U.S. Reintroduces Law Requiring DRM For Digital, Internet RadioU.S. Reintroduces Law Requiring DRM For Digital, Internet Radio
Opponents of the Perform Act, introduced by Sen. Dianne Feinstein and others, say it restricts consumers from making lawful use of the music they've paid for.
Several U.S. senators have reintroduced legislation that would require some digital and streaming Internet radio stations to use digital-rights management technology if they acquire licenses through U.S. government-mandated copyright plans. According to opponents, the legislation would jeopardize TiVo-like audio recording devices, such as the Inno from XM Radio, as well as businesses like Live365 and ShoutCast, which stream radio over the Internet using the open MP3 format.
The Perform Act, which died in Congress last year, was reintroduced Jan. 11 by Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., Joseph Biden, D-Del., and Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn. It requires satellite, cable TV, and Internet broadcasters to pay "fair market value" for digital music performances. It also requires "the use of readily available and cost-effective technology to prevent music theft," according to a press release from Feinstein's office.
The law would apply to stations that license music from the government program created by Section 114 of the U.S Copyright Act.
It specifically allows some recording and time-shifting of radio. Consumers could record music by program, channel, or time period. "For example, if a listener chooses to automatically record a news station every morning at 9:00; a jazz station every afternoon at 2:00; a blues station every Friday at 3:00; and a talk radio show every Saturday at 4:00; that would be allowable. In addition, that listener could then use their recording device to move these programs so that all programs of the same genre are back to back," according to Feinstein.
"What a listener cannot do is set a recording device to find all the Frank Sinatra songs being played on the radio-service and only record those songs," according to Feinstein.
The RIAA welcomed the law. "Under the current system, satellite radio has been allowed to morph into a digital distribution service-- shorting the creators of music, displacing licensed sales, and threatening the integrity of the digital music marketplace in the process. We love satellite radio. But this is simply no way to do business. It's in everyone's best interest to ensure a marketplace where fair competition can thrive," the association said in a statement. However, opponents say the law would restrict consumers from making lawful use of online recordings. Copyright holders are already being paid for music played using digital licenses, notes Derek Slater, activist for the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
"We're talking about totally lawful home taping. We're not talking about Internet piracy. We're talking about people making traditional lawful use of the music they're receiving," Slater says. Consumers have been able to record radio broadcasts for more than 25 years; the Perform Act would restrict that right over the Internet, digital, and cable media, he adds.
XM Satellite Radio also opposes the legislation. A company spokesman says in an e-mail statement: "Congress rejected this ill-advised legislation last year and we believe that well-informed legislators will reject it once again."
The RIAA sued XM Satellite Radio last year for its role in developing devices like the Pioneer Inno and Samsung Helix, which allow for recording over XM radio. Attorney Kraig Baker, with the Seattle law firm Davis, Wright, Tremain, said the issue revolves around control. XM radio, like CDs, give users the ability to manage the service, controlling which songs they hear, and saving songs for later listening. Licensing fees have traditionally been higher as consumers get more ability to control the service.
The Perform Act--it stands for "Platform Equality and Remedies for Rights Holders in Music"--would also require broadcasters to pay "fair market value" for licenses. Licensees would not pay different rates based on the medium they broadcast through.
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