Native New Havener Ben Allison, a composer and jazz musician who serves as a governor of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences’ New York chapter, weighed in earlier this month at a Capitol Hill hearing on the “Future of Radio.” Allison, who is scheduled to appear in a June 27 performance with poet Robert Pinsky at the International Festival of Arts and Ideas, testified on June 6 before a subcommittee of the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Among the issues discussed by the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology was who gets royalties for music played on terrestrial and satellite radio.
On his blog, Allison wrote: “While songwriters get paid when their recordings are played on AM/FM radio, performers (the musicians who played on the recording) do not.”
As the record of his testimony reflects, Allison told the subcommittee, “Noninteractive Internet and Satellite radio services primarily pay performers through a compulsory license, allowing the services to play any song they choose, as long as they pay the rate established by the Copyright Royalty Board set up by Congress. … one concern for artists is that services may in the future choose to license directly with record labels. Such a scenario could mean lower payments to artists.”
Allison explained to the subcommittee that “ironically, one of the most pressing issues for performers is not about the future of audio, but its past. And the concern is not caused by a new technology — but rather by one that has been around for more than a century: traditional, over-the-air radio. Terrestrial broadcasters have an inexplicable ‘free ride’ when it comes to performance royalties. They are exempt from paying performers any royalties … This makes corporate radio the only business in America that can legally use another’s intellectual property without permission or compensation.”
A memo circulated by the House Committee on Energy and Commerce prior to the subcommittee’s hearing on the “Future of Radio” put it this way: “Under copyright law, satellite and Internet radio stations must pay performers and recording owners for music they transmit. Broadcast radio stations do not, however. They argue this is necessary to preserve free, over-the-air radio, and that broadcast radio airtime promotes record sales.”
In his opening remarks at the June 6 hearing, subcommittee chairman Greg Walden (R‑OR), said, “Experimentation will be critical as new technologies challenge existing business models. That is why I was intrigued by the announcement yesterday that Clear Channel and record label Big Machine will share over-the-air revenue while trying to grow the online market.”
On his blog, Allison wrote: “After my testimony, I was asked a question by Congresswoman Mary Bono-Mack who, as you may know, is also the wife of the late Sonny Bono. Her question gave me the chance to bring up Carol Kaye, the great bassist from the LA recording scene, whose seminal playing can be heard on countless recordings and big pop hits. One such recording was Sonny’s ‘The Beat Goes On’ which Sonny wrote originally as a swing tune. Arguably, it’s Carol’s funky bass line that helped make that a hit. And yet Carol gets no royalties when it’s played on the radio (as it still is). … This has to change.”