The US music industry are pushing for some major changes in the way in which artists are paid each time their music is played on radio, which could have some very positive lucrative outcomes for all musicians who receive US airtime.
As Billboard reports, a very fresh bill has just been introduced at Congress entitled “Fair Play, Fair Pay Act Of 2015”, which if passed, would require terrestrial radio stations to pay artists for the right to broadcast sound recordings.
In addition to this, if the act were to be passed, all forms of US radio would be forced to pay master recordings royalties on music made prior to 1972 as well as ridding of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act which allowed certain older digital services to pay discounted rates.
At the moment, terrestrial radio stations don’t pay performers for their broadcast on radio, however should this change be made, they will join satellite and internet radio in making such payments.
Making the Aussie connection, there are plenty of our homegrown artists slaying it in mega music market in the US right now, one need only look at Courtney Barnett who casually climbed to number 20 on the Billboard 200 charts last week or Sia who’s tunes from last year’s 1000 Forms of Fear that are too still receiving huge airplay.
Should “Fair Play, Fair Pay Act Of 2015” pass and our musicians continue to dominate the US radiowaves, they may begin to receive plenty more deserved dollars each time their music is played.
