By InsideRadio.com, 5-15-18
The Dept. of Justice’s list of which consent decrees to target for possible elimination continues to include the decades-old agreements covering how radio licenses music from ASCAP and BMI. Not only would such a move potentially upend how radio secures music rights, it would be “extraordinarily disruptive” to the entire music marketplace according to The MIC Coalition. The group – which is made up of broadcasters, digital music services, retailers, restaurants and live venue operators – cautions that if the consent decrees are abolished it could mean millions of U.S. businesses, including radio stations, would no longer have a way to efficiently secure the rights to publicly perform music. “The outcome of terminating the consent decrees would be nothing short of a nightmare scenario for the functioning of the music marketplace,” the MIC Coalition wrote in a letter sent to the DOJ on Monday. » Read More