The Day The Music Died / Now The RIAA Wants To Kill The Webcasters Too !!!

Small internet radio stations face being wiped out by a change in the way royalties are calculated. But stay tuned - the fight is far from over, says Danny Bradbury

Tim Westergren never thought he'd run a dotcom startup. He was a musician, sleeping in tour vans on the road and recording the occasional film score. When he did decide to start a business, he put six years of his life into it. This week, he is preparing to shut down his nascent UK operation and mulling the future of the US one, as legislators on both sides of the Atlantic threaten to kill his business.

Web radio faces its death knell

The SaveNetRadio Coalition

Congress and SoundExchange have heard loud and clear the amazing outpouring of support for Internet radio from webcasters, listeners and the thousands of artists they support. A commitment has been made to negotiate reasonable royalties, recognizing the industry’s long-term value and its still-developing revenue potential.

During negotiations SoundExchange committed temporarily not to enforce the new royalty rates so webcasters can stay online as new rates are agreed upon.

This development is due in great part to the millions of people who have let their Congressional representatives know about their support of Internet radio. Over 125 representatives have cosponsored the bill to this point.

We urge listeners to continue calling their Senators and Representative to ask them to co-sponsor the Internet Radio Equality Act. Thank you.

Savenetradio.org

Technorati Tags:webcasters, web radio, riaa, tim westergren, danny bradbury, pandora, soundexchange, savenetradio.org
Generated By Technorati Tag Generator