September 30th, 2008
Webcasting - and Pandora - saved!
The Senate passed the Webcaster Settlement Act, described here. The bill goes to President Bush, who is expected to sign it.
“I’m relieved, optimistic, and grateful to our listeners,” said Tim Westergren, founder of Pandora. (News.com)
Even the RIAA was thumbs-up over the legislation:
“This is a welcome and encouraging development and a sign of the constructive working relationship between the music industry and Webcasters,” said Mitch Bainwol, the RIAA’s chairman and CEO. “Together, we want to make this marketplace work for both music fans and music creators.”
The bill gives SoundExchange and webcasters until Feb. 15 to agree on lower royalties than those ordered by the copyright court.
| 09/30/08
