Obama and Bob DylanIt's a brawl between recording artists and broadcasters. Traditionally, promoters and labels have paid radio stations to play certain artists, which, by the way, is illegal. But the Obama administration is supporting a bill that would make radio pay recording artists:
Representative John Conyers, a democrat, is sponsoring the House bill and there are 49 other co-sponsors, including a handful of republicans. There's also a Senate bill sponsored by Patrick Leahy, which has republican support as well.
The recording industry scored a significant victory today with news that the Obama administration will provide its "strong support" for the Performance Rights Act. The bill would force over-the-air radio stations to start coughing up cash for the music they play; right now, the stations pay songwriters, but not the actual recording artists.A little on the Performance Rights Act, which is proposing an annual licensing fee:
This has been a dream of the recording industry for decades, but it has taken on new importance as the revenues from recorded music have plummeted over the last decade. The broadcasters refer to the idea as a new "tax" that will largely benefit foreign record companies such as Universal (France), Sony (Japan), and EMI (UK). Read more at Artstechnica
The "Performance Rights Act" has been introduced in both the House and Senate with the goal of forcing US radio stations to start paying artists whose music is played on the air. Labels are pushing hard for the idea, but radio stations could hardly be more upset.
When it comes to music, US "performance rights" law looks like a floodlit monument to inconsistency. Radio stations pay only songwriters for the music they play; recording artists get nothing (except publicity). When music is delivered through webcasting, cable networks, and satellite radio, however, station owners need to pay both songwriters and recording artists. Read more at Artstechnica
