Royalties Deal in Online Music

Record labels, music publishers, songwriters and online music services have reached an agreement on how to compensate music creators for online distribution of their content, they said. The agreement, revealed last Wednesday, is designed to settle how the industry calculates royalty rates for limited downloads and music that is streamed online, including when it is provided by subscription and advertising-supported services.

Under the proposal, providers of such services will pay a royalty of 10.5 percent of revenue after other royalties are calculated. The Digital Media Association described the agreement in a statement on its Website as a breakthrough that would facilitate new ways to offer music to consumers online. The other groups involved include the National Music Publishers’ Association, which represents American publishers, the Recording Industry Association of America, Nashville Songwriters Association International and the
Songwriters Guild of America, according to the New York Times.