Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

posted by martyb on Thursday September 27 2018, @08:23AM   Printer-friendly
from the British-Invasion's-royalties dept.

From Billboard:

The Music Modernization Act is not the law of the land yet, but it's pretty damn close, as the House of Representatives today (Sept. 25) unanimously approved passage of the U.S. Senate's version of the bill, which had itself been approved by that chamber last week. Now, the MMA is off to the White House where it will await the signature of President Donald Trump before becoming the law of the land.

The legislation forged by compromises throughout the music industry creates a blanket mechanical license and a collective to administer it, while changing some of the considerations used in setting music publishing rates. It also compels digital and satellite radio to pay a royalty on pre-1972 master recordings to labels and artists and it codifies the procedure by which SoundExchange can pay producers and engineers royalties for the records it works on.

From Engadget:

MMA will update rules regarding royalties and licensing when it comes to streaming in an effort to make sure creators are properly compensated. It will lead to the creation of a publicly-accessible database that makes it easier to see which publishers and artists need to be compensated for particular songs. Further, it will update the royalty rates for artists behind pre-1972 songs and will update royalty rates to reflect market changes all around.

[...] The president is now expected to sign it into law over the next ten days.

The bill: S.2823 - Music Modernization Act

Previously: Senate Passes Copyright Bill to End 140-Year Protection for Old Songs


Original Submission

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
  • (Score: 4, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 27 2018, @02:00PM (27 children)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 27 2018, @02:00PM (#740776)

    I really hate the whole concept of these royalties.

    No, I don't think you should still be getting paid for music you recorded before I was born, and I'm in my forties.
    I don't see why you should even expect to get paid for work you did decades ago. You don't see auto workers collecting royalties on old cars (for example). Even the designers of those cars can't expect to be paid for them years and years later.

    I just wish this shit was more like a normal product, with some serious limitations in place to make it more sane that this.

    Starting Score:    0  points
    Moderation   +4  
       Insightful=4, Total=4
    Extra 'Insightful' Modifier   0  

    Total Score:   4  
  • (Score: 2) by EvilSS on Thursday September 27 2018, @02:23PM (16 children)

    by EvilSS (1456) Subscriber Badge on Thursday September 27 2018, @02:23PM (#740791)
    What business is it of yours how someone in an industry you don't work in gets compensated?
    • (Score: 2) by Pino P on Thursday September 27 2018, @02:59PM (7 children)

      by Pino P (4721) on Thursday September 27 2018, @02:59PM (#740807) Journal

      someone in an industry you don't work in

      Have you considered why someone might have chosen not to work in a particular industry? It's not only the royalty requirement but also the complete lack of a blanket license for many types of use. The possibility that someone might refuse a license at any price, combined with the possibility of accidental infringement (Bright Tunes Music v. Harrisongs Music), deters people from entering the industry in the first place.

      In addition, the royalty structure of the popular music industry affects a lot of other industries that use the popular music industry's output. Did you know that a fraction of your grocery bill goes toward paying the grocery store's royalty bill for music played over its speaker system between announcements?

      • (Score: 2) by EvilSS on Thursday September 27 2018, @04:28PM (6 children)

        by EvilSS (1456) Subscriber Badge on Thursday September 27 2018, @04:28PM (#740849)
        and a fraction of it goes to pay the power company for the power they use. I don't see people complaining that the linemen are overpaid.
        • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 27 2018, @11:56PM

          by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 27 2018, @11:56PM (#741106)

          What does music have to do with power? Nothing. These are entirely artificial restrictions.

        • (Score: 2) by archfeld on Friday September 28 2018, @12:09AM (3 children)

          by archfeld (4650) <treboreel@live.com> on Friday September 28 2018, @12:09AM (#741114) Journal

          Linemen aren't getting paid for work their grandfather performed. But yes they are getting compensated for work they could have performed before you were born, and will continue to collect a decent retirement that will allow the to live their twilight years in peace and happiness. There is also a distinct difference between an 'work' of art, and laymen's labor.

