Sound recording copyright symbol

The sound recording copyright symbol or phonogram symbol, ℗ (letter P in a circle), is the copyright symbol used to provide notice of copyright or neighboring rights in a sound recording (phonogram) embodied in a phonorecord (LPs, audiotapes, cassette tapes, compact discs, etc.). It was first introduced in the Rome Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organisations in 1961.

The letter P in ℗ stands for phonogram, which is the legal term used in many countries to refer to such work. (In U.S. copyright law, the term used is sound recording.)

A sound recording has a separate copyright that is distinct from that of the underlying work (usually a musical work, expressible in musical notation and written lyrics), if any. The sound recording copyright extends only to a particular rendition of a work and not to any other sound recordings of the same underlying work, even if they are created by the same recording artist.