Got an ASCAP or BMI Letter? A Dental Office Guide

Do not ignore it. Read what it asks for, gather the facts about every source of music and audio in your practice, and talk to a lawyer before you reply if you are unsure. Do not sign or pay anything you do not understand. This guide quotes what ASCAP, BMI, SESAC and GMR publish about their letters, as read from October 10 to 13, 2026.

If your practice uses eleMusic: Don't ignore it. Forward it to us. We aim to send your certificate, the verification link and a response template within 2 business days. That is a target, not a promise. The address is hello@elemusic.fm. The certificate is not a license from any performing rights organization and is not legal advice.

This guide is general information about US law and business music services. It is not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. For advice about your practice, talk to a lawyer.

Why did a PRO write to our practice?

ASCAP, BMI, SESAC and GMR are performing rights organizations, or PROs. Each one licenses the public performance of music by the songwriters, composers and publishers it represents, and each one offers licenses to businesses. ASCAP describes how it first contacts one:

"When we find out about a new business in need of an ASCAP license, we send an introductory letter or e-mail that explains what we do, how an ASCAP license benefits the music community, and the business owner’s legal obligations under US copyright law. We generally follow up with a telephone call to answer any questions and explain how our fees are established."
ASCAP, "Why ASCAP Licenses Bars, Restaurants & Music Venues", answer to "How does ASCAP go about licensing local businesses like bars and restaurants?", read October 10, 2026

A letter sets out that organization's view. Whether your practice needs a license from it, and which one, depends on facts about your office that only you can gather and on law that a lawyer can explain. This guide does not answer that question. It helps you get ready to answer the letter well.

The four are separate organizations, so one practice can hear from more than one of them. GMR's FAQ puts it plainly:

"ASCAP, BMI and SESAC are separate and distinct from Global Music Rights. Therefore, licenses with these other PROs do not grant you authorization to publicly perform the copyrighted music of Global Music Rights’ songwriters, composers, and publishers and vice versa."
Global Music Rights, FAQ, answer to "I already have a license with ASCAP, BMI, and/or SESAC. Do I also need a license with Global Music Rights?", read October 10, 2026

For who each organization is and what it licenses, read ASCAP, BMI, SESAC and GMR for dental offices.

What might a PRO letter ask about?

Letters differ by organization and change over time, so we do not reprint or invent one. What the organizations publish about their own licensing points to the same few questions: what kind of business you are, how music is played, and how big the space or the audience is.

What each organization says it looks at, in its own published words, read October 10, 2026. Fee amounts are left out on purpose.
Organization	What its own material says	Where it says it
ASCAP	"Generally, rates are based on the manner in which music is performed (live, recorded or audio only or audio/visual) and the size of the establishment or potential audience for the music."	Music Licensing FAQs, answer to "How much will it cost to obtain an ASCAP license to perform music?"
ASCAP	Its contact form for businesses that do not see their type listed asks: "Tell us about the type of business you have and how you use music"	General Business licensing page
BMI	Under its retail license, the licensee sends BMI a yearly statement with "(1) trade name, address, phone number and contact name; (2) total Square Footage; (3) whether the Licensed Retail Premises was added or deleted during the contract year and the date of and reason for any additions or deletions; and (4) type of music usage"	Music License for Retail Establishments, section 9(a)
SESAC	On music performed anywhere on a business's premises: "This could include music on televisions, radios, streaming devices as well as any live music, karaoke, DJs, and more."	"Who is responsible for paying music licensing fees?"
GMR	"The relevant factors that formulate your licensing rate depend upon your type of business and how the music is presented to the public."	FAQ, answer to "How much will it cost to obtain a Global Music Rights license?"

The BMI row comes from BMI's license for retail establishments, shown because it prints exactly what BMI asks a licensee to report. We are not saying it is the form for a dental office. Which form or schedule applies, if any, is a question for your lawyer, and so is any fee.

