Will your venue need to pay a Specially Featured Entertainment Tariff?
PPL, the UK’s public music licensing company, have announced a new tariff involving recorded music. The Specially Featured Entertainment (“SFE”) tariff will be active from January 1st 2023. PPL agreed this new SFE tariff with the British Beer and Pub Association and UK Hospitality in settlement of the Copyright Tribunal proceedings between the parties.
What venues will need to pay the SFE tariff?
The SFE tariff is expected to affect:
- nightclubs
- restaurants
- hotels
- pubs
- bars
- entertainment venues
- dance halls
- bingo halls
- stadiums and arenas
Indeed, any playing of recorded music at events such as discos, DJ sets, parties and performances, will be covered by this new tariff.
When will the SFE tariff be applied?
The Specially Featured Entertainment tariff will apply to nightlife venues from the date of their license year renewal in 2023.
More changes to the tariff and music licensing rules are expected and will be implemented over a number of years into 2030.
More information on how the tariff will come into greater affect will be offered closer to the end of the year. Until then, stay up to date with NDML Industry News.
More changes to the industry post-COVID
The new tariffs are set to come into effect in 2023, they are one of many compounded changes happening within the nightlife industry post the COVID crisis. Britain has 20% fewer nightclubs than it had when the country first went into lockdown in March 2020. A resurrection was prophesied for the industry proceeding a sport-laden summer, however yet still more challenges are hinder UK nightlife’s growth.
NDML have looked into how the cost of living crisis is putting hospitality at risk. Business owners are seeing a 30% increase in operating costs with nearly half of questioned respondents unsure if their business will survive the next 12 months.
Email your MP
With debt mounting, gas and electric costs going up and new costs such as the SFE tariffs coming into play, operators are worried. Michael Kill of the NTIA has called on the government to recognise the value of the night-time economy and act to protect it.
He has requested that people email their MP in an effort to reduce VAT to 12.5%. He also asks for us to call on them to extend business rates relief and place an energy cap on SME businesses.
