Urban Unrest

17 July 2007 | Business | Ernesto Aguilar

Dear Colleagues:

More details of the NPR/CPB meeting with SoundExchange have been finalized and are provided for your information. As stated earlier, no agreement has been reached on a substitute for the March 2nd decision of the Copyright Royalty Board. Discussions about the structure and amount of the fee over the base rate are ongoing. However, based on this morning’s meeting, two important accomplishments have occurred:

* CPB offered a payment to SoundExchange that they have accepted, to cover what we believe is the base rate payment for stations due on July 15th. This payment does not cover retroactive obligations from 2005 and 2006. However, we don’t expect SoundExchange to take any collections actions while we are in good faith discussions.

* NPR is confident that public radio stations can continue current music streaming operations for the next 3 months as good faith conversations unfold.

Future conversations among CPB, NPR, SoundExchange and RIAA also will explore improving the collection of data by public radio music webcasters and corresponding reporting requirements. This is a necessary discussion to ensure that the musicians and artists whose works appear on public radio webcasts are properly identified and compensated and that public radio stations are not burdened with impossible, unachievable obligations.

It is important and significant to note that the agreements reached today with SoundExchange temporarily relieve public radio stations of the additional payments and ATH calculations found in the CRB decision. Stations that are currently filing reports with SoundExchange should continue to do so. As noted above, NPR believes that no actions will be taken against public radio webcasters. Consequently, unless otherwise notified, there is no reason for stations to stop music webcasting, limit visitors to their music webstreams or change current operations.

Due to confidentiality requirements with SoundExchange, the information above cannot be made public without risking these negotiations. NPR Communications has been in contact with major national, regional and trade media today and provided them with the following statement, which you’re welcome to use as well. If you have additional media relations questions over the next few days, please contact Andi Sporkin, Vice President for Communications, NPR, asporkin@npr.org.

From Andi Sporkin, Vice President for Communications, NPR:

July 13, 2007 - “NPR and CPB had a productive meeting today with SoundExchange. At the meeting, no agreement was reached on a substitute for the March 2 decision of the Copyright Royalty Board. CPB offered a payment to SoundExchange, that has been accepted, to cover what NPR and CPB believe is due July 15 as the base rate payment for stations beginning March 2, 2007. NPR and CPB are confident that public radio stations can continue their music streaming operations for the next three months as good faith discussions are ongoing about the structure and amount of the ultimate fee. At this time, public radio stations will continue music webcasting without limit to visitors to their webstreams or changes in their current operations.”

Bruce Theriault, SVP, Radio, CPB
Dana Davis Rehm, SVP, Strategy & Partnerships, NPR

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