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.”