By Susan Fontaine Goodwin of Christian Copyright Solutions
Church leaders are just recovering from all their Christmas musical events, and now it’s time to prepare for one of America’s most sacred holidays… the 48th National Football League (NFL) Super Bowl.
The Christmas wintry theme continues with the first outdoor, cold-weather Super Bowl to be hosted Feb. 2 in at the New York/New Jersey MetLife Stadium. Super Bowl viewing parties provide churches with a warm and dynamic evangelistic opportunity to reach your community and invite friends and neighbors to a fun and “non-threatening” event.
The Super Bowl has the largest economic impact of any regular human event with literally every demographic engaged in this annual national fervor. While churches don’t try to make money on The Big Game, they often promote events to view the classic clash as a great chance to engage in “friendship” evangelism.
Although music may not be used or played at Super Bowl parties, there are some important copyright issues to consider, and now is a good time to get all your plays diagramed and mapped out.
The good news is that churches can host Super Bowl parties this year without fear of penalties and interference from the NFL for copyright infringement–IF they stay within certain boundaries. It’s still vital that church leaders follow important guidelines and rules to stay inside the playing field and make sure they avoid legal risks of infringement.
Christian Copyright Solutions (CCS) recently had a chance to speak with an NFL representative regarding the NFL’s policies for churches that want to host viewing parties on February 2nd. You can read the interview and their official statement at CCS’s News Page.
Here’s an excerpt from the interview:
“CCS: Many Churches enjoy gathering together to watch the Super Bowl each year, but they are unsure about necessary steps they must take in order to stay copyright compliant when doing so. What requirements must a church meet in order to host a “viewing party”?
NFL: A church may hold their “viewing party” in its usual place of worship and must not charge a fee for attending such viewing party. If those requirements are met, the NFL will not object when a church has a party for its congregants to watch the Super Bowl together.”
If you have questions about this or any other copyright-related activity for your church, contact our Copyright Solvers at 1-855-5SOLVER (576-5837). Or log on to www.christiancopyrightsolutions.com to access our knowledge base, fact sheets, blog and other informative resources.
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About Christian Copyright Solutions: CCS’s quest is to help churches and Christian ministries “do music right.” CCS is an expert on church music copyrights and our primary focus is providing licensing and clear educational resources to churches, as well as representation, administration and advocacy for copyright owners. Follow us onTwitter, FacebookandPinterest.
The information contained herein is for informational purposes only, and is not legal advice or a substitute for legal counsel.
- Republished with permission. Originally posted at: http://www.christiancopyrightsolutions.com/blog/post/2014/01/07/Learn-How-to-Host-a-Legal-Church-Super-Bowl-Party
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How To Make Sure Your Church 2013 Super Bowl XLVII Party Is Legal
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Rehearsal Tracks and Copyright