Whatever a letter asks you to do next, whether that is to call, fill in a form, sign an agreement or pay, the answer rests on an accurate account of what plays in your office. That is the next step.

What should we gather before we answer?

Start with a sound inventory: every source of music or audio that patients, visitors or callers can hear. Walk the office once, room by room, then check the phones and the screens. Write down what you find, not what you expect to find.

A sound inventory for a dental practice. Write one line for every source you find.
Source	Where to look	What to write down
Background music	Reception and the waiting room, every operatory and hygiene room, the consult room, hallways, restrooms and the staff room	The device, the app or service, whose account it is, and whether it is a personal or a business account
The phone hold line	Your phone system, or the company that runs it	Whether callers hear music or messages on hold, and who supplies that audio
TVs and screens	The waiting room, ceiling screens in operatories, a children's corner	What plays (cable, satellite, a streaming app, discs, a slideshow with music) and whether the sound is on
Radios	The front desk, the lab, the sterilization area, the staff room	Whether it is a broadcast station or an internet stream, and who can hear it
Staff phones and speakers	Any phone, tablet or Bluetooth speaker playing out loud	Which app, whose account, and in which rooms
Videos and events	Videos on your website or social pages, open houses, community days	The music used and where it came from

Then add the details that make the list useful to you and to your lawyer:

Dates. When each source started, changed or stopped. Put them next to any dates or period the letter names.
Providers and their paperwork. For every service you use: the company, the plan, invoices, its terms of service, and any certificate or license document it gives you, with its own words on what that document covers.
Your space. The square footage, and how many speakers and screens are in each area. ASCAP's FAQ names "the size of the establishment", and BMI's retail form asks for "total Square Footage".
The letter itself. Who sent it, its date, any reference or account number, any date it asks you to respond by, what it asks you to do, and which address it names. With several offices, note which location it is about.
A record of contact. Keep the letter and its envelope or email, and note the date, the caller's name and a call-back number for every call about it. If a call asks for answers you do not have yet, ask for the request in writing.

Mark any personal account clearly on the list. Personal streaming accounts are licensed for personal, non-commercial use, which is why business music services exist. Our guide Can you play Spotify in a dental office? quotes Spotify's own terms. For the waiting room TV and the hold line, read TV, video and hold music in a dental office.

What happens when you forward a letter to eleMusic?

We reply with your certificate and a draft to start from, and we ask what else plays in your office. The reply to the organization stays yours. The steps:

Send us the letter
Email a scan or a clear photo of every page to hello@elemusic.fm and tell us which location it is about. Each location with an active plan or trial has its own certificate. If the email comes from someone without an account, we reply to the owner's address we have on file.
We send the certificate link, a saved copy and a template
Your location's certificate is a public web page. You get three things: its verification link, which anyone can open to see the current status; a copy of that page saved as a PDF, which shows the status on the day it was saved; and a response template. We aim to send them within 2 business days. That is a target, not a promise.
We ask about everything else you play
The certificate covers only audio played through the eleMusic player at the location named on it, during its active periods. So we ask whether anything else plays where patients or the public can hear it: radio, a TV with sound, another streaming service, a phone playlist, music on hold, staff speakers or events. Your sound inventory is the answer.
We check the dates against the letter
The certificate lists the periods your location's plan was active. If the letter asks about a time before your plan started, or after it lapsed, the certificate does not speak for that time, and we tell you so rather than stretch a date.
You read it, make it accurate and decide
The response template is a draft that eleMusic wrote. No lawyer has reviewed it. It is a starting point for a short letter on your own letterhead, in your own name, and it is not legal advice. Read it, change it until every line is true for your office, and have your own lawyer read it before you send it. Whether and how you send it is your decision.

eleMusic does not write to the organization for you and does not act as your lawyer. Section 11.4 of our Terms of Service makes you responsible for your response, "including describing accurately all the audio you play." If a letter says a specific eleMusic track is someone else's work, tell us that too: Section 11.5 covers claims about a track. Where our catalog and the PROs meet, these limits apply:

eleMusic is PRO-free: it never registers its tracks with ASCAP, BMI, SESAC or GMR, so there is no performing rights fee for the music you play through eleMusic. Radio, TV, music on hold and any other music you play still need their own licenses. We cannot control or verify what others register, and we do not promise that no PRO or other person will contact you or make a claim. The certificate describes our catalog and your subscription; it does not determine your practice's legal obligations. The certificate is not a license from any performing rights organization and is not legal advice.

