Does the US really need so many performing rights
organizations and are they doing a good enough job, asks US Copyright Office
The increase in the number of collecting societies representing the performing rights of songwriters in the US is set to be considered in a new US Copyright Office inquiry. It will also review how societies distribute royalties, and whether independent writers and publishers are disadvantaged . The US Copyright Office has launched an inquiry into the country’s performing rights organisations - BMI, ASCAP, SESAC, GMR and AllTrack - in response to concerns raised last year by members of the House Judiciary Committee in Congress.
The US is unusual in having five collecting societies that all separately license the performing rights in songs, each representing a different repertoire. For songwriters, having multiple societies to choose from in theory means there is competition in the marketplace and you should therefore get a better service. And newer PROs GMR and AllTrack both target their services at specific groups of songwriters. But, for licensees, it means you need five licences, with the increase in complexity that might result.
Music Publishers Begin ‘Extensive’ Spotify Podcast Takedowns Over Licensing Violations
Just hours after Spotify announced its first-ever annual net profit, the National Music Publishers’ Association has launched an ongoing takedown initiative against the streaming giant for the unlicensed use of music in podcasts on its platform. Beginning today (Feb. 4), notices will be sent to remove thousands of unlicensed uses of NMPA members’ works, according to the announcement. Over 2,500 detections of infringement are included in the initial takedown notices. The move follows the trade group’s 2024 legal action against Spotify over its controversial audiobooks-music “bundling” deal, which significantly lowered the royalties paid out to music rights holders.
TV Is Now YouTube’s Biggest Platform—As Video Podcasts Drive Growth
Hot on the heels of celebrating its 20th anniversary, YouTube says television (TV) is now the primary viewing device in the United States. Video podcasts help drive that growth.
In a blog post celebrating the milestone, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan shares that TV has surpassed mobile as the primary viewing platform for the video site. According to Nielsen data, YouTube has been #1 in streaming watch time in the United States for the past two years. So what’s driving the growth of YouTube on TV? Perhaps unsurprisingly, the answer is video podcasts. Joe Rogan’s interview with President Trump garnered 55 million views. YouTube is now the most frequently used service for listening to podcasts in the United States. YouTube says it is working on features behind the scenes to roll out more tools to support podcasters, improve monetization for creators, and make it easier to discover new
podcasts.
Is It Time for Greater Public Performance Transparency? Copyright Office Launches PROs Inquiry in Response to Lawmaker Concerns
The Copyright Office formally disclosed the notice of inquiry today, just shy of five months after Representatives Scott Fitzgerald, Jim Jordan, and Darrell Issa asked Register of Copyrights Shira Perlmutter to “examine current practices involving licensing fees paid to performing rights organizations” (PROs). The House Judiciary Committee members’ letter, we reported at the time, touched on the possible “proliferation of PROs” as well as the accuracy with which public performances register and see the corresponding royalties reach the appropriate parties. On the “proliferation” front, ASCAP and its for-profit rival BMI count as consent-decree-free competitors GMR, SESAC, and
AllTrack. Writing with small businesses (bars and restaurants chief among them) in mind, the lawmakers emphasized the purported “increased costs and burdens imposed on licensees for paying an ever-increasing number of PROs.” “The continued proliferation of PROs creates growing challenges for businesses of all sizes,” the MIC Coalition proceeded, “further complicating an already complex licensing system.
US court says copyright termination applies globally, potentially causing ‘chaos’ for rightsholders
A court ruling by a US federal judge in Louisiana has thrown a wrench into the common understanding of how copyrights on catalog music work – one that could have implications for music publishers and songwriters.
At issue are “termination rights.” Under the US’s Copyright Act of 1976, the original author(s) of a song can “take back” their copyright from a publisher (or whoever they assigned the rights to) after a set period of time. For works written in 1978 or later, that term is 35 years. For works from before 1978, it’s 56 years.
Until now, it was generally understood that when an author exercises their termination right under US law, this applies only to US rights – international rights remain with the assignee (i.e., the publisher who bought the rights).
However, a recent ruling by the US District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana upended this: The court concluded that a termination under US law applies globally – or, at least, in all the countries that participate in the Berne Convention, the international treaty that requires signatory countries to recognize copyrights created in other signatory countries.
