American Federation of Musicians • American Federation
of Television and Radio Artists • Future of Music Coalition •
The Recording Academy • Recording Artists’ Coalition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 2, 2004
ARTIST GROUPS AND UNIONS FILE JOINT REPLY COMMENTS
ON TRANSITION TO DIGITAL AUDIO BROADCASTING AT FCC
Groups call on Commission to protect fair compensation
for the creative
music professionals who provide the backbone of the broadcast industry
WASHINGTON – Today, five prominent organizations representing recording
artists and musicians filed reply comments [PDF]
at the Federal Communications Commission in the proceeding examining the
upcoming transition from analog to digital audio broadcasting (DAB) (MM
Docket 99-325).
In their joint filing, the American Federation of Television and Radio
Artists (AFTRA), American Federation of Musicians (AFM), the Future of
Music Coalition (FMC), The Recording Academy®, and the Recording Artists’
Coalition (RAC) expressed broad support for and excitement about the opportunities
that digital audio broadcasting presents to citizens and recording artists.
Recording musicians, vocalists and other music professionals see great
potential for increased access to the airwaves, greater musical diversity
and more localism.
However, the artist groups also urged the FCC to recognize the potential
that DAB has to disrupt or diminish existing revenue streams on which
artists depend. Because of DAB’s reported capacity to let radio
listeners rewind, buffer and record radio broadcasts and songs, many in
the music industry are concerned that DAB will diminish CD sales and even
displace the emerging Internet technologies that offer legal downloads
or streams to music fans.
As a result, the artist groups called on the FCC to recognize the value
of recording artists’ work and ensure that the DAB transition also
includes a technological and regulatory framework that will ensure that
recording artists, songwriters and copyright owners are fairly compensated
in the future.
In particular, the artist groups expressed the need for sound recordings
to have a public performance royalty that the broadcaster pays to the
performer when a recording is broadcast. The US already has this type
of performance right for musical compositions and for digital transmissions
of sound recordings, however terrestrial broadcasts are currently exempt
from paying sound recording performance royalties. The recording artist
groups noted in their reply comments that DAB has developed differently
from what Congress envisioned when it exempted DAB from the performance
right in 1995. In fact, DAB has developed into the exact type of service
that Congress intended to be covered by a sound recording performance
right license.
The recording artist groups also acknowledged that DAB threatens their
revenue streams and, as a result, there may need to be some form of content
control and usage rules placed on works or on receivers in order to constrain
the indiscriminate recording and internet transmission of copyrighted
materials. The groups urged the FCC to conduct a full Notice of Proposed
Rulemaking on this particular issue before allowing DAB to launch.
Finally, the group reminded the FCC that the transition to DAB cannot
be viewed in isolation from current media ownership and localism proceedings.
The artist groups join other public interest and media reform organizations
in expressing concern that the FCC is ready to hand this valuable public
resource – the radio spectrum – to incumbent broadcasters
without condition. In the filing, the artist groups urge the FCC to recognize
that digital radio is a new and powerful medium, one in which incumbent
broadcasters must agree to meet new standards that embrace and fulfill
the fundamental obligations to enhance competition, localism and diversity.
Representatives from AFTRA, AFM, Recording Artists’ Coalition, The
Recording Academy and FMC further clarified the message in this filing:
John Connolly, National President, AFTRA: “DAB has great
potential to benefit the public and recording artists. However, without
content restrictions and a public performance right, DAB will make it
very hard for artists to survive financially. Recording artists’
ability to earn a living in this business is already very precarious,
and DAB will undermine the few income streams available to recording artists.
The needs of consumers and broadcasters must be balanced with the needs
of recording artists to survive financially and continue to create the
great American recordings which benefit our entire society and culture.”
Thomas F. Lee, International President, AFM: “The development
of Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) is positive for musicians by promoting
their music to a potentially wider audience. However, we are concerned
that our members be protected from potential exploitation through the
use of performance rights and content control.”
Michael Bracy, Policy Director, FMC: “There is widespread
consensus that massive consolidation of commercial radio ownership has
had a devastating impact on the traditional regulatory goals of localism,
competition and diversity. It is therefore troubling that some would view
DAB not as a way to address these concerns, but rather as tool for conglomerates
like Clear Channel to capture secondary revenue streams from their existing
licenses. Digital Audio Broadcasting has the potential to reinvigorate
radio, but only if the FCC has the courage to insist that the primary
beneficiaries of this transition are citizens, not conglomerates."
Rebecca Greenberg, National Director, RAC: “The Recording
Artists’ Coalition looks forward to a digital future that will allow
for greater access to the radio for musicians, and more choices for music
fans. But policymakers and the FCC must recognize that we’re at
a crucial crossroads and that recording artists’ livelihoods are
at stake. The transition to DAB has to include measures that will ensure
that recording artists are compensated for their work.”
Daryl Friedman, Vice President, Advocacy & Government Relations,
The Recording Academy: “The Recording Academy and the music
professionals it represents are excited about DAB’s potential for
high quality audio and rich content that provides new revenue for creators.
Our job is to ensure that potential is reached. We look forward to working
with the FCC and Congress to help create a system that at last gives artists
fair compensation for their work – the recordings that are the backbone
of the radio industry.”
# # #
CONTACTS:
AFTRA: Ann Chaitovitz (202) 223-1235
AFM: Hal Ponder (202) 463-0772
FMC: Michael Bracy (202) 331-2958
RAC: Margaret Cone (202) 265-3988
The Recording Academy: Daryl Friedman (202) 662-1341
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