How Online Broadcasters Are Coping With Streaming Fees

In response to fees that could force webcasters to pay thousands to the recording industry, hundreds of stations have already pulled the plug, and ten thousand more worry they may soon have to follow suit. The DMCA stipulated that online radio would not be governed by same rules as traditional radio, where broadcasters pay a very small portion of their revenue to music publishers, but nothing directly to the recording industry. When no agreement on the new rates could be reached between industry and webcasters, a government copyright panel responsible for the issue set the fees at $1.40 per song heard by one thousand listeners. It seems small, but it adds up to thousands per year for small stations, and well into the five figures for a good many others. Even under amended legislation, now in limbo during the mid-term U.S. elections, webcasters would be stuck paying a percentage of their revenue to the recording industry, with a minimum fee of $500 per year.
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