by Derek Crownover LLP - attorney with the Nashville office of Dickinson Wright

The music industry is being rocked by the new age of digital media and distribution. This is no more evident than in the recent legal battle between music streaming service Pandora and performing rights organizations ASCAP.

ASCAP and the half-million songwriters it serves are fighting an uphill battle because the courts have ruled Pandora can license digital rights to ASCAP songs for just 1.85 percent of revenue. ASCAP argues that rate should be 2.5 to 3 percent.

Song publishers are losing leverage, too, because the judges also say they cannot cut separate and direct deals with Pandora for the digital rights to the publishers’ song catalogs if they are already members of ASCAP. Said another way, publishers simply can’t give digital rights to Pandora and then ask ASCAP and other performing rights organizations, such as BMI and SESAC, to collect royalties on all other types of performances, such as concerts and at stadiums, motel venues and bars. It’s all or nothing, the courts say — either give all rights to the performing rights organizations or give them nothing.


The result is ASCAP, BMI and SESAC are sweating out the potential for large publishers to cut ties with their organizations in order to leverage their own deals with digital companies to preserve their futures. A year from now, these performing rights organizations could be shadows of their former selves. This is a potentially huge shift in power on Music Row as well — and the biggest struggle of all could be happening in the small publishing houses.

The music oligopoly
Even if consent decrees are relaxed in pending appeals or future lawsuits, large publishers are the only ones that have real leverage with large digital aggregators to negotiate the best rates for catalog uses — leaving Music Row’s small and medium-size publishers facing their own battle for sustainability in the digital age.

With a catalog of a few hundred to a few thousand copyrights versus the tens of thousands owned and active across digital platforms by major publishers, smaller publishers and songwriters aren’t equipped to dole out blanket licenses for their material. Generally, they have to leverage off of a larger entity, such as ASCAP and BMI, to maximize their values for digital or airplay uses around the world.

While large publishers and organizations may use a small publisher’s song rights to grow their assets and attract attention from digital companies, it’s the large publishers that receive advances and ownership stakes. Small publishers may never receive their full share of royalties and must struggle amid shrinking performance checks.


Small publishers generally don’t have the technology or the wherewithal to track, collect and distribute micropayments from digital companies. Digital micropayments are big data that require a complex accounting system to allocate funds among publishers and writers. In these instances, publishers are literally chasing fractions of pennies without the manpower or technology to find out whether these totals are accurate. The infrastructure and the incentives just aren’t there.

These smaller publishers are caught in a paradox: They need to embrace the digital landscape for sustainability but lack the resources to do so independently and fairly.

Fighting for regs
Right now, there are no fundamental regulations for auditing digital rights within performing rights organizations or under the Copyright Act to ensure that publishers and songwriters are receiving accurate royalty payments when it comes to digital performances. Many direct deals with the larger aggregators conveniently leave out the ability for smaller or mid-size publishers to audit and find the truth. The extreme minutia of royalty micropayments, coupled with the swift onset of digital music streaming, often has led to performing rights organizations and smaller publishers accepting payments at best-effort levels and face value, but not necessarily accurate.

What is needed is an accountable system of regulations established under the Copyright Act that results in fair and accurate tracking and distribution of digital rights and royalty payments.


If all publishers can be certain, through the law and oversight, that the system for digital rights is fair and honest, as well as efficient, then smaller publishers won’t need their own technology to seek their own truth in their royalty payments. It also would alleviate the need to hitch themselves to large publishers or invest in technology and processes they cannot afford.

A good accounting system, upheld by the law, could shift the publishing world from its oligopolistic state to a competitive, entrepreneurial society that offers more leverage for publishers with smaller catalogs.

What that exact system looks like is hard to say, but it’s one the music industry must fight for. Otherwise, our independent publishers could continually fade to black.

Derek Crownover is a member attorney with the Nashville office of Dickinson Wright and heads up the firm-wide Entertainment Law Practice Group. Contact him at DCrownover@dickinsonwright.com.

(Bloomberg) - Dan Cohen, [www.musicandmemory.org] executive director and founder of Music and Memory, explains how music is being used to help patients with Alzheimer’s and dementia. He speaks with Pimm Fox on "Taking Stock." (Source: Bloomberg)

The latest print figures are in, and they’re not pretty. New Musical Express is down to less than 15,000 copies sold a week, with Q Magazine seeing a 21.8% year on year decline, and now averages 46,096 copies per issue. Kerrang! and Mojo have also seen their print sales decline.


NME’s publishers point out that its content is read by many more than read the magazine in its print heyday, pointing to an 85% increase in its mobile traffic year-on-year.

Are you one of the dwindling band who still reads music magazines? If not, what made you give up? Or perhaps you’re part of the growing demographic who have always got their music news, interviews and features online via blogs, websites, and social media.

Most children his age haven't even heard of B.B. King, but 10 year old Felix De St-Hilaire's rendition "Everyday I Have The Blues" has everyone thrilled.

As if Felix's soulful voice and impressive guitar skills weren't enough, the Quebec boy's mother Marie-Eve Soucy told CTV News he has been blind since birth and learned guitar simply by listening.






"He started to play on his own. It was incredible," Soucy told the news channel in French.






The YouTube video, which shows Felix performing at a summer camp for the blind, went viral this week.

According to Global News, the video was first shared on Facebook August 1, by Wednesday it had been shared over 120,000 times.

This isn't the only video of the young musician; he's been showing off his incredible talent on YouTube for years.

by Pete Thorn | Visit: http://www.peterthorn.com/

Tour time has come again! It’s always exciting, slightly anxiety provoking, and busy. For most of my touring career, I’ve worked with artists based in Los Angeles. As of late, I’ve found myself branching out by touring with international artists...