          --
          For the NSA : Explosives, guns, assassination, conspiracy, primers, detonators, initiators, main charge, nuclear charge
          • (Score: 2) by EvilSS on Friday September 28 2018, @03:38PM (2 children)

            by EvilSS (1456) Subscriber Badge on Friday September 28 2018, @03:38PM (#741375)
            So, it's still part of the cost. Don't I, the entitled consumer, get a say in EVERYONE'S compensation? Not just musicians?
            • (Score: 2) by archfeld on Friday September 28 2018, @08:39PM (1 child)

              by archfeld (4650) <treboreel@live.com> on Friday September 28 2018, @08:39PM (#741530) Journal

              You are apparently not a customer, but a mindless consumer so yes you get a say, you just don't get to decide what that say is. If you were say an enlightened customer than you might get an actual place at the adults table.

              --
              For the NSA : Explosives, guns, assassination, conspiracy, primers, detonators, initiators, main charge, nuclear charge
              • (Score: 2) by EvilSS on Saturday September 29 2018, @04:07AM

                by EvilSS (1456) Subscriber Badge on Saturday September 29 2018, @04:07AM (#741680)
                Pretty sure I buy groceries, so by definition I'm a customer. I think union linemen are overpaid and I don't like that I have to pay for it as part of my grocery bill. Is my complaint less valid than yours? You don't like how musicians are paid, and are apparently angry that it's part of your grocery bill. Why should you get to have an say in how they are paid and I should not?
        • (Score: 2) by dry on Saturday September 29 2018, @06:06AM

          by dry (223) on Saturday September 29 2018, @06:06AM (#741728) Journal

          I don't see people complaining that the linemen are overpaid.

          You haven't been paying attention, lots of people seem to think they should happily put in 24 hour days climbing poles in blizzards and handling live wires for minimum wage.
          Personally, I'm really happy when the power comes back on during a heavy snow/ice storm.

    • (Score: 4, Insightful) by bussdriver on Thursday September 27 2018, @03:14PM (2 children)

      by bussdriver (6876) Subscriber Badge on Thursday September 27 2018, @03:14PM (#740813)

      0) Using a vague term, "industry" doesn't make everything under that label the same. Your committing a logic error: oversimplification.

      1) It was a democracy; at least we still portray it as one. So a great many things are our business. Sadly not enough things...

      2) As stated in the constitution, the purpose for limited rights over THOUGHTS which nobody can ever really own the intangible was to share secrets for the benefit of humanity by allowing them to be exclusive. But only doing so for a short period of time; investment of resources was also part of it but NOT the sole reason. A great many things happen for reasons not just for making money; it's not the only motivator even in today's simplistic perspectives promoted by those who benefit from the distortions.

      3) I thought consumers mattered today? (more so than citizens) Shouldn't the customers have some say?? arn't they "always right?" except when they upset the status quo of the elite... isn't that right?

      4) intangible cultural things are shared by many; influence society and lives in a broader way than a mere physical item can. Ideas can not be owned, killed, controlled like anything else. You may not write "happy birthday", but the tradition is yours and it SHOULD feel WRONG when somebody demands control or payment for a part of your way of life; just as somebody claiming to own the water falling from the sky and demanding you pay them for water. Somebody may have originated or discovered the IDEA but it's not theirs; it's not even property by any sane definition. (Intellectual Property is a modern propaganda term created by Micky and friends within my lifetime. The purpose of it's creation is to conflate ideas with property and it's also an insult to intellectuals.)

      5) Our society is being HARMED and shaped by policies that lost sight of their whole purpose for existing to help society. Thiefdoms are being established in the open and hidden by propaganda. You think because they stole an idea from humanity (ideas are far far more like discoveries than creations) that it's the right thing to do because they sold you on that. The creators, explorers, and artists always did their thing and always will do so without any such help; we as a society want to encourage and support their intangible but important contributions. There are multiple ways to do this; these temporary rules are just 1 simplistic solution that has been taken too far.

