who wants to play music [in a club] has to have a contract with Gema," Lutz Leichsenring, spokesman at the Club Commission, which represents more than 120 clubs in Berlin, told BNA.