CCLI available in Singapore!
CCLI or Church Copyright Licensing International is the copyright body governing most of Christian songs being produced, used, sung in most churches around the world.
If it is not right to buy a pirated DVD, or copy an entire book for personal/public use, so it is the same for the usage of songs for the worship/services in the churches. You may say, that as long as you do not download the song and put it into your personal iPod or MP3 player, and it should be fine. No, it is not. For all the song that was song in the worship services, unless if we sing it from the song book that is provided for the congregation, in which the copyright and royalty has been duly paid to the songwriter/publisher, we need to pay for the license fee for printing of the song in our booklet, program sheet, or power point presentation or even just to sing it.
Few years back, when I was in charge of the worship department of Bukit Batok Presbyterian Church - Indonesian Congregation, there was a discussion about integrity and whether we did the right thing in singing contemporary songs in the worship and about copyright. As part of my duty, I found CCLI, but during that time, CCLI was not available outside US, Europe, Aussie and NZ. I wrote a personal letter to CCLI and checked with them about this issue, and they said that they can do nothing about it, as much as we could not do nothing about it.
Since April 2008, CCLI has officially allowed churches in Singapore to purchase CCLI license and it is only right, that the proper door is opened, that our churches in Singapore should proceed to register and pay for the license fee which will be channeled back to the songwriter and publisher. If the church choose not to pay the license fee, maybe out of financial reason, there are two options available:
1. For all the worship services and fellowships, no song should be used apart from those available in the hymnals owned by the church.
2. For all the worship services and fellowships, write a specific request to individual singer, songwriter, publisher for their permission to use the songs.
If it is not right to buy a pirated DVD, or copy an entire book for personal/public use, so it is the same for the usage of songs for the worship/services in the churches. You may say, that as long as you do not download the song and put it into your personal iPod or MP3 player, and it should be fine. No, it is not. For all the song that was song in the worship services, unless if we sing it from the song book that is provided for the congregation, in which the copyright and royalty has been duly paid to the songwriter/publisher, we need to pay for the license fee for printing of the song in our booklet, program sheet, or power point presentation or even just to sing it.
Few years back, when I was in charge of the worship department of Bukit Batok Presbyterian Church - Indonesian Congregation, there was a discussion about integrity and whether we did the right thing in singing contemporary songs in the worship and about copyright. As part of my duty, I found CCLI, but during that time, CCLI was not available outside US, Europe, Aussie and NZ. I wrote a personal letter to CCLI and checked with them about this issue, and they said that they can do nothing about it, as much as we could not do nothing about it.
Since April 2008, CCLI has officially allowed churches in Singapore to purchase CCLI license and it is only right, that the proper door is opened, that our churches in Singapore should proceed to register and pay for the license fee which will be channeled back to the songwriter and publisher. If the church choose not to pay the license fee, maybe out of financial reason, there are two options available:
1. For all the worship services and fellowships, no song should be used apart from those available in the hymnals owned by the church.
2. For all the worship services and fellowships, write a specific request to individual singer, songwriter, publisher for their permission to use the songs.
posted by Suhandy Yao Wei Xuan @ 10:45 am
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