      6) Modern technology is making old ways not practical or feasible. You might agree with their lies; however, in order to let old tired now primitive solutions continue you are promoting the abuse of modern technology to become a tool against us all. Any technology can be used for good or evil. You shouldn't want it to be used for evil... simply because that evil can do a bit of good for your old fashioned opinions. Big Brother monitoring, limits on freedom, funding and empowering systems of control simply to protect Micky Mouse (who's little more than a logo today) is so much more damaging than all the music helps. It's creating a new normal, paving the way to the bad uses for technology... which yes, may happen anyway but people should revolt and resist such things which is why slowly creeping them into peoples' lives is incredibly dangerous. You have DRM hardware and software buried into systems today getting deeper, more secretive, and more powerful. You can't remotely delete 1984 from possession and spreading because it wakes people up but Amazon and Apple now can without your permission (nor can you do anything to stop them without violating a user agreement.) That is just the thin edge of the wedge.

      Just 7 relevant points off the top of my head. Any single one is reason enough to get involved in another industry's business.

      • (Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Thursday September 27 2018, @03:39PM

        by Phoenix666 (552) on Thursday September 27 2018, @03:39PM (#740825) Journal

        Well put. In this debate, and perhaps in many others, possession is 9/10th's of the law. That is, no matter what the status quo would like to enforce, facts on the ground will beat them every time. So if we don't like what the recording "industry" and movie "industry" are doing, using our government against us and common sense, then the best thing to do is to is to make them technologically and materially irrelevant.

        We're nearly there with content industries. It's about to begin in earnest with material culture--the guy uploading diagrams for 3D printing guns is a precursor.

        Folks in technology have a pivotal role to play in this sea change in how humans shape the world around them. I hope they infuse their work, their contribution, with FLOSS principles.

        --
        Washington DC delenda est.
      • (Score: 2) by EvilSS on Thursday September 27 2018, @04:25PM

        by EvilSS (1456) Subscriber Badge on Thursday September 27 2018, @04:25PM (#740847)
        0) This is a complete bullshit statement and a blatant attempt to deflect. Stop it.

        1) So do I get to vote on your compensation at your job? Our form of government has nothing to do with how people are paid

        2) You are making an argument for copyright, not royalties. Even so, as you state, it's in the constitution that intellectual property IS property and should be protected.

        3) Do you get a say in how the guy making your burger get paid? Do you think you should? Do you also oppose profit sharing schemes some companies have? This is no different.

        4) Blah blah blah. This is, again, a copyright argument, not a royalty argument. And yes, they are separate. Not all people who make copyright works get royalties (software developers for instance).

        5) See #4

        6) Again, see #4
    • (Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Thursday September 27 2018, @05:03PM (4 children)

      by fustakrakich (6150) on Thursday September 27 2018, @05:03PM (#740867) Journal

      As a consumer of the product, it is very much our business. It is unfortunate we don't enforce our rights.

      --
      La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
      • (Score: 2) by EvilSS on Thursday September 27 2018, @09:56PM (3 children)

        by EvilSS (1456) Subscriber Badge on Thursday September 27 2018, @09:56PM (#741056)
        So do you also feel free to insert your opinion into the pay of the guy making your burger? Your UPS driver? Your car mechanic? What do you do for work? Maybe I should review how you are paid.
        • (Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Friday September 28 2018, @12:38AM (2 children)

          by fustakrakich (6150) on Friday September 28 2018, @12:38AM (#741128) Journal

          Yes, we can vote for a decent minimum wage and safe working conditions, and a clean environment should the desire arise. And we can vote away rent seeking license holders. The choice is ours

          --
          La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
          • (Score: 2) by EvilSS on Friday September 28 2018, @03:37PM (1 child)

            by EvilSS (1456) Subscriber Badge on Friday September 28 2018, @03:37PM (#741374)
            OK so I think you are overpaid, where can I vote to reduce your income?
            • (Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Friday September 28 2018, @09:47PM

              by fustakrakich (6150) on Friday September 28 2018, @09:47PM (#741560) Journal

              Same place everyone does. If enough people go along, you will get your wish. After all it is the voters who granted congress their automatic pay raises. That can be reversed also. With sufficient demand we can make the government do whatever we want

              --
              La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
  • (Score: 1) by bussdriver on Thursday September 27 2018, @02:36PM

    by bussdriver (6876) Subscriber Badge on Thursday September 27 2018, @02:36PM (#740797)

    This slipped bye everybody thanks to Mango Mussolini who has to sign it; after all, it's totally aligned with his fascist beliefs.

