Save music on the Net

I'm sure some of you know about the proposed increase to royalties for music played on the Net. This sort of increase has been proposed for a long time, almost always by the RIAA itself (IE not the artists). But now the publishing companies representing the artists have gotten something through that may pass that will increase the current royalty rate paid to the artists by Internet radio stations. The proposed increase, just like the older RIAA sponsored increases, is astornomical and will most likely bankrupt smaller Internet-only raido stations.

The proposed increase is an increase in royalties from anywhere between 300%-1200%. If it passes, it will go into effect on July 15, and the royalty payments will be retroactive to January of 2006. This back payment that will be required will amount to potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars, money many smaller Internet-only radio stations simply do not have. Even many larger terrestrial radio stations with advertisers who also stream online are considering pulling their Net streams because they feel that the price hike is just too much.

So, check out the link in the banner below for more information.