ASCAP, BMI, SESAC and GMR are trademarks of their respective owners. eleMusic is not affiliated with or endorsed by any performing rights organization.

For what the certificate shows line by line, and how its status reads on the day someone checks, see the Original Catalog Certificate.

What should we not do?

Do not ignore it

ASCAP says it generally follows its first letter or email with a telephone call. Decide who in the practice owns the letter, start the sound inventory, and talk to a lawyer if the letter asks for more than you are sure how to give.

Do not sign anything you do not understand

A license agreement is a contract, and a form is a statement in your practice's name. BMI's published retail license shows what a signature means on its form:

"By signing this Agreement, you represent that you have the authority to bind LICENSEE and that you have read, understood and agree to all of the terms and conditions herein."
BMI, Music License for Retail Establishments (form RTL1, LI-2025/DEC), signature block, read October 10, 2026

The same form also renews: "It will continue annually unless cancelled by either LICENSEE or BMI at the end of the first Term or any following one (1) year Term by giving thirty (30) days advance written notice to the other party." Before anyone signs, read how long the agreement runs and how it ends. Before anyone pays an invoice, check which license, which address and which period it is for, and compare it with your sound inventory.

Do not assume one service speaks for every audio source

A music service speaks only for the music it supplies. GMR's FAQ makes the point about background music services that hold its license:

"Most Background Music Service providers will have their own license with Global Music Rights; however, their Global Music Rights license extends only to the music they supply to establishments with no admission, membership or similar charge."
Global Music Rights, FAQ, answer to "If my Background Music Service provider pays for all copyrighted licenses, why would I need a Global Music Rights license as well?", read October 10, 2026

eleMusic does not license its catalog through any PRO, and its certificate states its own limit in its own words: it "does not cover any other music, radio, television, streaming service or on-hold audio." A waiting room TV, a radio in the lab or a playlist on the hold line is a separate source with its own answer.

Do not misstate what you play

Describe every source accurately, including the ones you would rather leave off. If you send an eleMusic certificate, send it as what it is: our Terms say you "must not change it or present it as covering any other music, place or time."

Do not treat any summary as legal advice

This guide, the certificate and our draft response template are not legal advice. Your lawyer can tell you what applies to your practice.

What if the letter says cease and desist?

Do not ignore it, and talk to a lawyer promptly, before you reply, sign or pay anything. A cease-and-desist letter tells a business to stop playing music the organization licenses.

In both court cases below, a letter about a license came first, then more letters and calls, including cease-and-desist notices, and only then a lawsuit. BMI's licensing FAQ, read October 13, 2026, says "Legal action is taken only as a last resort." A federal court in New York described one sequence:

"Between September 2012 and October 2014, BMI sent defendants a total of 48 letters via email, FedEx, and first class mail, initially offering to enter into a license agreement with defendants, and later directing defendants to cease and desist from further public performances of BMI-licensed music."
Broadcast Music, Inc. v. Prana Hospitality, Inc., US District Court for the Southern District of New York, opinion of January 21, 2016, read October 13, 2026

That business, a restaurant and bar in New York City, also got 42 calls and four licensing visits from BMI. The lawsuit was filed on March 17, 2015.

