SOCAN Telephone Music-on-Hold Royalties (2012–2019)

Summary#

The Copyright Board published SOCAN Tariff 15.B – Telephone Music on Hold (2012–2019) on November 8, 2025. It sets the royalties that businesses must pay for playing music to callers on hold for the years 2012 to 2019, and spells out payment, reporting, audit and interest rules.

What it does#

• Sets the basic royalty at $94.51 for one trunk line, plus $2.09 for each additional trunk line.
• Covers the communication to the public by telecommunication of music played to a caller while on hold in an establishment not covered by Tariff 16.
• Defines “trunk line” as the telephone line linking an establishment’s switching equipment to the public telephone system over which music is provided.
• Requires payment and a report of trunk-line counts to be made no later than January 31 of each tariff year.
• Gives SOCAN the right to audit an establishment’s books and records on reasonable notice and during normal business hours to verify payments.
• Says that where royalties are paid under Tariff 16, no fees are payable under Tariff 15 for the same use.
• States that amounts are exclusive of taxes and that late payments incur interest calculated daily at a rate equal to 1% above the Bank of Canada Rate; interest does not compound.

Who's affected#

• Businesses and organizations that played recorded music to callers while on hold in their phone system between 2012 and 2019, and that are not already covered by Tariff 16.
• Smaller operations with a single trunk line and larger operations with many trunk lines will both be affected, because the tariff charges per trunk line.
• SOCAN, as the collecting organization named in the tariff.
• It is clear who is affected when an establishment used music on hold; if that is unclear for a specific case, the tariff text should be consulted.

Why it matters#

• Organizations that used music on hold in 2012–2019 may have a past bill to pay to SOCAN based on the number of trunk lines they used.
• The audit right means businesses could be asked to produce records to confirm what they owe.
• Interest on late payments can increase the total owed.
• Knowing whether an establishment was already paying under Tariff 16 matters, because that avoids duplicate fees.