Music on hold
Encyclopedia
Music on hold is the business practice of playing recorded music
to fill the silence that would be heard by telephone
callers who have been placed on hold
. It is especially common in situations involving customer service
.
Music on hold is sometimes referred to as phone on hold, message on hold, on hold messaging, etc.
on the telephone
equipment labeled "MOH". There are also some units with built in message on hold capabilities and units designed for small businesses without an extensive phone system.
Music and messages on hold are played using either physical or virtual media.
Today, equipment that supports physical media usually plays CDs. Some older systems may still use cassette tapes (sometimes employing endless-loops), or reel-to-reel
tape players. In each case, the unit loads the media into a digital memory chip to prevent premature wearing of the mechanical parts.
Equipment that supports virtual media generally plays MP3
files. Several types of units play these files. USB Flash Drive
units allow an MP3 file to be received electronically, downloaded to a flash drive and connected to the player. Ethernet based remote load units connect via the network to a remote IP address. Phone line based remote load systems allow for a connection via an analog telephone line and dialing the number belonging to the unit. For VoIP phone systems, MP3s are loaded without any equipment.
Newer technology allows MP3 files to be downloaded automatically from the internet so that messages (or interesting content in the form of news and weather, amongst many) can be changed daily. The new "Online On Hold" technology makes the older technology redundant since it requires no additional hardware. All these systems allow analog-to-digital audio storage and playback.
The newest units as of 2011 allow productions to be downloaded via the Internet or played through a USB flash drive. This allows for larger files and higher quality formats.
through the MOH jack. This may be unlawful without the express permission of the music title and mechanical copyright holders.
Owners of radio stations usually play their radio as music on hold; the main program if there are several. Examples include RÚV
from Iceland
using Rás 1
as the on-hold music.
s with messages such as "Your call is important" or "Please stay on the line". Such off-the-shelf recordings may be generic or may be specific to individual industries, but will not be customized for individual companies.
CDs (or other MOH formats, such as MP3 files) can be custom-created to suit the particular needs of a business. The announcements can be scripted to emphasize particular attributes of the business such as location, store hours, or special promotions or services. These are typically used for up-selling and cross-selling callers.
. A western apparel store may choose to play country music
. A Christian book store may choose to play popular Christian music
. A university may choose to play classical music. Light classics, smooth jazz
, and beautiful music
are common choices, as is fully synthesized
melodic music.
With the application of newer equipment, Music on Hold devices can now actually interact with the caller. No additional programs are required on the platform, as all the logic is done with the MoH device. This can include services such as 'Polling on Hold', rating your customer service officer anonymously, etc.
." Use of any said music prior to the creation of these copyright laws may be presumed to be free for use by all - although individual titles may have been later copyrighted through a change in the composition or arrangement. The use of copyrighted music is not for free use in the public domain.
All music written after this period, which is copyrighted under multiple acts of congress, are owned by the author(s) or their assignees. The use of this music is protected and controlled in order that the owner may derive usage income. Specific to telephonic MOH (music-on-hold), the US laws currently protect the copyright owners from unlawful, unpermitted use of their music titles in over-the-phone broadcast. Any person or business wishing to use current, popular, post 1900-1910, copyrighted music for MOH purposes may only lawfully do so by obtaining permission from the owner. Currently, performance rights societies such as ASCAP, BMI and SESAC will sell blanket permission to use music titles in their catalog for MOH purposes—for an express annual fee - calculated by size and frequency of usage. Failure to obtain this paid permission is a violation of US copyright laws.
This same copyright protection is also true in the rebroadcast of any radio program. As mentioned earlier, the broadcaster has been assigned a narrow and specific usage license to air copyrighted song titles. This does not include permission to any person or business to re-broadcast that program on telephonic MOH. The broadcaster may not promote such unlawful use and is not an owner who has any lawful right to grant MOH usage permission. They do not hold the ownership of the title and have no right to license use in any way. Those who plug radio broadcast into their telephone MOH without first obtaining paid permission through the owner's agents (ASCAP, BMI or SESAC) are stealing unlawful use and may be prosecuted under existing federal laws.
