RIAA Rules and legit webcasting.

[clouseau]

I have a serious question to ask - RE: Soundexchange. Now I know everyone's opinion of them, but am I reading this right?

They want, in 2009, $.0018 per performance. That's per song per listener. So if you played only 10 songs an hour, that would be $.018 per listener or just under $.02 cents per listener per hour. So if you had 1000 listeners to calculate a cpm, you'd pay $18.00 an hour. Now I know the numbers don't translate exactly based on radio measurements, but an $18 cpm for 12+ is actually a little high for my area. $15 is closer. So to even think about making it work, you'd need 6-7 units an hour? Assuming you could deliver any kind of salable audience, you're out of "Margin" before you even get to streaming costs or ASCAP/BMI.

Am I missing something?

If your answer is "Screw the rules" your not a solution. I'm just wondering if this is reality. And if so, why does anyone stream legally at all. Who's making any money?

Clouseau

 

[RadioMan203]

This is one reason why I turned off my webstream earlier this year. While the rates were more reasonable under Live365's "personal" streaming plans, it seems impossible to make moeny, let along break even with streaming radio under the current royalty rates. I honestly don't know how the small stations afford to do it and I wonder if larger groups are just losing their shirts on streaming radio.

To me the only ones getting fat on these deals is the RIAA - with what little they actually pay artists due to "administrative costs" they're the only ones with deep pockets shelling out funds to Congressional representatives.

 

[vsa]

I have a serious question to ask - RE: Soundexchange.  Now I know everyone's opinion of them,  but am I reading this right?

They want, in 2009, $.0018 per performance. That's per song per listener.  So if you played only 10 songs an hour, that would be $.018 per listener or just under $.02 cents per listener per hour.  So if you had 1000 listeners to calculate a cpm, you'd pay $18.00 an hour.  Now I know the numbers don't translate exactly based on radio measurements,  but an $18 cpm for 12+ is actually a little high for my area.  $15 is closer. So to even think about making it work,  you'd need 6-7 units an hour?  Assuming you could deliver any kind of salable audience, you're out of "Margin" before you even get to streaming costs or ASCAP/BMI. 

Am I missing something? 

If your answer is "Screw the rules" your not a solution.  I'm just wondering if this is reality.  And if so,  why does anyone stream legally at all.  Who's making any money?

Clouseau

No, Inspector. You're not missing something. You may find it hard to believe, but negotiations are still ongoing to reach a compromise that will make streaming more affordable. Many who are still streaming are also looking at the long term and are figuring that sanity will have to ultimately prevail.

 

[V.Riley]

What we are hoping for is something more in line with what Cable and Satellite are paying, as that would be fair. Any rate that is higher than that would obviously be designed to put Internet Radio in its grave before it had a chance to reach puberty. As for Terrestrial Radio not having to pay anything, I certain that their days are numbered. Given that they appear to be loosing audience to Internet Radio, they really should stand up for Internet Radio, as that may be where they eventually go to find their audience.

Just my opinion,

 

[richwithhatred]

The funny part of all of this is that what it will eventually do is create a forum where band's will put out their music themselves, and the industry will fail even more. Bands want publicity, and you can bet your ass that from the smallest internet station through the clear channel conglomerates, all entities will be more than willing to play music from bands that are willing to sign away rights to airplay royalties for exposure. It won't be long before the "independent artist" takes the place of the major label artist on all of radio...especially if it can draw enough listeners to keep ad revenue up. If the royalties are gonna cost clear channel and cbs 10s of millions of dollars a year, you can bet that they will go with the cheaper product. Hell, just look at how they are following a similar model with live djs on their stations. If they are willing to dilute their dj pool to save money, you can bet they will go back to "establishing" new artists that fall outside the umbrella of Soundexchanges, RIAA, BMI and ASCAP.

It's a new world for music artists...a world where today's new artist realizes how the current model swindles them and only makes the suits money. Five years from now there won't be record labels...just PR firms that market directly to radio.