Friday, February 10, 2012

SoundExchange Reacts To 'Day Of Silence'

June 26, 2007

Not surprisingly, digital royalty rights collector SoundExchange had some serious heartburn on Tuesday over the Internet radio "day of silence," during which thousands of webcasters turned off their music streams to protest the Copyright Royalty Board's recent decision to hike fees paid to artists and record labels.

Richard Ades, a spokesman for the organization that supports the board's ruling, told Technology Daily that he listened to some of the special programming being played in between pockets of dead air. "It's pretty amazing that they talk about how much they love music and how important it is to stream music, but you don’t hear them talk about the people who create the music," he said.

On one webcast, Ades heard someone claim that legislation, introduced in the House and Senate to stop the fee increase, is fair to artists. "The bill on the Hill would not only vacate CRB decision but would cut rates by 75 percent from what the old rate was. That’s their idea to fairness to artists? That's an insult," he said.

"If there's no music, then there will be no radio stations. It’s the artists and labels that create the music and there will be no music for them to build their businesses on," Ades said. "Why they don’t want their musicians and recording artists to have a fair share of the pie is mind boggling."

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Juliana Gruenwald

Tech Writer

E-Mail: jgruenwald@nationaljournal.com.


Juliana Gruenwald has been covering tech and telecom issues for more than a decade for National Journal, Interactive Week, BNA and Congressional Quarterly. This is her second stint with National Journal. She was recruited by NJ in 1998 to help launch its first tech policy publication, Technology Daily. She left in 2000 to cover international tech and telecom issues for Ziff Davis Media's Interactive Week magazine. She started her career at United Press International as the wire service's first Helen Thomas Intern. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Minnesota. A Minneapolis native, she misses the lakes but not the cold.


Josh Smith

Tech Reporter

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Josh Smith covers technology policy as a staff reporter for National Journal. He previously interned at National Journal Daily, a Senate press office, and the Deseret News in Salt Lake City where he covered the state legislature, courts, and crime. In 2009 he graduated with honors from Southern Utah University after managing an award-winning student newspaper as editor-in-chief. Josh has received state, regional and national awards for his political and policy reporting, including first place in CapitolBeat’s 2009 Best of Statehouse Reporting college competition. A native of drop-dead-gorgeous Utah, Josh lives in Virginia with his wife, Amber.