"Interactive". For webcasters, it's a word that makes a huge difference. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has recently become the first U.S. appellate court to consider, and shed definitive light on, the meaning of "interactive" in the context of webcasting.… Continue Reading
Last week we reported that SoundExchange had reached a couple of agreements affecting non-CPB noncommercial webcasters. The terms of those agreements have now been published in the Federal Register. Read all about them here.… Continue Reading
Last month we referred to the "pureplay" settlement as the "final piece" of the webcasting puzzle. Our bad. Turns out there were more settlements - four separate ones, to be exact - still to be completed.… Continue Reading
Why has the Senate Judiciary Committee scheduled a hearing on the Performance Rights Act when the House version already has more than 240 opponents (and counting)?… Continue Reading
The D.C. Circuit has (with one minor exception) affirmed the 2007 webcasting royalty decision of the Copyright Royalty Judges, AFTER the private parties affected by the royalty decision had worked out various deals largely circumventing the CRJ decision. And for the second time in two weeks, the Court has mentioned, without resolving, serious questions about the constitutionality of the CRJs.… Continue Reading
It's only been a few weeks since the Webcaster Settlement Act was enacted and already it's working! A settlement agreement reached under that Act covers webcast royalty rates for "pureplay" webcasters for the years 2006-2015.… Continue Reading
The D.C. Circuit has affirmed the performance royalty rate set by the CRB for satellite radio services. No big surprise there. But a separate concurring opinion from one member of the three-judge panel could spell trouble for any decision coming out of the CRJ for the foreseeable future.… Continue Reading
The Webcaster Settlement Act of 2009 -- not to be confused with the Webcaster Settlement Act of 2008 -- is about to become law. Will it affect you?… Continue Reading
Opposition to creation of a new performance right obligation for broadcasters has past a critical threshold, garnering support from more than a majority of the House.… Continue Reading
The NAB is running a cool new contest designed to encourage radio stations to help in the fight against the move for performance rights. Check it out.… Continue Reading
The House Judiciary Commitee passed an amended version of the "Performance Rights Act", but the number of Representatives on record as opposing this legislation has now increased to 192.… Continue Reading
The House Judiciary Committee is poised to "mark up" (vote on) HR 848, the Performance Rights Act, this Wednesday, May 13. With HR 848 currently boasting 41 co-sponsors, and the opposition movement claiming formal support from 184 Representatives who have signed on to H Con Res 49, the Local Radio Freedom Act, the future of this legislation … Continue Reading
The scheduled -- and then cancelled -- House Judiciary Committee hearing on the Performance Rights Act is back on. The Committee website says it will now be held on Tuesday, March 10 at 10:00 a.m.… Continue Reading
The National Association of Broadcasters ("NAB") and SoundExchange, the designated "receiving agent" that collects and distributes copyright royalties paid as part of the statutory license applicable to webcasting, have announced a settlement under the "Webcaster Settlement Act" which sets the royalty rates to be paid by broadcasters streaming music on the Internet during the years 2009-2010.… Continue Reading
Claims for cable retransmission copyright royalties and/or satellite copyright royalties earned during 2007 must be submitted to the Copyright Royalty Board of the Library of Congress by Thursday, July 31, 2008. Eligibility for royalties is based on carriage of your station’s programming outside of your local service area. As a general matter, a station is … Continue Reading
