Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Google) posted a rather extraordinarily desperate press release about HR 1695 (the Register of Copyrights Selection and Accountability Act) that has a lot of flaws, but here’s one in particular that stuck in the craw. Rep. Lofgren’s criteria for a suitable candidate for the head of the U.S. Copyright Office is particularly striking; […]
The lopsided vote this week on HR 1695 (the Register of Copyrights Selection and Accountability Act) invites an explanation (378-48). Some people were surprised by just how few votes the opposition got but the spread in our office pool was at least 300 voting “yes”. Why? You hear different explanations for this such as Republicans like […]
Many times, I am asked to speak to student law associations and sometimes to artist associations. At these, there are frequent questions about the future of the arts in the era of unfettered internet exploitation. My response is usually in the form of a question: “Did you hear that? (Silence) “Let me ask you again… […]
Amazon, Google, Pandora, Spotify and other tech companies are taking advantage of their influence in the Library of Congress to leverage a loophole in the Copyright Act to their great benefit and to songwriters great harm. Congress can stop them overnight if the Congress will act.
Thanks to everyone who called, wrote, signed petitions and talked about it to your friends and neighbors, thanks to the bands in the vans and everyone who would not be cowed. This victory is for you.
The House Committee on the Judiciary says the House will vote on HR 1695 today–the bipartisan Register of Copyrights Selection and Accountability Act. If you haven’t already, call your House member today and ask them to vote YES on HR 1695!
[Cross posted from Artist Rights Watch] I want to call your attention to a letter by members of the Content Creators Coalition regarding the Copyright Office. First, a little context. In case you missed it, Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Google) has been on a tear to oppose a bill in the House of Representatives (HR 1695) […]
[Editor Charlie sez: Remember when the government set the price of mechanical royalties at $0.02 in 1909 and “forgot” to raise it until 1978? And then–in 1978–started giving songwriters increases based on inflation (Consumer Price Index) with no compensation for the government’s past mistakes? Gee, thanks government. If they’d given inflation adjustments in 1909, minimum statutory would […]
When you drill down on exactly what goes into tracking and accounting for songs and recordings on streaming services one thing becomes apparent: No matter how much you automate, those systems are expensive and the royalties are minuscule. This is in large part because of the revenue share method of royalty payments that creates a […]
Music Technology Policy 
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