This is an update to the previous article that I wrote regarding Record Labels and Artists advocating for a change in the Copyright Laws regarding performance royalties under 17 U.S.C. section 114.  Read my previous article here.

Read the article by The Hollywood Reporter (www.hollywoodreporter.com) about the ongoing debate between Broadcasters on one side and Record Labels and Artists on the other side by clicking here.

Broadcasters want hearings relating to Record Labels and their treatment of Artists.  The National Association of Broadcasters wants to debate with the RIAA and four of the major labels regarding label treatment of artists.

The National Association of Broadcasters claims "that airplay sells enough recordings to compensate artists and that a royalty for performers is unnecessary. While broadcasters pay a royalty to songwriters and publishers, radio doesn't pay performing artists who aren't songwriters or the record company." (www.hollywoodreporter.com)

"Artists and the labels contend that this is unfair and should be stopped. In the modern marketplace, where satellite radio, cable TV and the Internet pay a performance royalty, regular radio should too, they argue." (www.hollywoodreporter.com)

I will include the Summary and Question from my previous article to gauge how you feel about this particular issue:

Summary and Question: Songwriters and Publishers DO get paid for radio station airplay, but Labels and Artists do not get separately paid through the same pipeline.  Should the Copyright Laws be changed to incorporate royalty compensation for Record Labels and Artists in a structure similar to the way Publishers and Songwriters are currently paid?  If so, how would one incorporate royalty compensation into the current model without seriously diminishing the revenues of current songwriters and publishers through performance royalty earnings?  Record labels and Artists earn their money by way of record sales (including internet downloads), touring, and merchandise.  If an artist records someone else's song and gets permission to include that song on an album and eventually releases the song to radio as a single, but has no copyright ownership in the song (they just perform the song), should the artist and/or record label receive royalties for radio broadcast performances of that particular song?

Let me know what you think!