    The law is the same old bill that failed many times with plenty of public opposition but nearly made it with industry pressure. A few changes a new name and a retired crooks sob story about his last law getting passed with some feature he'd wanted for decades as the smoke screen. (but the real smoke screen is the media circus Trump creates and next it's the mega media corps who want it.)

    Copyright just moves further away from it's intention.

  • (Score: 2) by Pino P on Thursday September 27 2018, @02:55PM (5 children)

    by Pino P (4721) on Thursday September 27 2018, @02:55PM (#740806) Journal

    How are royalties paid for use of a work of authorship ultimately any different from rent paid for use of land that someone discovered and developed?

    • (Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 27 2018, @03:01PM (3 children)

      by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 27 2018, @03:01PM (#740808)

      Land is a scarce resource.

      • (Score: 2) by EvilSS on Thursday September 27 2018, @04:29PM (1 child)

        by EvilSS (1456) Subscriber Badge on Thursday September 27 2018, @04:29PM (#740850)
        Creativity and talent are not? Shit, we should all be best selling authors, musicians, and movies stars then!
        • (Score: 2) by maxwell demon on Thursday September 27 2018, @05:27PM

          by maxwell demon (1608) on Thursday September 27 2018, @05:27PM (#740884) Journal

          Creativity and talent is needed tocreate new works. It is not needed to create copies of decade-old works. And in particular when the creator already died decades ago, that creativity and talent is already gone anyway.

          --
          The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.
      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 27 2018, @04:33PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 27 2018, @04:33PM (#740852)

        Looking around, I would argue original ideas are too.

    • (Score: 2) by dry on Saturday September 29 2018, @06:33AM

      by dry (223) on Saturday September 29 2018, @06:33AM (#741735) Journal

      Unless you're talking about Iceland or the Falkland islands, that land was stolen and developed. It's much the same with IP, most all creative works are built on someone's creative work, going back before Homo sapiens.

  • (Score: 2) by dwilson on Thursday September 27 2018, @03:31PM (1 child)

    by dwilson (2599) Subscriber Badge on Thursday September 27 2018, @03:31PM (#740820) Journal

    You don't see auto workers collecting royalties on old cars (for example).

    What if I could tickle a keyboard and spend a trivial amount of electricity to make a complete copy of that old car, down to the last scratched and rusted bolt, then drive it away?

    I agree, Intellectual Property laws in general are insane. Royalties, copyright, patents, whatever. It's all beyond crazy these days. But trying to pretend digital is just the same as analog is no way to fix it.

    --
    - D
    • (Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Thursday September 27 2018, @03:48PM

      by Phoenix666 (552) on Thursday September 27 2018, @03:48PM (#740832) Journal

      Where it gets really interesting is where the analog becomes increasingly like the digital. There's a way to go yet, to be sure, but things are getting there.

      We have 3D printers for ad-hoc production of material objects. We have 3D scanners to map existing objects into a CAD file that then feeds into the 3D printer. At the moment, there are limitations in materials and speed, but they are being overcome. When we get recycling mills that we can throw our broken wrench into and have the 3D printer manufacture a new one using the old as feedstock, then humanity will have entered a new era.

      --
      Washington DC delenda est.
  • (Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Thursday September 27 2018, @05:17PM

    by fustakrakich (6150) on Thursday September 27 2018, @05:17PM (#740876) Journal

    You don't see auto workers collecting royalties on old cars

    Yeah, but the auto companies sure do! Music, cars, whatever, the money goes with the license.

    --
    La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..