--- From: "Richard Uhl" <ulyssesaudioat_private> To: declanat_private Cc: kurtat_private Subject: Internet Radio Performance Rights Fees Date: Thu, 21 Mar 2002 11:32:37 -0500 Declan- I thought you and other Politech readers would like to know about the recent Copyright Arbitration Royalty Panel ("CARP") decision that internet radio Webcasters should pay "performance rights" fees of 0.14¢ per song per listener for Internet-only Webcasters, 0.07¢ per song per listener for broadcast radio simulcasts, and 0.02¢ per song per listener for non-commercial radio simulcasts. This is more than 100% of most Webcasters' gross revenues, including the "revenues" on my tiny (10 listener max) station www.ulyssesaudio.com. I maintain the station for free, with no advertising or revenue source of any kind. This will effectively shut down mine and most other independent internet radio stations. In perspective, with my max listenership (12 songs/hour x 10 listeners max X 24 hours/day x 365 days/year x 0.14¢) that equals more than $122,000 per year. Remember when I said I had no revenue sources? Many Webcasters had hoped that the CARP's recommended royalty rate would be based between 3% (proposed by webcasters, in line with ASCAP, BMI, etc. composer royalty fees) and 15% (RIAA proposal to webcasters). Note that this is ALL based on the DMCA demand that performers be compensated for perfect digital copies. However, that reasoning is flawed since most internet radio isn't copied, merely streamed, and the broadcast is usually much lower quality than "perfect." Check out www.saveinternetradio.org for more information. Thanks for your time. _______________________________ r. ulysses uhl webmaster, broadcaster, shoutcaster www.ulyssesaudio.com ulyssesaudioat_private --- Date: Thu, 21 Mar 2002 12:49:45 -0500 (EST) From: Paul Jones <pjonesat_private> To: Declan McCullagh <declanat_private> Subject: net.radio: CARP comment period extended to April 5 Declan, You and politechers may be aware that the Copyright Arbitration Royalty Panel handed down some extremely complex and onerous constrains on the use of music on the net by webcasters and by on-air stations doing simulcasts. Basically webcasters are dead by being priced out of the market, being required to do complex recordkeeping at the song and listener level, having programming restrictions placed on the content that are far more constraining than on-air and more. Fees will be collected and distributed by the RIAA, even for non-RIAA members, after a 'reasonable management fee' has been taken by that organization. All of this is retroactive to 1998. Low revenue non-commercial community on-air stations doing simulcasts (ibiblio.org serves 4 of these at the moment - WXYC, first internet simulcast station; WCPE, 7/24 classical; WUNC, regional NPR; WXDU, Duke's college radio) are also killed -- unless they are Center for Public Broadcasting members; CPD has cut a separate deal (in our case this covers only WCPE). The case for non-commercial community stations doing simulcasts are covered well at http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~willr/cb/sos/ and at http://www.wxyc.org/sos.html The case for webcasters is made at http://www.save-the-music.org/ and http://saveinternetradio.org/ No one is against artists or copyright holders being paid. The complaint is that the combinations of a high minimum fee, complex -- and invasive in the case of individual listener data -- reporting, and content restrictions. Kill the young and delightfully diverse pratice of net.radio. http://www.loc.gov/copyright/carp/webcasting_rates.html is the CARP webcasting proposal http://www.loc.gov/copyright/fedreg/2002/67fr10652.html is the notice in the Federal Register that the comment period has been extended. ========================================================================== Paul Jones "Gort! Klaatu barada nikto!" http://www.ibiblio.org/pjones/ at the Site Formerly Known As MetaLab.unc.edu pjonesat_private voice: (919) 962-7600 fax: (919) 962-8071 =========================================================================== --- ------------------------------------------------------------------------- POLITECH -- Declan McCullagh's politics and technology mailing list You may redistribute this message freely if you include this notice. Declan McCullagh's photographs are at http://www.mccullagh.org/ To subscribe to Politech: http://www.politechbot.com/info/subscribe.html This message is archived at http://www.politechbot.com/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------
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