Perhaps you have never thought that, at any time, anyone in the world could use your work without your consent and change, manipulate or exploit it inappropriately.
Thanks to SIAE this does not happen. For over 130 years, SIAE has been protecting the authors of a work and all the right holders, always ensuring equitable remuneration and compliance with the conditions for work exploitation.
The Music Division manages the rights on musical works, with or without lyrics, both of classical or pop genre. The Opera and DOR Sections manage operas, ballets, oratories, operettas, revues, etc.: in these cases, the Music Division only protects excerpts “pieces torn away” from the full version of the dramatic-musical works.
The Music division manages the public performance rights of the works, including film and radio/TV broadcast rights and mechanical reproduction rights. The division does not manage other rights, such as print rights of musical works and/or their texts and, in general, synchronization rights.
The Music Division also manages the works of its members internationally through mutual representation agreements signed with almost all foreign Sister Societies.
The Films and Audiovisuals Department manages the rights related to cinematographic works or equivalent (as TV movies, series and miniseries, soap operas, situation comedies, TV documentaries and animated series etc.) granted to the authors of the script, of the the screenplay and to directors, as well as to the authors of translation and of the Italian dialogue of works originally created in a foreign language.
Protection includes, in particular, managing the equitable remuneration provided by law and negotiated and administered by SIAE on behalf of the authors. So far, several agreements are into force with important users both in the field of free national television broadcasting (RAI, Mediaset, La7 and other operators), and in the pay TV sector. An equitable remuneration is also collected for the works published for home entertainment and distributed through normal trade and news-stand channels, as well as for audiovisual works made available online by Digital Service Providers.
The Films and Audiovisuals Department manages the distribution of the authors’ share for private copy (video), in favor of authors of works belonging to the administered repertoire. The Department also collects and distributes to the rightholders the royalties arising from exploitation of Italian cinematographic and audiovisual works in foreign countries, through mutual representation agreements with the local collecting societies.
The Dramatic and Radio/TV Broadcasting Works Section protects prose theatre works (such as dramatic works, works for children, puppet shows, cabaret, circus theatre) and musical theatre works such as operettas, musicals, musical comedies, including those created specifically for the radio, the television or other similar broadcasting means, but excluding works of fiction and equivalent works.
The author’s right arising from public performance, radio or TV broadcasting, audio and video reproduction, by any means or distribution system is protected.
In general, the Dramatic and Radio/TV Broadcasting Works Section offers to authors members:
The Dramatic and Radio/TV Broadcasting Works Section protects prose and musical theatre works, including those created specifically for the radio, the television or other similar means of distribution.
In relation to the above works, the Section protects the rights arising from public performance, radio and television broadcasting and audio and video reproduction, made by any means or distribution system.
SIAE authorisation is required in order to use the works protected and managed by the Section. Fraudulent use of the works constitutes a criminal offence (Author's Right Law no. 633/1941) In general, the Section offers to authors members:
The Opera and Ballet Section protects works for musical theatre and works of dance, such as operas, oratories, ballets, choreographies and pantome works.
The author’s right arising from public performance, radio or TV broadcasting, audio and video reproduction, by any means or distribution system is protected.
At the request of the right holders, the Opera Section may also collect the rights arising from the rental of musical material (such as, parts of the orchestra) and the critical editions of works that have entered into the public domain. In general, the Opera Section offers to authors members:
The Section manages the rights relating to literary works (including their translations) and visual art works (painting, sculpture, graphics, photography, computer art).
As regards visual art works, SIAE protects the right of reproduction on books, catalogues, magazines, posters, postcards, various objects and materials, video tapes, CD-ROM and television and Internet broadcasting rights. As regards literary works, SIAE manages the rights related to both public performance and mechanical reproduction (on disc, video tape, CD-ROM, etc...) and radio, TV and Internet broadcasting.
The Section manages the collection and the distribution of the royalties payable by users (copy centres, photocopy shops, libraries, etc...) for the reproduction of works through photocopy apparatus. The Section collects and distributes the royalties arising from the sale of original works of the artist, including paintings, collages, pictures, drawings, etchings, prints, lithographs, sculptures, tapestries, ceramics, glass works, photographs, manuscripts and all works considered as original works of art. It also provides for the collection of the Resale Right.
The Visual Arts and Literature Section also keeps the special public record for computer programmes (established pursuant to Legislative Decree 29/12/1992 no. 518) and provides the registration service of unpublished works (such as novels, short stories, poems, scripts, plots, screenplays, audiovisual works, formats, software, databases, etc...). The service is also available for those who are not yet members of the SIAE. Furthermore, at the request of the parties concerned, the SIAE monitors the registration of the works at the Copyright Office in Washington.
