I recently signed an online petition against the US Copyright Arbitration Royalty Panel and US Copyright Offices adoption of webcaster licensing fees due to the fact that the excessive fees would put many web-only broadcasts out of business and prevent a lot of poorly funded radio stations from streaming their broadcasts online. The petition sent letters to all U.S. congressman in the state. I received the below generic response from the office of US Senator John Warner of Virginia
(PM wessman at Zeropaid if you would like a .pdf version). Warner is an aging senior Republican. And the letter below only seems to offer me (and anybody else that received it) a history lesson and an indirect indication of Warner’s support for the new licensing fees to soon be enforced on small webcasters. Continue reading if you are interested in what his office had to say…
Dear. Mr. Royer:
Thank you for contacting my office regarding the Copyright Arbitration Royalty Panel (CARP). I appreciate your thoughtful inquiry.
As you may know, the United States Copyright Act allows anyone who wishes to use copyright material to obtain a compulsory license to do so. The royalties and licenses for the use of protected material are a direct result of negotiations between copyright owners and users. When a compulsory, or statutory license is available, users need only to adhere to statutory requirements including payment of established rates to use the work.
In 1998, in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), Congress amended several compulsory licensing statutes to provide clarification of the treatment of certain material transmitted over the internet. Furthermore, the Copyright Act created a Copyright Arbitration Royalty Panel (CARP) to establish royalty rates for statutory licenses. Under the Librarian of Congress, and with the recommendation of the copyright office, a CARP may be convened to take testimony from interested parties and recommend a statutory royalty rate. The Librarian, in consultation with the Copyright office could adopt fees proposed by the CARP if the recommendations conform with current copyright law.
On February 20, 2002, the CARP released a report entitled “In re rate setting for Digital Performance Right in Sound Recordings and Ephemeral Recordings.” Based on the report, the CARP proposed a public performance fee of 0.14¢ per performance and an ephemeral license fee of 9% of performance fees due for Internet transmissions by qualifying webcasters and commercial broadcasters. The CARP also recommended a minimum fee of $500 per year for each license, which would cover both the performance and ephemeral licenses.
The recommended royalty rates for webcasters are not yet in effect. The report is under review by the Copyright office, which will then make recommendations to the Librarian of Congress. A decision is expected no later than May 21, 2002. Aggrieved parties will then have the right, if they wish to do so, to bring the suit before the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
The application of trademark and copyright laws to the Internet and how such laws would be enforced remains an issue of Congressional scrutiny. Please be assured of my continued interest and involvement in this important issue. Again, thank you for bringing your concerns to my attention.
If my office can be of further assistance in any matter related to the federal government, please do not hesitate to contact me.
With kind regards, I am Sincerely, John Warner
