Can you play the radio in a dental office?

What does the law say about playing the radio in a business?

Section 106 of the federal Copyright Act gives the copyright owner of a musical work the exclusive rights to perform it publicly and to authorize others to do so, subject to sections 107 through 122. Section 110 is one of those sections: it lists certain performances, displays and other acts that are not infringements, and the radio and TV rule is its paragraph (5). The list opens with these words:

Notwithstanding the provisions of section 106, the following are not infringements of copyright:

17 U.S.C. 110, opening words, Legal Information Institute (Cornell Law School), read October 10, 2026

Paragraph (5) has two parts. Part (A) is the older rule about one receiver of the kind people use at home. Part (B) was added by Title II of Public Law 105-298, dated October 27, 1998, which may be cited as the Fairness In Music Licensing Act of 1998. Part (B) is the part with the square footage and speaker counts.

A note on the quotes below: the official text introduces each of its lists with a long dash. This page shows a colon in that place. Every word is as published.

What does section 110(5)(A) say?

(A) except as provided in subparagraph (B), communication of a transmission embodying a performance or display of a work by the public reception of the transmission on a single receiving apparatus of a kind commonly used in private homes, unless:

(i) a direct charge is made to see or hear the transmission; or

(ii) the transmission thus received is further transmitted to the public;

17 U.S.C. 110(5)(A), Legal Information Institute (Cornell Law School), read October 10, 2026

In plain words, part (A) describes letting the public see or hear a transmission on one receiving set of a kind commonly used in private homes. It does not apply if a direct charge is made to see or hear it, or if what is received is sent on to the public. It says "a transmission" and does not name a source. It opens with "except as provided in subparagraph (B)", so the two parts are written to be read together. The text does not define which equipment counts as "a kind commonly used in private homes".

What does section 110(5)(B) say for establishments other than restaurants and bars?

Part (B) has one set of limits for food service or drinking establishments and another for every other establishment. Here is the text for the other establishments, as written, with the restaurant and bar clause left out where marked:

(B) communication by an establishment of a transmission or retransmission embodying a performance or display of a nondramatic musical work intended to be received by the general public, originated by a radio or television broadcast station licensed as such by the Federal Communications Commission, or, if an audiovisual transmission, by a cable system or satellite carrier, if:

(i) in the case of an establishment other than a food service or drinking establishment, either the establishment in which the communication occurs has less than 2,000 gross square feet of space (excluding space used for customer parking and for no other purpose), or the establishment in which the communication occurs has 2,000 or more gross square feet of space (excluding space used for customer parking and for no other purpose) and:

(I) if the performance is by audio means only, the performance is communicated by means of a total of not more than 6 loudspeakers, of which not more than 4 loudspeakers are located in any 1 room or adjoining outdoor space; or

(II) if the performance or display is by audiovisual means, any visual portion of the performance or display is communicated by means of a total of not more than 4 audiovisual devices, of which not more than 1 audiovisual device is located in any 1 room, and no such audiovisual device has a diagonal screen size greater than 55 inches, and any audio portion of the performance or display is communicated by means of a total of not more than 6 loudspeakers, of which not more than 4 loudspeakers are located in any 1 room or adjoining outdoor space;

[Clause (ii), for food service or drinking establishments, is left out here.]

(iii) no direct charge is made to see or hear the transmission or retransmission;

(iv) the transmission or retransmission is not further transmitted beyond the establishment where it is received; and

(v) the transmission or retransmission is licensed by the copyright owner of the work so publicly performed or displayed;

17 U.S.C. 110(5)(B), Legal Information Institute (Cornell Law School), read October 10, 2026

Clause (ii), the part left out, sets the same loudspeaker and screen limits for restaurants, bars and other food service or drinking establishments, with 3,750 gross square feet in place of 2,000.

What are the square footage and speaker limits?

For an establishment other than a food service or drinking establishment, section 110(5)(B)(i) draws its line at 2,000 gross square feet. Below that, clause (i) sets no loudspeaker or screen count. At 2,000 gross square feet or more, it adds equipment limits: for an audio-only performance, no more than 6 loudspeakers in total and no more than 4 of them in any 1 room or adjoining outdoor space, with screen limits as well when there is video. The other conditions in the table apply at every size.

The table gives the same text, condition by condition. Every condition in the table appears in the statute; the table leaves none out and adds none.

Is a dental office an "establishment" under the statute?

The statute does not say. Neither section 110(5) nor the definitions in section 101 mention medical or dental offices. Part (B) applies to an "establishment", and section 101 defines the word, along with the way space is measured:

An "establishment" is a store, shop, or any similar place of business open to the general public for the primary purpose of selling goods or services in which the majority of the gross square feet of space that is nonresidential is used for that purpose, and in which nondramatic musical works are performed publicly.

The "gross square feet of space" of an establishment means the entire interior space of that establishment, and any adjoining outdoor space used to serve patrons, whether on a seasonal basis or otherwise.

17 U.S.C. 101, Definitions, Legal Information Institute (Cornell Law School), read October 10, 2026

In plain words, the definition describes a store, shop or similar place of business open to the general public mainly to sell goods or services. The square footage counts the entire interior space of the establishment, not only the rooms where a radio plays, plus adjoining outdoor space used to serve patrons. Whether a dental practice is an "establishment" in this sense, and how its space is measured inside a shared building or suite, are questions for your attorney.

Does the radio exemption cover streaming, internet radio or CDs?

Neither part of section 110(5) names streaming apps, websites or online-only stations, and neither mentions playing recordings, such as a CD, a downloaded file or a playlist. Both describe receiving a transmission. Beyond that, the two parts differ:

• Part (B) names where the transmission must come from: a radio or TV broadcast station licensed as such by the FCC, or, for an audiovisual transmission, a cable system or satellite carrier. It does not name streaming apps, websites or online-only stations.
• Part (A) says only "a transmission" received on a single receiving apparatus of a kind commonly used in private homes. It does not say whether an internet stream counts.

