All about copyright, understanding music licensing, and government regulations.
Rhapsody and Napster have settled a long-standing class-action lawsuit over mechanical licensing. The settlement, filed in the U.S. District Court of Northern California, will see the streaming services make payouts to self-published songwriters whose compositions were played on the music platform. Continue Reading
The text of the EU Copyright Directive has been finalized, meaning the stage is set for a sweeping legal update that could have unintended consequences for online communication in the bloc. With the final language decided, new revisions cannot be made and the legislation will go to the European Parliament’s legal affairs committee ahead of a final vote, which is expected to occur in March or April. Continue Reading
Europe’s efforts for copyright law overhaul were controversial when they first progressed through Parliament, and the Copyright Directive measures have only become more contentious over time. Article 13 in particular could have far-reaching implications for not just copyright law, but the foundations of how people communicate and create on the Internet. Continue Reading
The Music Modernization Act is open to submissions for the management of the Mechanical Licensing Collective through March 21. A group comprised of the National Music Publishers’ Association, the Nashville Songwriters Association International, and the Songwriters of North America have made their bid for the leadership of the MLC. Continue Reading
Rumblefish and 7digital have broadened their existing relationship. Rights administration service Rumblefish is a division of the Harry Fox Agency. Under the new deal with B2B music specialist 7digital, Rumblefish will leverage its rights management solution to speed the launch of services and streamline administration for music distribution models powered by 7digital. Continue Reading
The European Copyright Directive passed one big hurdle in the fall, but the fate of the contentious legislative overhaul is now in question. Two components of the legal package have raised debate: Article 11, which lets publishers charge a fee when online platforms like Google or Facebook show snippets of their articles, and Article 13, which makes platforms such as YouTube liable for user-generated content that infringes copyright. Continue Reading
MIDiA Research has a new report examining YouTube’s impact on the international streaming market. Its assessment shares statistics from the video platform in Q3 2018 and shares insights as to how the recent legislation passed in Europe could have unintended effects on the music industry as a whole. Continue Reading
The passage of the Music Modernization Act in October was hailed as a watershed moment for the industry, a big step to bring the law in line with the latest trends in how and where music consumption happens. Work has now begun to enact one of the Act’s critical measures. Continue Reading
Spotify has reached a settlement with Wixen. The independent publisher filed a $1.6 billion lawsuit against the streaming service at the start of the year on claims that Spotify had hosted tens of thousands of compositions from Wixen without the correct mechanical licenses. Continue Reading
LyricFind has entered a deal with South African mechanical rights organization Composers, Authors and Publishers Association (or CAPASSO). The blanket deal will see songs fully licensed and monetized by LyricFind’s lyric licensing platform across 38 countries in Africa. Continue Reading
Major labels and publishers are quick to call in the copyright lawyers, and this time their target was a podcast that they claimed was illegally using music in episodes. David Oxenford explains the distinctions between different performance licenses and what podcasters should do to stay on the right side of copyright law. Continue Reading
Streaming platform Mixcloud has signed a multiyear direct licensing network with Merlin Network, an independent label group and music rights agency. The deal will ensure that recording artists represented by Merlin will receive royalties when their music is played on the Mixcloud streaming service and on its upcoming subscription service. Continue Reading