It's too early for webcasters to declare victory in their attempt to continue negotiating towards a binding "alternate" performance royalty for internet radio while Congress heads home for fund-raising duties over the next few months, but the bill's passage in the House brings them one step closer. The bill for the Webcaster Settlement Act of 2008 arrived at the Senate on Monday; if it passes there, it'll proceed to President Bush for sign-off.
The short story: webcasters still have a chance to survive without disabling interactive features oradding so much advertising that listeners return to sources that pay no royalties.
"Thisis a truly historic moment for internet radio and its listeners," saidthe bill's author, Representative Jay Inslee (D-Washington, pictured to the right) of the Energy and Commerce Committee. "There may now be a light at the end of the tunnel in the fight overinternet radio royalties."
Wired.com confirmed that the bill has support from the RIAA and SoundExchange as well as the webcasters that would pay them the alternate royalties, so it's hard to understand why anyone would want to stand in the way of its passage – unless you're the National Association of Broadcasters, that is, which opposed the bill presumably because its member broadcasters feared increased competition from webcasters if they were to receive more favorable rates.
After speaking out against the bill to several members of Congress, NAB relented, according to sources cited by CNET, because the bill now extends negotiations for a new webcaster performance royalty rate to February 15 rather than December 15. This will apparently give NAB more time to negotiate its own new performance rates.
Lacking other opposition at the moment, the bill should pass, allowing webcasters and SoundExchange to keep working towards a new royalty rate that would effectively supersede the one handed down by the Copyright Royalty Board.
Without the Act, webcasters and SoundExchange would have to wait untilCongress is back in session before they can legally observe analternate rate, even one both agree on.
SoundExchange apparently acknowledges that its originally proposed rates, which were approved wholesale by the Copyright Royalty Board, were too high, and the organization now welcomes the chance to implement alternate rates that could allow webcasters to flourish. "Everyone is grateful to the sponsors of the bill and to Chairman Berman for getting this through the House last night," said SoundExchange executive director John Simson. "This bill favors all webcasters and simulcasters – large and small. It paves the way for SoundExchange to use the coming months to pursue helpful solutions that allow all services to focus on business development. And, although there are no agreements yet, I am hopeful."
See Also:
- Congress Considers Webcaster Bill Too, as Royalty Battle Ensues
- Advocates Demand Congress Put Bailout Details on Internet
- Rep. Barney Frank predicts bailout deal by Sunday
- U.S. Copyright Royalty Board Rejects Webcasters, Embraces SoundExchange
- Copyright Royalty Board Upholds "Disastrous" Royalty Rates
- U.S. Copyright Royalty Board Rejects Webcasters, Embraces SoundExchange
- Royalty Hike Panics Webcasters
- Webcasters Tell SoundExchange Its Deal Stinks
- Royalty Logic Seeks To Prove Copyright Board Unconstitutional
- DiMA and SoundExchange Trade Blows (Plus Weeklong Summary)
