From SaveNetRadio.org__________________________________________________________
The future of Internet radio is in immediate danger. Royalty rates for webcasters have been drastically increased by a recent ruling and are due to go into effect on July 15 (retroactive to Jan 1, 2006!). Webcasters across the country participated in a national Day of Silence this week to increase awareness about this looming threat and gather support for the SaveNetRadio collation and our campaign to preserve music diversity on-line. The Internet Radio Equality Act is currently being considered by both the House and the Senate. This bill will set royalty rates for Internet radio equal to the royalty rate paid by satellite radio, and has gained over 120 cosponsors in the House.
If Congress is truly bent on preserving the Free Market, it should also preserve the Marketplace of Ideas. I am an adamant supporter of competition and by establishing these ridiculous royalty rates (from 300 per cent to 1200 per cent), Congress is stifling competition by creating a de facto subsidy to broadcast and satellite radio, which are commercial arms of the RIAA. Not all of our ideas come from the RIAA and our music should not be from merely one source--we are sick of listening to the same crap that is blared by RIAA-affiliated stations. We want a variety. We want diversity. We must stop Congress from establishing the RIAA as the only source of music and let music commerce resume as usual. Senators, PLEASE co-sponsor the Internet Radio Equality Act! Please support internet radio! Please support the Free Market!
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From the Chicago Tribune__________________________________________________________
New rates signal day Web-radio music dies
By Kenneth Rainey, a member of Tangleweed, an acoustic Americana band from Chicago
July 9, 2007
Every band dreams of the lucky night it'll be discovered by a music promoter or favorite record label. Overnight you've got a hot record, radio stations everywhere playing your songs and your band becomes a household name. It's the classic musician's fairy tale.
But it is a fairy tale and, for every new artist who is discovered by a major record label, there are thousands who aren't. For the rest of us, pursuing a career in music is hard. Now, proposed new royalty rates for Internet radio threaten to make it harder.
You see, our Americana band Tangleweed was "discovered" -- just not in a nightclub by an industry executive. We were discovered on Pandora.com by bookers for a huge music festival. After two years of playing small clubs in Chicago, our invitation to the Wakarusa Music & Camping Festival in Lawrence, Kan., was a big break for us.
While listening to similar music on a custom Internet radio station on Pandora.com, a festival organizer heard a Tangleweed track. He liked it so much that he tracked us down and offered us the chance to perform at the festival. With more than 7 million Internet radio listeners every day, Internet radio offers exposure for groups like ours that just isn't possible on mainstream radio stations.
But now we're at risk of losing it.
The Copyright Royalty Board recently issued catastrophic royalty rate hikes -- increases from 300 to 1,200 percent -- which are set to take effect July 15. And some of the increases will be retroactive to January of last year.
While music artists certainly benefit from royalties, this kind of royalty rate hike will mean bankruptcy for almost every Webcaster. Music is a labor of love for many Webcasters, as it is for so many musicians. A significant number of small Internet radio stations already operate at a loss; they carry on because of their commitment to the music they play. A dramatic rate hike is more than most can bear.
Right now, independent artists make up less than 10 percent of what's played on broadcast radio, but on Internet radio, we make up about 37 percent.
The reality is if our representatives in Congress allow these new royalty rates to go into effect -- and it's within Congress' power to decide -- it'll make it far harder for independent artists like us to make it. Worse for those of us who are also music fans, online radio will start to sound a whole lot more like broadcast radio. Millions of people whose musical tastes aren't served by broadcast radio will be left without an alternative.
While we've become believers in Internet radio for selfish reasons -- as both artists and listeners -- the principle of creating a marketplace encouraging artistic entrepreneurs stands on its own. It should be no surprise that the Internet, which has been the source of innovation in so many different industries, has been the home of and outlet for innovation in the music industry.
From our perspective, killing Internet radio means that thousands of great bands will go undiscovered -- and that's nothing but bad news for artists.
Killing Internet radio will not only stifle the great technology we have now, it will also stifle the innovation of even better, newer and more exciting ways to enjoy music -- and that's nothing but bad news for all of us.
From the Baltimore Sun
Independent artists fear the demise of Internet radio
By SONiA
July 4, 2007
I've spent my entire career making music that transcends fear. In fact, the Baltimore-based band I started with my sister in 1994 is called disappear fear.
It might come as a surprise, then, that I'm writing now about something a lot of independent artists are scared about these days: the impending death of Internet radio.
Indie artists don't often have the luxury of being the "next big thing," endorsed and promoted by the record industry. For a lot of us, broadcast radio is mostly uncharted territory. We've come to rely on the Internet to get the word out, namely Internet radio, through which a lot of us have been able to find a modest fan base.
Because we aren't regularly appearing on MTV, and American Idol's Ryan Seacrest probably doesn't know our names, Internet radio is one of our few real opportunities for exposure to large audiences. With more than 7 million Internet radio listeners every day - most of whom are tired of the redundancy they find on broadcast radio - the opportunities abound for the artists who before had very few. What's more, over each of the last few years, Internet radio's audience has grown steadily.
Now we're at risk of losing it.
In May, the Copyright Royalty Board issued catastrophic royalty rate increases - ranging from 300 percent to 1,200 percent - that Internet radio companies would have to pay for the music they stream. The rates are set to take effect July 15, with the increases retroactive to January of last year.
As you might expect, these rate increases would drastically outweigh the revenues of many Internet radio broadcasters, most of whom have small staffs and budgets and are struggling to make online radio a sustainable business. Many of these Webcasters would have no choice but to shut down in the face of these new rates.
While the royalty rate increases would mean certain bankruptcy for almost every Webcaster, the effect on indie artists would also be disastrous. Losing Internet radio would mean the loss of our biggest promotional resource.
This becomes obvious when you look at the market. Right now, independent artists make up less than 10 percent of what's played on broadcast radio. On Internet radio, we make up about 37 percent.
And as much I appreciate royalties as an artist, a bump in royalties means little to indie singer-songwriters if it also means the death of our biggest source of exposure. If Internet radio dies, there won't be any royalties to pay.
The reality is, if our leaders in Congress allow these new royalty rates to go into effect - and it's within Congress' power to decide - it will make it much harder for independent artists like me to get off the ground to find their audience. What's worse for music lovers is that with such high fees, online radio will start to look a whole lot more like broadcast radio: a limited number of artists, a limited number of genres and a lot of bored music fans.
I've become a believer in Internet radio for selfish reasons - as both an artist and a listener - but the principle of creating a marketplace encouraging artistic entrepreneurs stands on its own. It should be no surprise that the Internet, the source of innovation in so many different industries, has been the home of and outlet for innovation in the music industry.
Killing Internet radio would stifle this innovation just as it would stifle the indie labels and bands fighting to be heard, the Webcasters fighting to stay alive and the listeners just trying to find something new.
I'm not worried about me. As a solo artist and in our band, I have had a great career, crisscrossing the country and traveling the world. I have been fortunate to have had broadcast radio support. But I'm concerned about the artists just now getting their start.
For us, Internet radio has become essential. A world without it can only be described as scary.
SONiA is a Baltimore-based musician. Her e-mail is sonia@disappearfear.com.
Copyright © 2007, The Baltimore Sun
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