15 replies to this topic

[kurtcobain]

I noticed that a lot of guitar tab sites are closing down Like guitar masta because of legal issues. but why is ultimate-guitar still not taking any heat? Im just curious.

Edited by kurtcobain, 25 July 2007 - 03:25 PM.

[Thom]

Maybe they have better lawyers.

[WratH]

I heard something about Ultimate-Guitar having something to do with Russia, hence why they're the only site who supplies guitar pro tabs any longer. It's a great site and I suggest you support it.

[wintermute]

They are based in Russia, and they also pay royalties to the publishers.

Edited by wintermute, 27 July 2007 - 02:28 PM.

[Evil]

Not to be too offensive, but Kurt Cobain was a depressed 17 year-old pussy stuck in a 25 year old's body; his brand of self-pity pre-dates emo by some 15 years. Now that thats out of the way... I have no idea what happened to the guitar tablature sources that were all over the web a few years back. I share in your pain.

[Torque]

mxtabs which has a massive database was also shut down due to legal issues i believe, but recently they switched owners and it is scheduled to come back with summer so keep an eye on that if you're desperate.

[nerfsharpie6]

Well after the recording artists found new ways to make money, they go after anything that involves their music or anything that involves them. Because of this the artists are upset because they have received no loyalties from the tab sites, so they in turn sue the tab sites for copyright issues and have them take the site off the net. So its the artists fault not the tab sites although some instances have been seen where the tabs are illegal and haven't been used properly or what-ever. I know tablaunch.com is still up, as is 911 tabs, ultimate guitar, and a few others. It'll be a sad day when I can no longer play guitar because of this (I suck at guitar anyway so what-ever). Thats my 2 cents.

[Thom]

Not quite. The owner of the tab rights is not the artist but the songwriter. The RIAA et al, generally speaking, go after suspected violations of recording copyrights. It is often the case that an artist is licensing a song (covers and classics being the most common examples), in which case the artist has neither grounds nor standing to sue a tab site.

A tab site is legal under United States law if it has permission from the songs' copyright-holders for all of the tabs (which usually entails paying royalties), or if it pays the government-set royalties (whether the copyright holders approve or not). Russian law, if I recall, does not differ significantly in this regard* except that a) the government-set royalties are lower and b) the copyright holders never collect their royalties for fear of tacitly condoning the Russian laws.

* Russia, unlike the U.S., also has cheap mandatory licensing for recordings (cf AllOfMP3), but that is different from licensing for the songs themselves.

[nerfsharpie6]

Thom thats the point I was trying to make, but you put it so much better than I did. But if tab sites pay the gov't set royalties, then why are tab sites still going down like Paris Hilton on a Saturday night? If the songwriter never intended to have his/her song on the internet then why are they just standing by as they [the tab sites] get away with posting the tab in the first place because of said gov't mandated royalties.

[Thom]

For the most part, the tab sites are not paying royalties. Songwriters don't have an association like the RIAA that can sue everyone in sight, and the effect of the tab sites on their business is negligible. In the past few years, copyright lawsuits have been increasingly common; doubtless the songwriters just want their piece of the pie.

[Carbon]

Songwriters don't have an association like the RIAA that can sue everyone in sight

ASCAP
BMI

[Thom]

True, but those organizations are not nearly as large or powerful as the RIAA.

[Carbon]

True, but those organizations are not nearly as large or powerful as the RIAA.

Powerful enough to be the reason why tab sites (and by extension, lyric sites) are disappearing from the web. Tab sites aren't going away because of the RIAA - their concern is with recorded music. ASCAP/BMI is the associations for music publishers and songwriters. Sites that provide tab along with ads (even if it['s only to pay bandwidth costs) are "earning revenue" from copyrighted work, which is why they're being cease-and-desisted.

And considering large and powerful organizations, consider this: any bar or venue which has a jukebox or hosts cover bands has to pay licensing fees to ASCAP/BMI, or risk legal action. Yes, they send people out to check.

Edited by Carbon, 26 July 2007 - 11:28 PM.

[Rambo]

Not that it's a tab site, but Encyclopedia Metallum links to tab sites on artist pages. The only guitar you should be looking for is metal anyway .

[kurtcobain]

Not to be too offensive, but Kurt Cobain was a depressed 17 year-old pussy stuck in a 25 year old's body; his brand of self-pity pre-dates emo by some 15 years.

None taken.

[nerfsharpie6]

RAMBO: That site owns all other metal related sites. It kicks ass, but the guitar tab sites didn't have most of the tabs.