Last week, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on the American Music Fairness Act bill which proposes to adopt a new music royalty to be paid by over-the-air radio stations. The royalty would be payable to SoundExchange for the public performance of sound recordings. This means that the money collected would be paid to performing artists... Continue Reading…
Here are some of the regulatory developments of significance to broadcasters from the past week, with links to where you can go to find more information as to how these actions may affect your operations. On our Broadcast Law Blog, we discussed the National Music Publishers Association’s announcement that it had sent Spotify a take-down... Continue Reading…
The uncertainty regarding the rates that commercial radio broadcasters will pay to play music in the repertory of SESAC, Inc. (SESAC) is over. Following extensive negotiations, the Radio Music License Committee (RMLC) and SESAC reached a new agreement extending the rates and terms of their existing music license agreement for commercial radio stations. That comes...… Continue Reading
Music licensing issues are always confusing. At the request of streaming service provider Live365 which hosted World Audio Day as a virtual substitute for our all getting together at last month’s cancelled NAB Convention in Las Vegas, I participated in a discussion of those issues, trying to provide the basics as to who gets paid... Continue Reading…
Music licensing issues are always confusing. At the request of streaming service provider Live365 which hosted World Audio Day as a virtual substitute for our all getting together at last month’s cancelled NAB Convention in Las Vegas, I participated in a discussion of those issues, trying to provide the basics as to who gets paid... Continue Reading…
Attention, noncommercial educational (NCE, a/k/a “public”) broadcasters! If you have been wondering how much you’ll have to pay to broadcast musical compositions this year (and beyond), wonder no more. The rates for 2018 through 2022 were published in the Federal Register on January 19. For those new to the issue, these rates have been administered...… Continue Reading
Dueling letters from SESAC and RMLC offer distinct alternatives for radio stations in their dealings with SESAC As we reported several months ago, in July the Radio Music License Committee (RMLC) reached a settlement agreement with SESAC that resolved RMLC’s antitrust lawsuit against SESAC and brought some measure of certainty and stability to the license … Continue Reading
Props to Bill Velez for striking a good deal for the radio industry! Bill Velez and the gang at the Radio Music License Committee (RMLC) have struck again. Having targeted SESAC in an antitrust suit in 2012, they have now used the leverage of that suit to gain a settlement with SESAC that should prove … Continue Reading
Props to Bill Velez for striking a good deal for the radio industry! Bill Velez and the gang at the Radio Music License Committee (RMLC) have struck again. Having targeted SESAC in an antitrust suit in 2012, they have now used the leverage of that suit to gain a settlement with SESAC that should prove … Continue Reading