I had an amazing time last year playing with French pop-star Mylène Farmer. I essentially relocated to Paris for five months and it was a great experience, both musically and culturally. I’m headed to Japan this year to tour with Japanese rock-legend Tsuyoshi Nagabuchi. Touring always requires foresight and planning, but touring outside of the U.S. requires extra logistical preparation. So for this month’s column, I’m going to detail what needs to be done before it’s time to go rock.


Music prep. I’m a big fan of going into rehearsals well prepared. You want to show up on day one with a solid grasp of the music. This will make rehearsals flow smoothly and will allow you and your fellow musicians to concentrate on things like gelling as a band, and developing transitions and alternate endings.


Study both live and studio recordings, watch live videos on YouTube or DVDs, make charts if necessary, and plan out what gear and tones you will use on each song ahead of time. I always program my pedal-board while I’m learning the songs so I’ll have all my tones already dialed in prior to rehearsals.

Gear prep. Making sure your gear is maintained and ready for the road is imperative. If you haven’t changed your amp’s tubes in ages, it’s time for a visit to your local tech. I like to start each tour with fresh tubes in my amps, and I always carry a spare set of matched power tubes for both of my PT-100 heads. I can just drop in the replacement set with no biasing required, because the tubes are matched to the set in the amp. Though I run a stereo-amp rig, I’m always covered if one head malfunctions because I can go to one amp in mono.

I bring lots of accessories including strings, capos, slides, picks, batteries, straps, strap locks, truss rod wrenches, etc. I don’t want to worry about finding music stores on the road, so I stock up on whatever I’ll need for the entire tour.


Lists are your friends, so make lists of everything you need to keep your entire rig functioning smoothly, and do it well in advance. I also suggest labeling and numbering your road cases clearly and legibly. If a cargo company is dealing with transporting your gear, you can give them a detailed list of your cases.

Visas for you and your gear. It goes without saying that you’ll definitely want to check the visa requirements for the places you’ll be traveling, well in advance of your tour (six months if possible). If you are a sideman like me, managers or promoters usually handle this, but invariably, some of the burden will fall on you.

I had to submit detailed personal info to management to start the visa process for Japan, and this was done a few months ago. I eventually received an eligibility document from the Japanese government that I then had to submit to the Japanese consulate here in Los Angeles, along with my passport. A week later I went to the consulate again and got my passport back with my Japan work visa. It seems that no two countries have the same procedures for securing visas, so leave plenty of time for snags and delays. The last thing you want is to have your tour derailed due to a problem securing the proper documents and/or work visas.


Your gear will need a visa too. This is also something usually handled by managers or promoters, but when gear moves from country to country, a carnet will be needed. It’s a list of all the equipment that is being shipped, and is essentially like a passport for your gear. Countries want to know the models, serial numbers, and values of the equipment you bring in and out. So make a detailed list of all of your gear—including case numbers and the aforementioned information for each piece of gear—and submit it well in advance to management.

It’s the little things. Want to make a good first impression when touring in a foreign land? Do some research on the customs and language before you go. While the French have a reputation for being snooty and rude toward foreigners, I found just the opposite to be true. I spent time learning some simple French phrases before traveling there and they were incredibly gracious and accommodating towards me. When people sense you have put in an effort to fit in and absorb some of their culture, they really appreciate it.

This Infographic Untangles The Complex Web Of U.S. Music Royalties

A new infographic from trade group Music Biz, “Music Royalties USA Quick Start Guide,” offers songwriters and performing musicians a simpler way to understand the complex framework they must navigate to receive full payment for their work.



Included are how royalties are handled for songwriters, publishers, and performers in various media ranging from physical and download sales, radio, tv, satellite, the various forms of streaming, and synchronization.

The infographic also explains some of the more misunderstood jargon related to royalties and tells songwriters, publishers, and performers exactly which entities they need to register with. The “Music Royalties USA Quick Start Guide” is the latest in a series of informational infographics from Music Biz including “Global Music Licensing Quick Start Guide,” “SEO for Music Websites,” and “Artist Website Toolkit.”


“Because the rules governing music royalties are so complex and differ so greatly from one medium to another, many artists are leaving a significant amount of money on the table without even knowing it,” said Bill Wilson, Vice President of Digital Strategy and Business Development at Music Biz.

A new report has claimed there is too much sexism and racism in music videos, stating that modern clips create a "conducive context" for violence against women and girls, Gigwise reports.

The study, compiled by Pornographic Performances gathered a wide range of data from a wealth of sources to form their argument, and the group are now urging for radical change in the industry.

Commissioned by the End Violence Against Women Coalition, the study found that women were being hyper-sexualised in music videos, whilst male subjects were predominantly shown in positions of "power and dominance."


The study comes in the wake of continued debate over the last few months about how women are represented in music videos, an argument that hit fever pitch with Robin Thicke's misogynistic video for "Blurred Lines."




Ia Latchford of Imkaan Young Women's Team said: "For years young women have been telling us that they are not happy with the representation of women in popular culture, including music videos. We are happy to finally see a briefing which reflects their experiences and the harmful impact of racism and sexism in music videos."

She continued: "We believe in women's right to self-expression and freedom of movement. Our concern is how the music industry uses music videos as yet another vehicle to colonise and commodify black women's bodies. We urge the music industry to consider what young women and the evidence are telling them."

Based upon their findings Pornographic Performances are pursuing change in the way music videos are made and accessed, particularly by informing young people about what is and isn't acceptable, hearing the views of young women and by introducing compulsory age ratings on music videos.

The full report can be seen here.