SOCAN Tariff 23 — Hotel In‑Room Royalties

Summary#

The Copyright Board published SOCAN Tariff 23 – Hotel and Motel In‑Room Services (2018‑2024). It sets the royalty rates that hotels and motels must pay when they provide in‑room audiovisual or musical services to guests during 2018 to 2024.

What it does#

• Sets royalty rates for in‑room services:
  • 1.25% of the fees guests pay to view audiovisual works other than “mature audience films.”
  • 0.3125% of the fees guests pay to view mature audience films that contain works needing a SOCAN licence.
  • 5.5% of the revenues of any provider of a musical service.
• Requires providers to pay royalties no later than 60 days after the end of each quarter and to send a report with details about fees, titles used, revenues, and identifiers for recordings.
• Gives SOCAN the right to audit a user’s books and records on reasonable notice during normal business hours.
• Charges interest on late payments, calculated daily at a rate equal to 1% above the Bank of Canada Bank Rate; interest does not compound.
• States that all amounts are exclusive of any federal, provincial or other taxes or levies.
• Defines “mature audience film” as an adult-entertainment audiovisual work whose primary component is sexual activity.

Who's affected#

• Hotels and motels that offer in‑room audiovisual services (for example, pay‑per‑view movies) or in‑room musical services.
• Companies that operate or supply those in‑room services.
• SOCAN and the copyright holders it represents (they receive the collected royalties).
• It is not clear from the notice whether very small lodging providers or free in‑room services are treated differently.

Why it matters#

• Businesses that offer in‑room movies or music need to budget for these royalties and keep the required records and reports.
• If payments are late, businesses will face daily interest charges calculated against the Bank of Canada rate.
• Guests could see these costs reflected in service fees or room charges.
• The tariff clarifies how much copyright owners represented by SOCAN will be paid for use of their works in hotel and motel rooms during the stated period.