RIAA Wants Songwriter Royalty Lowered

NewYorkCountryLawyer writes "Lest there be anyone left who believes the RIAA's propaganda that its litigation campaign is intended to benefit the 'creators' of the music, Hollywood Reporter reports that the RIAA is asking the Copyright Royalty Board to lower songwriter royalties on song file downloads, from the present rate of 9 cents per song — about 13% of the wholesale price — down to 8% of wholesale. Meanwhile, the big digital music companies, such as Apple, want the royalty rate lowered even more, to something like 4% of wholesale. So any representations by any of these companies that they are concerned for the 'creators' of the music must henceforth be taken with a boxcar-load of salt."

Comments

This is good news...

[shark72]

...if you've ever found yourself saying (or typing) something like:

• "The record companies don't get it. I pirate because music costs too much."
• "The secret to reducing piracy is charging a fair and reasonable price. $0.99 a track isn't."
• "I'll stop pirating when tracks are $0.25 each. Anything more is robbery, plain and simple."
• "When will the record companies listen? Reduce prices... don't try to sue pirates."
• "Why should I pay money to support some millionaire musician's lifestyle? They have enough money."

Even if you've never written the above, you've probably read it here on /., on a daily basis.

Well, there you have it. Maybe the pirates are right, and music does have to be $0.25 a track. And (statistics aside), perhaps artists do make too much. Either way, right or wrong... the pirates have spoken: music costs too much. Artists are overpaid. So sayeth the pirates, and they're a mighty force.

The pro-piracy crowd has been one of the biggest opponents of DRM. And the record labels are listening... DRM is becoming less restrictive and going away. The pro-piracy crowd has bemoaned the lack of selection on the legal stores vs. what's available on P2P. Apple listened... their catalog is now in the tens of millions.

Perhaps retailers like Apple, and the record labels are listening to the pirates yet again. Along with feeling the heat from Amazon, they're capitulating to demands that music prices be lowered. I don't think we'll see $0.25 in our lifetimes (so, many people will opt to continue to pirate), but cutting costs will make it easier to sustain $0.79.

And if you're one of the folks who pirate because your perception of artists is that they are overpaid millionaires... then this may be good news to you even if it doesn't result in lower prices.