Playing music in your business: what you need to know
If you play recorded music for customers or staff in a UK business, there are a few different things to consider.
This guide explains what your venue is responsible for, what your music provider should handle, and why a normal Spotify or Apple Music subscription isn’t designed for business use.
Consumer music services aren’t designed for businesses.
It’s easy to assume that if you pay for Spotify, Apple Music or YouTube Premium, you can use the service wherever you like.
That’s not how their standard consumer services work.
Spotify states that its service is for personal, non commercial use and cannot be played publicly from a business such as a shop, restaurant, salon or other commercial venue.
So having a paid consumer subscription doesn’t automatically give a business the rights it needs to use that service as its in venue music.
There are two things to think about
If you play recorded music for customers or employees in your business, you will generally need TheMusicLicence from PPL PRS.
It applies to music played through sources such as radio, TV and digital devices, with the exact requirements and cost depending on the business and how the music is used.
Your venue is responsible for this licence.
Your music provider also needs the appropriate rights to provide the music commercially.
This is where Vorai comes in.
We handle the relevant recording and publishing rights for the music we provide through the Vorai service.
The result is a simple division of responsibility:
Vorai handles the music service and the rights included with it.
Your venue handles the local public-performance licence required for your premises.
Not sure what applies to your business? We can help explain which part sits where.
Radio is an option, but you have less control.
Traditional radio may provide a legal way to play music in a business when the relevant licensing requirements are met.
The downside is that you don’t control what comes next.
You can’t choose every song.
You can’t control the atmosphere throughout the day.
And you can’t decide when your own business should speak to customers.
With Vorai, the audio is built around your venue.
Music for your venue, with your promotions in between.
Vorai Studio gives you a managed music stream programmed around your business and the atmosphere you want.
You can also use the same stream for your own short promotional announcements.
For example:
New service?
Special offer?
Seasonal promotion?
Upcoming event?
We can create a short 15 to 30 second announcement and schedule it between the music.
Your customers hear it while they’re already in your venue without your staff having to stop what they’re doing to pitch the offer.
No new sound system. No complicated installation.
Vorai works through the sound system you already have.
We provide a secure player link.
You open it on a phone, tablet or computer connected to your audio system and press play.
We take care of the audio from there.
Music for your venue, with your promotions in between.
Music programming
We select and programme music around your venue and the atmosphere you want.
Commercial music rights
We handle the relevant recording and publishing rights for the music supplied through our service.
Promotional audio
We write, record and prepare your short promotional announcements.
Scheduling & management
We manage the stream and agreed content updates for you.
Local public performance licensing
You remain responsible for any public performance licence required for your premises, such as TheMusicLicence in the UK.
We’ve recorded sample 15 second dealership promos paired with licensed showroom tracks so you can hear the transition in real time.
This is what it sounds like.
Listen to a sample of music programmed for a venue, followed by a short promotional announcement.
We’ll create a custom example.
Tell us about your venue and, where appropriate, one of your current offers or services.
We’ll create a short example showing how your business could sound through a Vorai stream.
Or E-Mail us directly:
Want to learn more about how Vorai Studio manages in store music networks for brands?
For the most up to date information about UK music licensing, see:
GOV.UK: Licence to play live or recorded music
PPL PRS: TheMusicLicence
Spotify: Public or commercial use
Vorai Studio’s guide is intended as general information, not legal advice.
Licensing requirements can vary depending on the venue, activity and how music is used.
