Radio Station Performance Tax Bill

[Richland123]

Did you hear about this? www.noperformancetax.org ... there is a performance tax bill in Congress to levy a tax against radio stations for playing music. They're trying to pass the bill in congress. Just another "bailout" money sucking government program, but if it goes through, could be bad for alot of small stations.

[billm]

What a bunch of crap.

Did you know that if you record a song you did not write, you will not make any money if that song is played on a radio station in the USA? The composer will get money, but not YOU, the performer.

In Europe and most of the far east, that same song will generate revenue for both the composer AND the performer. The USA is one of the few places in the world where performers don't get paid for their work.

Tax? It's no more a tax than the royalties paid to composers by the radio stations is a tax. It's called earned income by the composers, not a tax.

As a performer who is not a writer/composer, I would love to get royalty checks if I have a recorded performance broadcast by the radio stations in the USA like those performers are paid in the rest of the world.

[Pacman]

Originally Posted by billm

Did you know that if you record a song you did not write, you will not make any money if that song is played on a radio station in the USA? The composer will get money, but not YOU, the performer.

Not true at all. Where did you get that information?

[PRUNEFACE]

Originally Posted by Pacman

Not true at all. Where did you get that information?

Actually I thought that was (mostly) correct. THe people that make the most money are the song writers (unless you're uber-popular touring -as in ridiculously popular).
I think more taxes are a good idea, radio stations actually have it pretty easy.

[Pacman]

Originally Posted by PRUNEFACE

Actually I thought that was (mostly) correct. THe people that make the most money are the song writers (unless you're uber-popular touring -as in ridiculously popular).
I think more taxes are a good idea, radio stations actually have it pretty easy.

It's incorrect - do you really think Brittany Spears didn't make money on "I Love Rock and Roll"?

The real money in music is in the publishing rights - that's what makes the lion's share of money from broadcast. However, performers *do* make money on the mechanical licensing.

[JTE]

Generally, the performer whose name is on the recording only gets a royalty when a copy of the recording sells. The composer (or whomever owns the copyright) gets paid whenever the song (which is NOT the same as the recording) gets played for broadcast, when a copy sells, when the sheet music sells, when legal TAB is sold, when it gets used in a commercial, when a parody gets played, sold, used, etc.

The money's in the copyright, not the record.

jte

[Pacman]

And since the recordings are copyrighted, even cover artists get paid for broadcasts. While the original composer (or whomever owns the publishing rights) gets a share, the artist who recorded also gets a bite. It's not an all or nothing proposition..

The real money is in the publishing rights.

[billm]

Originally Posted by Pacman

And since the recordings are copyrighted, even cover artists get paid for broadcasts. While the original composer (or whomever owns the publishing rights) gets a share, the artist who recorded also gets a bite. It's not an all or nothing proposition..

The real money is in the publishing rights.

Jon, please read this article:

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/n...-music-too.ars

The first paragraph pretty much covers it.

>The campaign to get radio stations to pay
>up for the music they play marches on.
>With revenues from recorded music sales
>declining, rightsholders have turned their
>eyes in recent years to commercial US radio,
>which currently pays songwriters (but not
>performers or record labels) for the tunes
>that power their business.

Thanks.

billm