The Copyright Royalty Board that set the new online radio royalty rates apparently didn't understand that webcasters such as Pandora and Live365 offer thousands of streams, each of which would cost $500 a month under the new rates, killing both sites immediately.
SoundExchange issued a press release saying that it would be willing to limit this minimum-per-channel charge to $2,500 per month until 2008.
DiMA responded immediately that it would agree to this, but only if the term for the new arrangement were extended to 2010 -- or, preferably, forever. Said DiMA head Jon Potter,
Whatever they decide on, it will have to happen soon, because the new rates go into effect in 16 days. It'd be a shame to see Pandora, Live365, and other multi-stream webcasters eliminated.