Section 101 defines the verb this way:

To "transmit" a performance or display is to communicate it by any device or process whereby images or sounds are received beyond the place from which they are sent.

17 U.S.C. 101, Definitions, Legal Information Institute (Cornell Law School), read October 10, 2026

How that definition fits a broadcaster's own online stream, satellite radio, or a streaming app on a phone is not spelled out in section 110(5), so take each of those to your attorney. Streaming apps also have their own terms, which are a separate question from the statute. Personal streaming accounts are licensed for personal, non-commercial use, which is why business music services exist; our guide Personal streaming and satellite plans in a dental office quotes those terms.

ASCAP, one of the organizations that license public performances of music, describes the exemption on its licensing FAQ. This is ASCAP's own summary, not the statute:

Section 110(5)(B) provides a limited exemption for certain performances of music in food service, drinking and retail establishments by means of radio and television transmissions.

[...]

Of course, this exemption is limited to those radio or television performances; the law requires that public performances of copyrighted music by other means such as live music, karaoke, CDs, MP3 and digital files, background music services and DVDs require permission obtained either from the copyright owners or from their performing rights licensing organizations.

ASCAP, Music Licensing FAQs, answer on exemptions for radio and television performances, read October 10, 2026

For TV in the waiting room and music on hold, which raise questions of their own, see TV, videos and hold music.

What if a business claims the exemption without reasonable grounds?

Section 504(d) of the Copyright Act covers one such case: where a court finds that a proprietor who claimed the exemption as a defense did not have reasonable grounds to believe its use was exempt. It begins:

In any case in which the court finds that a defendant proprietor of an establishment who claims as a defense that its activities were exempt under section 110(5) did not have reasonable grounds to believe that its use of a copyrighted work was exempt under such section, the plaintiff shall be entitled to, in addition to any award of damages under this section, an additional award [...]

[The rest of the sentence, which sets the measure of the additional award, is left out here.]

17 U.S.C. 504(d), Legal Information Institute (Cornell Law School), read October 10, 2026

In plain words: if a court finds that the proprietor of an establishment who claimed the section 110(5) exemption as a defense had no reasonable grounds to believe its use was exempt, the plaintiff is entitled to an additional award on top of any damages under section 504. The statute ties that award to the license fee the proprietor should have paid. The measure is in section 504(d) itself. We do not reprint it or estimate an amount for any practice; the statute is listed under Sources at the end of this page. It is one reason to put the questions below to a lawyer before relying on the exemption, not after a letter arrives. If a letter has already arrived, read Your practice got a letter from ASCAP, BMI, SESAC or GMR.

What should a practice ask its attorney?

These questions follow the text of section 110(5) and section 101 point by point:

• Establishment. Is our practice an "establishment" as section 101 defines one? If not, what follows for the radio?
• Square footage. How many gross square feet does our practice have, measured the way section 101 defines it, leaving out space used only for customer parking? If we share a building or a suite, what counts as ours?
• Speakers. How many loudspeakers carry the radio, in total and in each room? Does any room count together with an adjoining outdoor space?
• Screens. If a TV plays in the waiting room or elsewhere, how many screens do we have, in which rooms, and how large are they measured diagonally?
• Source. Is what we play a broadcast received from an FCC-licensed station, the same station's online stream, satellite radio, a cable music channel, or a streaming app or playlist? Does the answer change with each one?
• Equipment. Is our setup "a single receiving apparatus of a kind commonly used in private homes" under part (A), and how do parts (A) and (B) fit together for us?
• Charges. Is a direct charge, a cover charge or any other charge made to see or hear the radio, and do any other conditions in part (B) apply to us?
• Sending it on. Is the radio sent beyond our office anywhere, for example over the phone line as music on hold, or to another location?
• Licensed transmission. How would we know whether the transmission we receive is licensed by the copyright owners, as clause (v) requires?
• Everything else. What other audio do patients and visitors hear, and what does each source need? Our guide Do dental offices need a music license? covers the wider question.

Bring the facts with you: a floor plan or lease with the square footage, a count of speakers and screens by room, and a list of every source of audio and video in the office.

Where does eleMusic fit?

eleMusic wrote this guide, and we sell a background music service to dental practices, so we are not a neutral party. That is why this page quotes the law and draws no conclusion from it. eleMusic is not a radio station, and what it plays is not a broadcast. What it plays instead: Original instrumental music, generated and mastered by eleMusic. No vocals, no ads, no commercial recordings. It plays through the eleMusic player in a browser, and every location with an active plan or trial gets an Original Catalog Certificate in its name. That certificate has limits, and the radio is outside them:

If your practice plays the radio as well as eleMusic, the questions above still apply to the radio. You are responsible for licensing any other music or audio you play. Ask your own lawyer if you are unsure. To read exactly what the certificate covers, see A certificate in your practice's name, or hear the stations.

Sources

1. 17 U.S. Code 110: Limitations on exclusive rights: Exemption of certain performances and displays (Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School), accessed October 10, 2026
2. 17 U.S. Code 106: Exclusive rights in copyrighted works (Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School), accessed October 10, 2026
3. 17 U.S. Code 101: Definitions, including "establishment", "gross square feet of space" and "transmit" (Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School), accessed October 10, 2026
4. 17 U.S. Code 504: Remedies for infringement: Damages and profits, subsection (d) (Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School), accessed October 10, 2026
5. ASCAP: Music Licensing FAQs, the answer on exemptions for radio and television performances, accessed October 10, 2026