FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 3/14/2001
Contact: Ancient Future Music
1-415-459-1892
info@ancient-future.com
An Open Letter Offering a Solution Allowing
Music File Sharing
on the Internet
(This Open Letter was sent to the Chairman and Ranking Member
of the Senate Judiciary Committee)
3/14/01
Honorable Senator Orrin G. Hatch, Chairman
Honorable Senator Patrick Leahy, Ranking Member
Senate Judiciary Committee
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Senators:
I have a solution to the controversy about music piracy on the
Internet. I believe that what is necessary is the creation of
a compulsory statutory license for music file sharing on the Internet.
This would provide for a statutory rate for a music duplication
and distribution license fee that would go to the owner of the
copyright in the sound recording whenever a file is copied. Right
now, that owner is usually the record label, but some musicians
own the copyrights to their own master recordings.
This solution has a precedent in copyright law under the United
States Copyright Act. The Act provides that once a song copyright
owner has recorded and distributed a song to the US public or
permitted another to do so, a compulsory mechanical license is
available to anyone else who wants to record and distribute the
work in the US upon the payment of license fees at the statutory
"compulsory" rate as set forth in Section 115 of the Act. This
allows an artist to record and release any song they wish provided
that they pay the copyright owner of the song in question a mechanical
royalty, which is currently set at 7.55 cents per song per record
sold. This royalty goes to the publisher of the song, who typically
splits the royalty with the song’s composer. This mechanical license
does not include the right to reproduce an already existing sound
recording.
A compulsory statutory license tends to act as a maximum royalty.
People are free to negotiate any deal they want, but in the absence
of negotiations, the compulsory statutory license rate holds.
Since mechanical licenses will already have been acquired by the
sound recording copyright holders, any compulsory statutory duplication
and distribution license fee will have to be high enough for the
sound recording copyright holder to pay the mechanical license
royalty from.
For example, the Pay2StealMusic.com web site enables a download
of a four minute song composed by Joe Songwriter, published by
Get Your Song Recorded Publishing, performed by the band Covers
R Us, and released on Huge Major Label Records. With a statutory
license rate of 25 cents per minute, Pay2StealMusic.com would
pay Huge Major Label Records $1 for the download. Huge Major Label
Records would pay Get Your Song Recorded Publishing 7.55 cents
for the song’s mechanical royalty. Typically, Get Your Song Recorded
Publishing would pay 50% of this (3.775 cents) to Joe Songwriter.
If Covers R Us has negotiated extremely well with Huge Major Label
Records, then Huge Major Label Records would credit the Covers
R Us recording fund 42.5 cents (half of the download income less
the cost of the mechanical royalty). If Covers R Us has used their
studio time to good effect and has spent only $4250 recording
the song, then they have to log 10,000 downloads before they can
start seeing some income.
This would allow any site on the Internet to promote music file
sharing provided that they pay the compulsory statutory license
fee to the sound recording copyright holder. Internet sites would
be free to negotiate a lower license fee, and many would be successful
at such negotiations. A central database of sound recording copyright
holders could be set up to assist small organizations and individuals
in arranging licenses.
Musicians, independent labels, major labels, file sharing sites
and the public would benefit from such an arrangement. Musicians
would benefit by not being as tied to an exclusive contract with
a label. Independent labels would get added distribution. The
major labels would benefit greatly financially because they own
a huge portion of the content. File sharing sites could offer
any music they choose and could also negotiate with copyright
holders for bulk rates based on any promotional value they may
be able to offer. The public would support this because it is
fair and allows file sharing to continue.
Sincerely,
Matthew Montfort
Musical Director
Ancient Future
World Fusion Music Ensemble
415-459-1892
info@ancient-future.com
ancient-future.com
Napster now respects copyright law, and Ancient Future tracks are available. Feel free to download and stream them all you like!