Justice Department Won't Take Action On Music Licensing Consent Decrees For Now

Delrahim

U.S. Assistant Attorney General MAKAN DELRAHIM told an audience at VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY LAW SCHOOL on FRIDAY (1/15) that the DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE Antitrust Division will not take action to change the Consent Decrees the government entered with ASCAP and BMI, saying that instead the agreements "should be reviewed every five years, to assess whether the decrees continue to achieve their objective to protect competition and whether modifications to the decrees are appropriate in light of changes in technology and the music industry."

The Consent Decrees, which date back to 1941 and were most recently modified in 2001 for ASCAP and 1994 for BMI, have become the subject of debate over fractional vs. full-work licensing for songs with multiple songwriters or publishers affiliated with different performing rights organizations, partial withdrawal (allowing rights holders to limit who can license a song), and allowing direct licensing, bypassing the PROs.

In his speech, DELRAHIM stressed the Antitrust Division's position that the decrees should continue for now offered three "guiding principles" for review, including ultimately relying on a market-based solution for compensation rather than the decrees, ensuring that the regulated market fairly compensate rights holders, and "the recognition that compulsory licensing is not the answer."

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF BROADCASTERS Pres./CEO GORDON SMITH said, "NAB is very pleased that the DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE will not move to make changes to the ASCAP and BMI consent decrees. We appreciate the willingness of DOJ to have an open mind and to conduct a comprehensive review of all of the possible issues raised by stakeholders concerning modifying or eliminating the decrees. DOJ's decision not to take action will ensure that ASCAP and BMI continue to fairly and efficiently license musical works in a manner that is pro-competitive. Broadcasters look forward to continuing to work with the performance rights organizations for the mutual benefit of songwriters, music licensees and listeners.”

« see more Net News