If you are showing TV programmes or movies in a public space then you need a special license on top of your TV Licence or TV subscription. This applies to shops, restaurants, bars, hotels, clubs, dentist rooms, car showrooms and even semi-public spaces like membership clubs, employee breakrooms or gyms.
MPLC has represented Hollywood studios like Disney, Universal, Paramount, Pixar, Marvel Studios and Dreamworks for over 35 years. These studios, together with hundreds more independent film and TV producers, have appointed MPLC to collect licence revenue from non-theatrical venues – that’s the industry term for places that show movies and TV in public spaces but are not traditional cinemas. MPLC is now the largest non-theatrical TV and movie licensing company in the world.
MPLC was founded in 1985 by a former vice-president of Paramount Pictures and MGM. We now have offices in 28 countries with our headquarters split between the UK and USA. Our UK home is in Eastbourne Sussex, and in the USA we are based, as you might expect, in Los Angeles next to many of the Hollywood studios that we represent.
Nearly 150 people work for MPLC, most of them dedicating their time to explaining to businesses the need to become licensed and then making that affordable, easy and quick.
Copyright law makes a distinction between “private performance” (e.g., home viewing) and “public performance”. Public performance is where a movie or TV programme is shown in a place where members of the public could see it outside of their own home.
This includes bars and restaurants, hotel rooms, offices and car dealerships, dental surgeries, doctor’s waiting rooms, staff areas even community venues and members-only places and clubs. A public performance licence, available here quickly and affordably, buys you the rights to show TV and movie content to your customers, members or staff. The Hollywood and other studios who created the TV and movie programmes get paid from the licence revenue that we collect for them and that supports thousands of jobs and ongoing creativity.
Almost any business or organisation with a TV screen showing movies or TV programmes in a public space will need a licence. It doesn’t matter how you get your programmes – DVD, Blu-ray, download or streaming, broadcast, terrestrial, cable, or satellite television – it is the programme that needs to be licensed rather than the way you get it.
This might be new information for you, but licences are designed to be quick, easy and affordable.
When you buy a licence from MPLC you are ensuring your business is compliant, removing the risk of prosecution and paying your contribution to the production costs of the content you are using.
But don’t worry, licences are very affordable, easy to buy and can be in place immediately.
At MPLC, we’re passionate about supporting the entertainment industry and helping fund great content. Great content is only possible if creators are paid for the content they produce, so we collect royalties on behalf of our rights holders and ensure they are paid for their work.
For over 30 years we have partnered with the world’s most recognised and prestigious Hollywood studios and hundreds of independent producers and content creators worldwide. Together we have deep partnerships and long standing relationships. These studios trust us to collect the royalties they are entitled to and they trust us to behave responsibly and be a respectful guardian for and extension of their brand.
“MPLC has represented Universal Pictures public performance rights for decades. Their licensing and compliance initiatives provide financial support for the premium films and TV series that we produce, and for the jobs that rely on them. Universal Pictures values MPLC as a trusted partner.”
“Discovery enjoys a fantastic working relationship with MPLC. Their license and compliance initiatives provide essential distribution support and help drive revenue growth, allowing us to focus on producing the premium TV series and programming beloved by audiences around the world.”
“MPLC is a long-time, trusted partner that Lionsgate relies upon for audiovisual public performance copyright compliance. Lionsgate's disciplined approach to producing premium content requires that we ensure that all uses of the studio's deep catalogue of intellectual property are properly licensed. MPLC is an important piece of that equation.”
We’re here for you…
MPLC works closely with leading institutions to support intellectual property rights. Along with our partners, we educate organisations about copyright and the importance of compliance.
