Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment she Department has made of the potential impact of Performing Right Society licensing fees on the profitability of microbusinesses, freelancers and sole traders, particularly those with low turnover or earnings below the income tax threshold.

Performing Right Society Limited (PRS) is a collective management organisation (CMO) and a private commercial entity and the Government does not regulate its commercial affairs. Consequently, the Department has not made an impact assessment in relation to PRS's commercial licensing fees.

Licence fees are usually the outcome of negotiation between a CMO and a trade body representing potential licensees in a sector. Prospective licensees have recourse to the Copyright Tribunal if dissatisfied with the terms of a licence, and the Tribunal’s decisions can be appealed in the High Court or the Court of Session in Scotland.