Does anyone know how music is done at off-season events(or for that matter even FIRST events), especially to avoid copyright strikes? I couldn’t find anything concrete but I’m assuming from what I’ve found that first just has cut-down versions of the songs they place that are the right length for game-on, in-betweens, time-out, etc. Our team has never been to an off-season, so I don’t really have a lot of understanding of how a lot of the aspects of competitions are tackled, although I figured I’d ask.
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I used to submit music to the DJ for Ruckus who was a committee member but now he’s the FTAA. Our DJ last year was Jeff from AndyMark. He did his own thang! 
There’s a public list of songs used by quite a few events, and I believe that FIRST PNW has a spotify set of lists they use.
Theres a few PNW uses, the most updated ones are on accounts with the truck so im not totally sure which they are. TribalSnake’s Robot Radio is a good bet as his stuff is usually used in prior years. Note, its filled with a lot of older stuff, so if thats not your thing you may want to keep looking.
TRI typically bases it off the public song list (linked by Tim above), but also takes song requests and will add them to a Spotify playlist. As far as I’m aware, none of these completed TRI playlists are public.
For avoiding copyright issues in streams/recordings, FIM’s AV setup only includes game sounds and commentary in those (music is separated out somehow). This is already configured in a VMix preset, so I couldn’t tell you exactly how it’s set up, but there’s a free version of VMix (and no doubt other software can accomplish this too), which may be useful.
For music itself, FIM has ad-free Spotify accounts set up. A few events use their own source of music, though (I was at one event where the DJs tried to stream music off YouTube, without an ad blocker…).
FIM offseasons are fortunate because a FIM AV cart travels with them, though. tjf’s post is a good bet if you don’t already have a music solution planned.
Okay, I was just worried about the Spotify TOS,
The following is not permitted for any reason whatsoever:
- copying, redistributing, reproducing, “ripping,” recording, transferring, performing or displaying to the public, broadcasting, or making available to the public any part of the Spotify Service or the Content, or otherwise making any use of the Spotify Service or the Content which is not expressly permitted under the Agreements or applicable law or which otherwise infringes the intellectual property rights (such as copyright) in the Spotify Service or the Content or any part of it;
How does FIRST do it at official FIRST Events?
Spotify actually has an official extension for Twitch so you can see what song a streamer is playing at the moment. You should be fine.
Does anyone know of a solution to this?
Please go read the law to determine if you are exempt or need to pay a royalty. You can find it here: https://www.copyright.gov/title17/
Pay close attention to section 110: Limitations on exclusive rights: Exemption of certain performances and displays.
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Thanks! That helped with the copyright part, but it’s still (technically)against Spotify’s TOS to use their services in that way, unfortunately 
.
Edit:
Does that clause
which is not expressly permitted under the Agreements or applicable law
exempt you?
Here’s the thing with playing music through Spotify: Is there going to be any way someone could tell that you’re using Spotify? For all anyone knows, you’re playing music from YouTube or Pandora or The Pirate Bay. The TOS thing is mostly Pandora covering themselves if someone uses their service to play music in an unapproved way.
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I know, I’m being really picky, that’s why I added the technical, but I just don’t know how FIRST gets around it because they can’t really cover it up like in an off season. Anyways, I figured that’s how every really does it, there’s really no reason to care because as you said there’s no possible way for anyone to know you’re using it anyways.
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