For most of the 20th century, music was recorded in studios, produced by record company executives, producers, arrangers and engineers who were hired to deliver the artist's finished recordings for mastering and duplication - for sale on the varied media: 78, 45 and 33 RPM vinyl, reel-to-reel, 8-track tape, cassette and compact disk. To protect their investment, the record companies (or their 21st century production equivalent) obtain a mechanical copyright in order to protect and control the recording with which they derive usage and sales income. (For those still uncertain of the difference between "song title" and "mechanical" copyrights, consider the Capitol Records lawsuit for copyright infringement against Nike some 20 years ago. Nike legally obtained permission to use the Beatles song title "Revolution" from the title's owner, Michael Jackson. They used the Capitol Records owned recording of the Beatles' performance, but failed to obtain and pay for permission and use. Capitol Records sued and prevailed because Nike ONLY had a license to use the title and did not have a license to use the mechanical recording.)
Therefore, persons or businesses wishing to play music that falls "in the public domain" are still legally required to obtain permission to use the mechanical recording of this music, from the mechanical copyright holder. And where the use is of copyrighted music, the same applies. In all cases, before a song title may be broadcast on a telephone MOH, said use must be approved and licensed from BOTH the "song title" copyright owner (if it is NOT in public domain) and the "mechanical" copyright owner.
are both aggressive about this, from time to time. It is not known whether any record companies are currently or actively monitoring and prosecuting violators of their mechanical license. Be advised that their current disinterest or inactivity regarding protection of their rights should not be misunderstood as permission to infringe on their mechanical copyrights.
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
to fill the silence that would be heard by telephone
Telephone
The telephone , colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that transmits and receives sounds, usually the human voice. Telephones are a point-to-point communication system whose most basic function is to allow two people separated by large distances to talk to each other...
callers who have been placed on hold
Hold (telephone)
In telephony, a call may be placed on hold, in which case the connection is not terminated but no verbal communication is possible until the call is removed from hold by the same or another extension on the key telephone system. Music on hold or On Hold Messaging may be played for the caller while...
. It is especially common in situations involving customer service
Customer service
Customer service is the provision of service to customers before, during and after a purchase.According to Turban et al. , “Customer service is a series of activities designed to enhance the level of customer satisfaction – that is, the feeling that a product or service has met the customer...
.
Music on hold is sometimes referred to as phone on hold, message on hold, on hold messaging, etc.
Equipment and formats
Most MOH systems are integrated into a telephone system designed for businesses via an audio jackJack (connector)
In electronics and electrical assemblies, the term jack commonly refers to a surface-mounted connector, often, but not always, with the female electrical contact or socket, and is the "more fixed" connector of a connector pair...
on the telephone
Telephone
The telephone , colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that transmits and receives sounds, usually the human voice. Telephones are a point-to-point communication system whose most basic function is to allow two people separated by large distances to talk to each other...
equipment labeled "MOH". There are also some units with built in message on hold capabilities and units designed for small businesses without an extensive phone system.
Music and messages on hold are played using either physical or virtual media.
Today, equipment that supports physical media usually plays CDs. Some older systems may still use cassette tapes (sometimes employing endless-loops), or reel-to-reel
Reel-to-reel audio tape recording
Reel-to-reel, open reel tape recording is the form of magnetic tape audio recording in which the recording medium is held on a reel, rather than being securely contained within a cassette....
tape players. In each case, the unit loads the media into a digital memory chip to prevent premature wearing of the mechanical parts.
Equipment that supports virtual media generally plays MP3
MP3
MPEG-1 or MPEG-2 Audio Layer III, more commonly referred to as MP3, is a patented digital audio encoding format using a form of lossy data compression...
files. Several types of units play these files. USB Flash Drive
USB flash drive
A flash drive is a data storage device that consists of flash memory with an integrated Universal Serial Bus interface. flash drives are typically removable and rewritable, and physically much smaller than a floppy disk. Most weigh less than 30 g...
units allow an MP3 file to be received electronically, downloaded to a flash drive and connected to the player. Ethernet based remote load units connect via the network to a remote IP address. Phone line based remote load systems allow for a connection via an analog telephone line and dialing the number belonging to the unit. For VoIP phone systems, MP3s are loaded without any equipment.
Newer technology allows MP3 files to be downloaded automatically from the internet so that messages (or interesting content in the form of news and weather, amongst many) can be changed daily. The new "Online On Hold" technology makes the older technology redundant since it requires no additional hardware. All these systems allow analog-to-digital audio storage and playback.
The newest units as of 2011 allow productions to be downloaded via the Internet or played through a USB flash drive. This allows for larger files and higher quality formats.
Radio
The musical source may be as simple as playing a local radio stationRadio station
Radio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
through the MOH jack. This may be unlawful without the express permission of the music title and mechanical copyright holders.
