RIAA Turn To Traditional Radio Stations For Royalties

[DudeAsInCool]

WASHINGTON — With CD sales tumbling, record companies and musicians are looking at a new potential pot of money: royalties from broadcast radio stations.

For years, stations have paid royalties to composers and publishers when they played their songs. But they enjoy a federal exemption when paying the performers and record labels because, they argue, the airplay sells music.

Now, the Recording Industry Assn. of America and several artists' groups are getting ready to push Congress to repeal the exemption, a move that could generate hundreds of millions of dollars annually in new royalties.

Read more at the LA Times

I think its high time we praise the RIAA. Not only have they turned off consumers with their recent music offerings and legal policies, artists by not paying their royalties, now they are going to destroy the relationship they have with their key business partners.

[DudeAsInCool]

Five years ago ... from The Onion:

RIAA Sues Radio Stations For Giving Away Free Music

LOS ANGELES—The Recording Industry Association of America filed a $7.1 billion lawsuit against the nation's radio stations Monday, accusing them of freely distributing copyrighted music.

"It's criminal," RIAA president Hilary Rosen said. "Anyone at any time can simply turn on a radio and hear a copyrighted song. Making matters worse, these radio stations often play the best, catchiest song off the album over and over until people get sick of it. Where is the incentive for people to go out and buy the album?"

Read More

[Excrement_Cranium]

Wow.

Sounds like a wounded beast striking out at anything that comes into proximity.