U.S. Copyright Office AI Guidance Agrees with ASCAP: Human Creators First
On Wednesday, January 29, 2025, the U.S. Copyright Office (USCO) released part two of its report on the legal and policy issues related to copyright and artificial intelligence (AI). This report focuses specifically on whether works created using generative AI are copyrightable.
Commenting on the report, ASCAP CEO Elizabeth Matthews said: “We’re pleased to see the U.S. Copyright Office affirm our core principle of Human Creators First. ASCAP submitted comprehensive responses to the office to make sure music creators’ voices were heard throughout this process. As we embrace the exciting benefits of this new technology, ASCAP will continue to put human creators first and defend the value of our members’ creative work.”
The new guidance supports ASCAP's first AI principle: Human Creators First. Among the key findings:
Bombshell copyright ruling could be “financially devastating” for music publishers
A ruling last week in a US termination rights dispute could have big ramifications for the music industry. Previously when songwriters exercised the termination right in US copyright law, it was assumed they only got their US rights back. A court has now said termination should apply worldwide. A US judge last week made what could prove to be a bombshell ruling for the music industry. Louisiana Judge Shelly Dick ruled that songwriter Cyril E Vetter was able to reclaim all the rights he’d assigned to his music publisher under a 1963 publishing deal when he terminated that deal using the termination right in US copyright law. Crucially, he was able to reclaim the rights in relation to his 1962 song ‘Double Shot (Of My Baby’s Love)’ on a global basis, not just in the US.
Music industry convention has - until this case - operated on the assumption that when songwriters exercise their termination rights in US law they can only reclaim the rights in their songs within the US, meaning the publisher still controls the songs in the rest of the world.
More to come...
Music Publishers Begin ‘Extensive’ Spotify Podcast Takedowns Over Licensing Violations
Just hours after Spotify announced its first-ever annual net profit, the National Music Publishers’ Association has launched an ongoing takedown initiative against the streaming giant for the unlicensed use of music in podcasts on its platform.
Beginning today (Feb. 4), notices will be sent to remove thousands of unlicensed uses of NMPA members’ works, according to the announcement. Over 2,500 detections of infringement are included in the initial takedown notices. The move follows the trade group’s 2024 legal action against Spotify over its controversial audiobooks-music “bundling” deal, which significantly lowered the royalties paid out to music rights holders.
Cassette Recording: Is it Worthy?
Even though basic digital recorders have never been more affordable, there are those who continue to seek the simplicity and charm of old cassette-tape multitrackers. First arriving in the early 1980s, these bantamweight, easy-to-operate and mainly four-track “porta-studios” were a godsend for musicians who’d struggled to make anything listenable on the oversized and underwhelming reel-to-reel tape decks of the time.
Though a considerable improvement, cassettes, like reel tape, were prone to analog idiosyncrasies such as “wow” and “flutter” and also ran slower than conventional tape machines, resulting in more background noise or “hiss.” By the time the first digital multitrackers dropped a decade later, many of those who’d lived through the entire tape era were more than happy to move on.
But as the never-say-die vinyl format has shown, there remains a healthy enthusiasm for analog methods and machinery, and for those looking to dip their toes into tape, a functioning cassette four-tracker is a relatively safe place to start. Here we briefly look at the benefits and disadvantages of these digital predecessors, what to look for when considering a tape multitracker, using cassette in tandem with your digital recorder, and other thoughts.
Spotify Wins MLC Lawsuit Over Bundling Royalties
Spotify has won a legal battle against The Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC), with a federal judge ruling in favor of the streaming giant’s revised royalty structure.
The MLC filed a lawsuit last year, accusing Spotify of unlawfully cutting its royalty payments nearly in half by bundling audiobooks with its premium subscription service.
In a decision issued Wednesday (Jan. 31), Judge Analisa Torres ruled that Spotify’s approach was permitted under federal regulations, stating that audiobook streaming constitutes a distinct product with more than “token value,” according to a report from Billboard.
“MLC cannot plausibly claim that having access to audiobooks is not something of intrinsic and monetary value to many, even if only a fraction of Spotify’s millions of Premium subscribers may take advantage of it,” the judge wrote. “The court can draw only one conclusion: that 15 hours of monthly audiobook streaming is a product or service that has more than token value.”
The ruling solidifies Spotify’s ability to pay a lower “bundled” rate under federal royalty guidelines, rejecting MLC’s argument that the company’s offering did not constitute a true bundle.