Royalty fight clouds music subscriptions

Iria · Aug 27, 2005, 12:48 AM

Digital music companies and music publishers have reached an impasse in royalty negotiations, clouding the future of online subscription services such as those from Yahoo, RealNetworks and Napster.

The two sides have been negotiating on and off for years over the amount of money that songwriters and music publishers should get from these subscription plans, which allow listeners to download or stream an unlimited amount of music per month.

The services have long since struck agreements with record labels, and download stores such as Apple Computer's iTunes have their royalties settled. Subscription services have been operating under a temporary agreement with the publishers since 2001, however.

"The problem is that it's been four years, and we have not had one penny distributed to songwriters or publishers," said David Israelite, chief executive officer of the National Music Publishers' Association. "The digital subscription market has been inhibited by the lack of certainty."
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Read More / Source: News.com

pr0digal jenius · Aug 27, 2005, 06:40 AM

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Aug 27, 2005, 12:48 AM	#1
Iria DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Apr 2004 Posts: 7,275 Rep Power: 87	Royalty fight clouds music subscriptions Digital music companies and music publishers have reached an impasse in royalty negotiations, clouding the future of online subscription services such as those from Yahoo, RealNetworks and Napster. The two sides have been negotiating on and off for years over the amount of money that songwriters and music publishers should get from these subscription plans, which allow listeners to download or stream an unlimited amount of music per month. The services have long since struck agreements with record labels, and download stores such as Apple Computer's iTunes have their royalties settled. Subscription services have been operating under a temporary agreement with the publishers since 2001, however. "The problem is that it's been four years, and we have not had one penny distributed to songwriters or publishers," said David Israelite, chief executive officer of the National Music Publishers' Association. "The digital subscription market has been inhibited by the lack of certainty." __________ Read More / Source: News.com

Aug 27, 2005, 06:40 AM	#2
pr0digal jenius Delete Me Join Date: Mar 2004 Posts: 14,648 Rep Power: 0	i <3 Napster To Go