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Will internet station royalty fees be going up big time in 2016?

Music Lover said:
Only thing my hubby and I agree with him/her on. We've listened to both sides and have made up our minds and we side with Spotify on the matter.
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And the artists are starting to remove their music from Spotify because they don't get enough money. And when the royalty rate goes up next year, all the other free sites will start charging. Enjoy it while you can because the free ride will end next year.
 
Music Lover said:
If I were A, I wouldn't dare go here, they feel the same way we do: http://forums.broadcastingworld.com/showthread.php?13672-No-More-SMALL-Webcasters-in-2016
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I went there, and I agree with the OP. "I am shocked that the forums are not in an uproar over what is going to happen to US small web casters in 2016." He's right. It's going to be very difficult for small webcasters to continue. And for people like the two of you, who want a very specific and particular style of music, one that isn't going to attract ad sponsorship, it will become very difficult for you to find what you want anywhere without spending money. I may be wasting my time, but I'm trying to explain this to you so it all doesn't come as a shock when it happens.

Say whatever you want to say about the music industry. They're the ones making the music. The sounds you enjoy belong to them. It's their house, and you are just visitors. Same with the webcasters who run the internet streams and stations. They're stuck in the middle, between wanting to provide entertainment to music lovers, and paying the fees and royalties required by the government. The music we enjoy comes at a price and someone has to pay. At some point, it comes down to the users, because no one else will be willing to lose money. If you really want to hear music that's not mainstream and not the top hits, get ready for your world changing. The music industry doesn't really care about your personal economy. If you want to listen to their music, you should pay. The government and the courts have all supported them on this.

You can believe whoever you want to believe, but this is going to affect you whether you want to recognize it or not. You should be in an uproar, rather than just saying, "Oh we'll get what we want from someone else." What happens if it all dries up? It'll be too late then.
 
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Music Lover said:
Totally agree with you, honey! They're just as much against big business as we are! Glad to see it! :cool:
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Those rates are set by a government body.

They are lobbied by the RIAA, whose members are pretty uniformly losing money. They are lobbied by artists, who want more money.

But at the end of the day, it's the government that sets the fees on streamers, not big business.

If a radio station, OTA or over the web, does not have a sustainable business model, it should not exist.

And all the term "business model" means is that you know how to cover the operational expenses so that the enterprise can survive. Even the Red Cross has a business model.
 
:mad: Timothy here. As liberals, my wife and I have learned that big money tends to control government, which makes us not so keen to side with the major labels in what we see is their obvious fight to control musical content on the Internet. If y'all want to get along with us, you're going to have to accept our political beliefs.

I'm done with this for the night and am going to bed.
 
Music Lover said:
If y'all want to get along with us, you're going to have to accept our political beliefs.
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:D

Discussion boards are never -- I mean never -- conditioned on everyone accepting an individual's (or in this case, since you insist on being joined at the hip under a single login, couple's) point of view or beliefs. So please get that idea out of your collective heads right now, 'kay?
 
:mad: Timothy here. Fine. Since y'all don't accept opposing viewpoints, there's no need continuing this discussion. My wife and I are leaving this discussion.

Mods: We've emailed you months ago to end our account. You have not done so. Please do so now.
 
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The future is looking increasingly clear. In a few years music will not be legally free on the internet, anywhere. It's possible the CRB will rule for a low royalty rate but that is looking increasingly unlikely. And rumor has it Universal Music owners are going to replace their CEO with someone who will pull their catalog from free on-demand services. If that happens then Spotify's free service is over.

Discontinuing free on-demand streams makes sense. By some valid estimates paid streams can make as much as 20x what free streams make. If eliminating the 45 million or so Spotify free users results in even a few million paid subscribers, they will make more money. What the music industry doesn't realize is that increasing Sound Exchange royalties can very easily backfire. If they drive AM/FM stations to discontinue their streams, force Pandora to limit free users, etc. then the volume of streams will drop significantly. Likely resulting in less revenue than they make now. Paid internet radio streams do not make significantly more money. And a lot of people are not willing to pay. They will simply turn on their AM/FM radio.
 
Casey said:
What the music industry doesn't realize is that increasing Sound Exchange royalties can very easily backfire.
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The decision is really up to the CRB, not SoundExchange. But you're right that the labels want to get rid of free streaming. If they could do that, streaming would simply replace buying CDs, and the music industry would get money every time a song gets played, which in the long run means more money than selling CDs or song downloads.
 
All I can say, anymore increase, and I'm done. In the last year or so it
has reached ridiculous levels. I don't make one cent on my stations.
The real 'gotha' can be on our side. Switch to news, talk, or another
non music format.
 
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