The National Association of Broadcasters stresses that there is no resolution to the industry response to the continued push to pass the Performance Rights Act. But it is in negotiations to accept a tiered – and permanent — royalty rate structure based on net revenue in exchange for a presence on cell phones, freedom from the Copyright Board in assessment of streaming rates, reduced streaming rates and more.
NAB’s Dennis Wharton described the meeting, saying, “The NAB Radio Board had a full and productive exchange of ideas today on the status of discussions with musicFirst representatives. The talks are part of an ongoing dialogue with the Board and NAB membership on possible alternatives to pending legislation that would be devastating to the future of free and local radio. No votes were taken at today’s Board meeting. The Board reiterated its strong opposition to the pending bill in Congress, while agreeing that it is appropriate for NAB representatives to continue discussions with musicFirst. Interested parties will be updated quickly if and when new developments emerge.”
NAB said that talks with musicFIRST have been going on at the request of members of Congress, and have yielded a number of proposals. It stressed that these terms have “NOT BEEN AGREED TO,” and yes, those are NAB’s capital letters.
But here’s what’s on the table:
* Tiered rate of 1% or less for all net revenue (roughly $100 million for the industry) which is permanent and can not be adjusted without changing statute or by mutual agreement
* PERMANENT removal of CRB jurisdiction for terrestrial and streaming
* Streaming rate reduction from current rates
* Inclusion of radio chips on all mobile phones
* AFTRA issues resolved (agency commercial replacement on webcasts)
The tiered rate of 1% or less for all net revenue would be as follows:
* Commercial and non-profit stations with revenue less than $50,000 annually would pay the lesser of $100 or 1% of revenue annually
* Commercial and non-profit stations with revenue between $50,000 to $100,000 annually would pay $500 annually
* Non-profit stations with revenue more than $100,000 annually would pay $1,000 annually
* Commercial stations with revenue between $100,000 to $500,000 annually would pay the lesser of $2,500 or 1% of revenue annually
* Commercial stations with revenue between $500,000 to $1,250,000 annually would pay $5,000 annually
* Commercial stations with revenue more than $1,250,000 annually would pay 1% of revenue annually
NAB said that stations using spoken word formats with incidental use of music would be exempt, as would music used in broadcast religious services.
What’s the view from the other side of the negotiating table?
“We look forward to Congress completing work in 2010 to create a performance right on radio that is fair to artists, musicians and rights holders – and fair to radio,” musicFirst spokesman Marty Machowsky told RBR-TVBR in a weekend email.
RBR-TVBR observation: Early indications are that it is going to be very difficult to find the proverbial “fly on the wall” that will be willing to describe just how this extraordinary meeting went down. But there is a space for your comments just below this paragraph – if you wish to share your opinion with the NAB Radio Board, this is an excellent place to do so!
For your review: How we got to this point on Performance Royalties
RBR-TVBR request: We also invite you to send comments, with your name, title and affiliation for possible inclusion in a follow-up story, to [email protected]. Get involved it is your business your money your future.
