Actually, if you read the article closely, the travesty here is that the BSA is extorting large fines from schools who "pirate" software. It would be reasonable if MS/BSA simply audited the schools and required them to buy reasonably-priced licenses for their products. But requiring tens of thousands of dollars in fines from already cash-strapped public schools is ludicrous. I don't think that the busted school systems object to buying legal licences, it's the penalties they are objecting to.
Each time the radio station plays the song on the air, it pays a statutory royalty of 7.1 cents per composition or 1.35 cents per minute of playing time, whichever is greater... The record label credits the artist with their usual percentage -- usually about 10%. Meaning that each time the record is played on the air, the artist receives approximately 7/10ths of one cent.
Are you sure that's right? It's true that radio stations do have to pay performance royalties (as do anyone else who uses a recorded composition). But these royalties are distributed though societies such as ASCAP and BMI to the songwriters or publishers. The record companies don't see this money, as it usually goes right to the songwriter.
The record labels also have to pay statutory royalties for the mechanical reproduction of a composition. Again, these go to the songwriters or publishers. Unless an artist writes their own songs (some songs are only written by certain band members, unless the band credits all songwriting duties to the whole band), they will see none of this money. And unless the artist signs some draconian contract promising these performance or mechanical royalties to some other entity, they should get all the proceeds from their songwriting royalties.
You are right about the small percentage that artists get from the sale of their albums. But it's a well-known fact in the record industry that publishing rights are where the money is. If you write a hit song, even if you're not the artist (how many pop and country stars do you think write their own songs?) then you'll definitely be pulling in some dough.
Considering that so many grandmas have PC's to email their grandchildren who never visit, why not just interface a sewing machine with a PC? That way there'll be a practical use for all of those pirated needlepoint patterns!
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Actually, if you read the article closely, the travesty here is that the BSA is extorting large fines from schools who "pirate" software. It would be reasonable if MS/BSA simply audited the schools and required them to buy reasonably-priced licenses for their products. But requiring tens of thousands of dollars in fines from already cash-strapped public schools is ludicrous. I don't think that the busted school systems object to buying legal licences, it's the penalties they are objecting to.
Are you sure that's right? It's true that radio stations do have to pay performance royalties (as do anyone else who uses a recorded composition). But these royalties are distributed though societies such as ASCAP and BMI to the songwriters or publishers. The record companies don't see this money, as it usually goes right to the songwriter.
The record labels also have to pay statutory royalties for the mechanical reproduction of a composition. Again, these go to the songwriters or publishers. Unless an artist writes their own songs (some songs are only written by certain band members, unless the band credits all songwriting duties to the whole band), they will see none of this money. And unless the artist signs some draconian contract promising these performance or mechanical royalties to some other entity, they should get all the proceeds from their songwriting royalties.
You are right about the small percentage that artists get from the sale of their albums. But it's a well-known fact in the record industry that publishing rights are where the money is. If you write a hit song, even if you're not the artist (how many pop and country stars do you think write their own songs?) then you'll definitely be pulling in some dough.
My opinion? Buy a record player, a used one if necessary, and listen to the vinyl copy the way it was meant to be heard.
Considering that so many grandmas have PC's to email their grandchildren who never visit, why not just interface a sewing machine with a PC? That way there'll be a practical use for all of those pirated needlepoint patterns!