The second case is Broadcast Music, Inc. v. Whiskey Stop Bar and Grill, Inc. (US District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, opinion of March 5, 2024). BMI's letter of October 29, 2021, advised that the bar required a license, and the bar did not respond. Over the next two years, the court wrote, BMI would "call Whiskey Stop Bar and Grill approximately twenty times, send at least five letters to the business, mail a brochure on licensing, and issued multiple cease-and-desist notices." A "final notice of copyright infringement" followed on August 21, 2023, and the lawsuit on September 28, 2023. The bar and its owner did not answer the lawsuit, and the court decided it without hearing from them.

Both cases involved bars or restaurants, not dental offices. What any letter means for your practice is a question for your lawyer; start with the questions in the next section.

What should we ask a lawyer?

You are responsible for licensing any other music or audio you play. Ask your own lawyer if you are unsure. Bring the letter, your sound inventory and your providers' paperwork, and ask:

Based on everything on our list, does our practice need a license from the organization that wrote to us, and from any of the others?
Does any exception in copyright law apply to any source on our list, such as a radio or a TV?
If they sent an agreement or a form, is it the right one for a dental office, what does it commit us to, and for how long?
Does it matter that what we play changed during the period the letter asks about?
Should we reply ourselves or through you, and what should we say if they call?
For each music service we use, what does its paperwork actually cover, and what should we send to show it?

For the wider picture before that conversation, read Do dental offices need a music license?

Common questions about PRO letters

Is a letter from ASCAP or BMI real, or a scam?

It can be real. ASCAP, BMI, SESAC and GMR are real organizations, and ASCAP says it sends "an introductory letter or e-mail" to businesses it finds. We cannot judge a letter we have not seen, so to confirm one is genuine, contact the organization through the details on its own website, not only the ones printed in the letter.

We use eleMusic. Can we still get a letter?

Yes. We cannot control or verify what others register, and we do not promise that no PRO or other person will contact you or make a claim. A letter may also be about audio the certificate does not cover, such as a TV, a radio or the hold line. If one arrives, forward it to us and start your sound inventory.

Does eleMusic answer the letter for us?

No. We send your certificate's verification link, a saved copy of the certificate and a draft response template that no lawyer has reviewed, and we ask about any other audio you play. The reply is yours to make, in your own name.

What if the letter names a specific song?

If it says a track played through eleMusic is someone else's work, tell us: Section 11.5 of our Terms explains what we do about a claim about a track. If the song came from another source, such as a radio or a streaming app, it is outside eleMusic, so take it to your lawyer with your sound inventory.

The letter is about a time before we started eleMusic. Does the certificate help?

Not for that time. The certificate speaks only for the periods your location's plan was active. In the words of our Terms, it "applies only to Content played through the Player at the Location named on it, during those periods."

Sources

ASCAP: Why ASCAP Licenses Bars, Restaurants & Music Venues, accessed October 10, 2026
ASCAP: Music Licensing FAQs, accessed October 10, 2026
ASCAP: General Business licensing and contact form, accessed October 10, 2026
BMI: Music License for Retail Establishments (form RTL1, LI-2025/DEC), accessed October 10, 2026
BMI: Music Licensing FAQs, answer to "If a venue is playing music publicly without the necessary permission, will BMI take legal action?", accessed October 13, 2026
SESAC: Who is responsible for paying music licensing fees?, accessed October 10, 2026
Global Music Rights: FAQ, accessed October 10, 2026
CourtListener: Broadcast Music, Inc. v. Prana Hospitality, Inc., No. 15 Civ. 1987 (PAE), 158 F. Supp. 3d 184, US District Court for the Southern District of New York, opinion and order of January 21, 2016, accessed October 13, 2026
CourtListener: Broadcast Music, Inc. v. Whiskey Stop Bar and Grill, Inc., No. 5:23-cv-1889, US District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, memorandum opinion and order of March 5, 2024, accessed October 13, 2026
eleMusic Terms of Service, Section 11: Performing rights organizations and your Certificate (version 2026-10-11), accessed October 11, 2026
eleMusic: Original Catalog Certificate, Scope line, accessed October 11, 2026

Your practice got a letter from ASCAP, BMI, SESAC or GMR