- Although radio stations may provide the desired musical format, there is no control over the specific songs that are played, some of which may be offensive to the callers, or depending on the music played, sound harsh in monauralMonauralMonaural or monophonic sound reproduction is single-channel. Typically there is only one microphone, one loudspeaker, or channels are fed from a common signal path...
sound. This kind of system is also vulnerable to interference. - Radio stations typically do not licenseLicenseThe verb license or grant licence means to give permission. The noun license or licence refers to that permission as well as to the document recording that permission.A license may be granted by a party to another party as an element of an agreement...
their music for MOH systems. In the United States, the radio broadcaster has no legal right to provide such a license as they, themselves, obtain a usage license from the music title owner for the right to broadcast said music for limited and personal use. As mentioned below, re-broadcasting of a radio program over a phone system may likely cause licensing and copyrightCopyrightCopyright is a legal concept, enacted by most governments, giving the creator of an original work exclusive rights to it, usually for a limited time...
problems for the owner of the MOH system. - Radio stations will play commercialsAdvertisingAdvertising is a form of communication used to persuade an audience to take some action with respect to products, ideas, or services. Most commonly, the desired result is to drive consumer behavior with respect to a commercial offering, although political and ideological advertising is also common...
, which may be offensive or at least annoying to the caller. Furthermore, it is possible that a competitor'sCompetitionCompetition is a contest between individuals, groups, animals, etc. for territory, a niche, or a location of resources. It arises whenever two and only two strive for a goal which cannot be shared. Competition occurs naturally between living organisms which co-exist in the same environment. For...
commercial may be played, which would be counter-productive.
- See Music on hold (copyright).
Owners of radio stations usually play their radio as music on hold; the main program if there are several. Examples include RÚV
RÚV
Ríkisútvarpið is Iceland's national public-service broadcasting organization.Operating from studios in the country's capital, Reykjavík, as well as regional centres around the country, the service broadcasts a variety of general programming to a wide audience across the whole country via radio...
from Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
using Rás 1
Rás 1
Rás 1 is an Icelandic radio station belonging to and operated by Ríkisútvarpið , Iceland's national broadcasting service. Rás 1 carries primarily news, weather, current affairs coverage, and cultural programming dealing with the arts, history, the Icelandic language, literature, and social and...
as the on-hold music.
Off-the-shelf commercial CDs
Commercial CDs eliminate the problems encountered with radio commercials, and they offer control over the selection of music; they do not, however, grant proper license for MOH use unless users first obtain permission from the song title copyright owner (when the song is not in the "public domain") and the mechanical copyright owner. (See RADIO, above, for more details.)Stock MOH CDs (with or without voice-overs)
CDs are available that have been specifically recorded and licensed for MOH systems. These may contain only music, or may include periodic voice-overVoice-over
Voice-over is a production technique where a voice which is not part of the narrative is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, theatre, or other presentations...
s with messages such as "Your call is important" or "Please stay on the line". Such off-the-shelf recordings may be generic or may be specific to individual industries, but will not be customized for individual companies.
Custom-designed MOH
In general, custom music on hold is advised to:- Control content
- Control music genre
- Use the on hold time to sell to a captive audience
- Through a reputable on hold company be fully licensed and legal for on hold playback
- Reduce hang-ups and make the business look more professional
- Control length of programming based on average caller holdtime
CDs (or other MOH formats, such as MP3 files) can be custom-created to suit the particular needs of a business. The announcements can be scripted to emphasize particular attributes of the business such as location, store hours, or special promotions or services. These are typically used for up-selling and cross-selling callers.
Online On Hold
A program loaded onto an existing computer and connected to the phone system can allow automatic content updates interspersed with company information.Styles of music
The style of music played by MOH systems depends largely on the type of business offering the service. It is generally best to present music that will not be offensive to the audience, but that would also be of particular interest to the typical caller. For example, Express for Men usually plays Alternative rockAlternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
. A western apparel store may choose to play country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
. A Christian book store may choose to play popular Christian music
Christian music
Christian music is music that has been written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life and faith. Common themes of Christian music include praise, worship, penitence, and lament, and its forms vary widely across the world....
. A university may choose to play classical music. Light classics, smooth jazz
Smooth jazz
Smooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles ....
, and beautiful music
Beautiful music
Beautiful music is a mostly instrumental music format that was prominent in American radio from the 1960s through the 1980s...
are common choices, as is fully synthesized
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
melodic music.
