Broadcasting and Cable is reporting

Broadcasting and Cable is reporting that the radio industry and the recording industry reached an agreement over royalty rates for radio stations to stream their music on-line. This brief report doesn’t disclose any of the details, but does note that the Copyright Office is under no obligation to accept the terms, even though the Office sponsored the arbitration. This deal has no impact on web-only music streaming.

I’m actually itching for the details because I want to know if noncommercial broadcasters have been given a break of any kind. Previous details about early negotiations gave the impression that royalties are to be based on percentage of profit or ad revenue, which for a noncommercial station would effectively be a percentage of $0. I have my doubts that the recording industry would be willing to settle for zero, so I’d like to know how much they’ll expect from noncomms. If it turns out to be reasonable, this may allow a rejuvenation of non-profit and community stations taking to the ‘net.

Previous posts on this topic:

Digital Media Distribution: Is the Honeymoon Over? 10/10/01
Is Streaming Worth It for Public Radio? 10/4/01
How hard can you beat digital music until it’s all underground? 8/31/01
Webradio — a Slight Return 7/6/01
Independent Music? 2/13/01

Broadcasting and Cable is reporting

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