Many in the webcasting community had pinned their hopes on Congress passing the Internet Radio Equality Act (IREA), which would peg webcasting royalty rates at the same 7.5-percent-of-revenue paid by satellite radio stations, rather than the rates that were determined by the Copyright Royalty Board (CRB).
But proponents of the act say that the IREA has little chance of passing in the House, despite having over 140 co-sponsors. Some Representatives apparently oppose the IREA because they oppose the man who introduced it, Rep. Jay Inslee (D-Washington, pictured to the right). (Inslee recently introduced a resolution to impeach Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez.)
(In other semi-related news, the latest Listening Post column uncovers the fact that SoundExchange's lobbying efforts might be unauthorized by the Copyright Act.)
Webcast Royalty Bill, Negotiations Hit Impasse
SoundExchange, Caught Lobbying, Says Lobbying Bar Does Not Apply
Update: In response to the below comments, I'd like to make it clear that I specifically heard from sources who had returned from meeting with lawmakers in Washington that one big reason the IREA won't pass is that other members of the house "don't like" Inslee. Another source mentioned that he was the one behind the Gonzalez impeachment resolution. Whatever the reason, the IREA is in fact doomed, according to every lawmaker my sources talked to.
(image from jayinslee)