Recent trends
GoDaddy.com's phone support gives the user the option of holding without music. "If you would prefer to hold without music, press the pound key now."With the application of newer equipment, Music on Hold devices can now actually interact with the caller. No additional programs are required on the platform, as all the logic is done with the MoH device. This can include services such as 'Polling on Hold', rating your customer service officer anonymously, etc.
Copyright Law
In the US, and other countries where copyright laws are practiced, authors are granted copyright protection on their musical compositions. Such copyright protection has existed since just after the turn of the 20th century and most music written prior to 1900-1910 - from impressionism back to baroque and antiquity are said to be "in the public domainPublic domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
." Use of any said music prior to the creation of these copyright laws may be presumed to be free for use by all - although individual titles may have been later copyrighted through a change in the composition or arrangement. The use of copyrighted music is not for free use in the public domain.
All music written after this period, which is copyrighted under multiple acts of congress, are owned by the author(s) or their assignees. The use of this music is protected and controlled in order that the owner may derive usage income. Specific to telephonic MOH (music-on-hold), the US laws currently protect the copyright owners from unlawful, unpermitted use of their music titles in over-the-phone broadcast. Any person or business wishing to use current, popular, post 1900-1910, copyrighted music for MOH purposes may only lawfully do so by obtaining permission from the owner. Currently, performance rights societies such as ASCAP, BMI and SESAC will sell blanket permission to use music titles in their catalog for MOH purposes—for an express annual fee - calculated by size and frequency of usage. Failure to obtain this paid permission is a violation of US copyright laws.
This same copyright protection is also true in the rebroadcast of any radio program. As mentioned earlier, the broadcaster has been assigned a narrow and specific usage license to air copyrighted song titles. This does not include permission to any person or business to re-broadcast that program on telephonic MOH. The broadcaster may not promote such unlawful use and is not an owner who has any lawful right to grant MOH usage permission. They do not hold the ownership of the title and have no right to license use in any way. Those who plug radio broadcast into their telephone MOH without first obtaining paid permission through the owner's agents (ASCAP, BMI or SESAC) are stealing unlawful use and may be prosecuted under existing federal laws.
Mechanical Copyright
Unbeknownst to most people, a second copyright exists when it comes to licensing use for telephonic MOH. A piece of music, as mentioned above, is copyrighted and may be licensed for use as a music title and is understood to be a combination of melody, harmony and, where applicable, lyrics. However, neither radio listeners nor MOH listeners could hear this music unless it was recorded - providing a delivery medium whereby the "music" becomes a "performance." As mentioned elsewhere, in countries such as the US, where said copyright laws are enforced, nearly every recording of a song title holds its own "mechanical copyright."For most of the 20th century, music was recorded in studios, produced by record company executives, producers, arrangers and engineers who were hired to deliver the artist's finished recordings for mastering and duplication - for sale on the varied media: 78, 45 and 33 RPM vinyl, reel-to-reel, 8-track tape, cassette and compact disk. To protect their investment, the record companies (or their 21st century production equivalent) obtain a mechanical copyright in order to protect and control the recording with which they derive usage and sales income. (For those still uncertain of the difference between "song title" and "mechanical" copyrights, consider the Capitol Records lawsuit for copyright infringement against Nike some 20 years ago. Nike legally obtained permission to use the Beatles song title "Revolution" from the title's owner, Michael Jackson. They used the Capitol Records owned recording of the Beatles' performance, but failed to obtain and pay for permission and use. Capitol Records sued and prevailed because Nike ONLY had a license to use the title and did not have a license to use the mechanical recording.)
Therefore, persons or businesses wishing to play music that falls "in the public domain" are still legally required to obtain permission to use the mechanical recording of this music, from the mechanical copyright holder. And where the use is of copyrighted music, the same applies. In all cases, before a song title may be broadcast on a telephone MOH, said use must be approved and licensed from BOTH the "song title" copyright owner (if it is NOT in public domain) and the "mechanical" copyright owner.
Enforcement
It is generally known within the on-hold industry that some performance rights societies, with regional offices and staff, both monitor and prosecute persons and businesses that infringe on the copyright of title holders in their libraries. ASCAP and BMIBroadcast Music Incorporated
Broadcast Music, Inc. is one of three United States performing rights organizations, along with ASCAP and SESAC. It collects license fees on behalf of songwriters, composers, and music publishers and distributes them as royalties to those members whose works have been performed...
are both aggressive about this, from time to time. It is not known whether any record companies are currently or actively monitoring and prosecuting violators of their mechanical license. Be advised that their current disinterest or inactivity regarding protection of their rights should not be misunderstood as permission to infringe on their mechanical copyrights.