A group that collects royalties for music artists and recording companies has agreed to reduce rates for thousands of commercial radio stations that also play songs over the Internet.
Internet radio station operators had complained that rates originally set by the federal Copyright Royalty Board in 2007 could essentially force them to shut down.
The new deal lowers those rates by about 16 percent in 2009 and 2010. The stations will now pay $1.50 for every song heard by a thousand listeners in 2009, rising to $2.50 per 1,000 listeners in 2015.
The agreement between the National Association of Broadcasters and the royalty-collection group SoundExchange covers the Internet streaming operations at several thousand NAB-member stations, including those owned by Clear Channel Communications Inc. and CBS Corp. Stations that are not members of the broadcasters’ group have the option of joining the agreement, according to the NAB.
The deal, announced Monday, is the latest between SoundExchange and groups representing over-the-air radio stations that also stream music over the Internet. Both sides have been negotiating new rates since a 2007 ruling by the Copyright Royalty Board dramatically raised the rates Internet radio stations had to pay recording companies and artists.
SoundExchange Executive Director John Simson said Tuesday that the agreement brings certainty to his group and the NAB about what the rates are.
“It also reinforces the value of our recordings for the artist and copyright owners over the course of the term,” he said.
SoundExchange is a nonprofit that collects royalties from Internet radio stations and other digital radio services and distributes them to recording companies and artists.
In a statement, NAB spokesman Dennis Wharton said the deal ensures that U.S. radio stations can continue to stream music over the Internet and “further strengthens the relat ionship between free, local radio and our 235 million weekly listeners.”
Webcasters and over-the-air radio stations already pay composers and music publishers royalties for the music they play, but traditional stations have been exempt from paying artists and recording companies any royalties under the logic that airplay provides free promotion. But broadcasters are subject to royalties for any songs played online.
Simson said SoundExchange is still trying to hammer out rate agreements with various groups, including two that represent college radio broadcasts and one representing religious broadcasts. The group also is in talks with major online-only webcasters, such as those represented by the Digital Media Association, a trade group composed of companies that run online audio and video services.
The agreement with the NAB comes several weeks after SoundExchange reached a similar deal with the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Under that agreement, SoundExchange gets an upfront royalty payment of $1.85 million for streaming of sound recordings on numerous public radio Web sites from Jan. 1, 2005, through Dec. 31, 2010.
Utah Leaders and Locals Rally To Keep Sundance Film Festival In The State
With the 2025 Sundance Film Festival underway, Utah leaders, locals and longtime attendees are making a final push — one that could include paying millions of dollars — to keep the world-renowned film festival as its directors consider uprooting.
Thousands of festivalgoers affixed bright yellow stickers to their winter coats that read "Keep Sundance in Utah" in a last-ditch effort to convince festival leadership and state officials to keep it in Park City, its home of 41 years.
Gov. Spencer Cox said previously that Utah would not throw as much money at the festival as other states hoping to lure it away. Now his office is urging the Legislature to carve out $3 million for Sundance in the state budget, weeks before the independent film festival is expected to pick a home for the next decade.
It could retain a small presence in picturesque Park City and center itself in nearby Salt Lake City, or move to another finalist — Cincinnati, Ohio, or Boulder, Colorado — beginning in 2027.
"Sundance is Utah, and Utah is Sundance. You can't really separate those two," Cox said. "This is your home, and we desperately hope it will be your home forever."
Last year's festival generated about $132 million for the state of Utah, according to Sundance's 2024 economic impact report.
Festival Director Eugene Hernandez told reporters last week that they had not made a final decision. An announcement is expected this year by early spring.
Colorado is trying to further sweeten its offer. The state is considering legislation giving up to $34 million in tax incentives to film festivals like Sundance through 2036 — on top of the $1.5 million in funds already approved to lure the Utah festival to its neighboring... Read More