ok, this is an issue that specifically affects musical composers and
performers in the U.S. but it is not the only intellectual property front
under attack there or elsewhere. so the rest of you who do have rights
better glue your eyeballs to the rear view mirror.

i'm calling my US senators right now. suggest that those who can, do the same.

tolve


>From Artswire...

BILL THAT COULD DEPRIVE SONGWRITERS OF ROYALTIES PASSES HOUSE

WASHINGTON, DC -- On March 25, the House passed what
Representative Sensenbrenner (R-WI) called his "Fairness in Music
Licensing Act" as an amendment to the Copyright Extension Act.
According to ARTS ON THE LINE, the act would end most rights of
composers and songwriters to collect royalty payments from those
who use their music to enhance their business atmosphere.

"It is particularly contradictory and ironic that this rule will
attach and permit attachment to this protection of intellectual
property, what many people have come to call the Music Theft Act,"
Arts on the Line quotes Representative Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) as
saying. Doggett noted that the measure "has nothing to do with
copyright extension, but is being attached to the most convenient
vehicle to steal the intellectual property of thousands of small
businesspeople who are song writers in this land."

Arts on the Line reports that for years restaurants, hotels, bars,
and other businesses who use their music to enhance their business
atmosphere have been complaining about license fees in order to
end most rights of composers and songwriters to collect royalty
payments.  Congress required that these businesses and the
licensing agencies such as ASCAP and BMI negotiate a new
arrangement. In the end the music representatives were able to
reach agreement with representatives of the beverage industry, but
talks broke down with the restaurants and hotel industries.

"The feeling of the songwriters was that the powerful
hotel/restaurant lobby became unwilling to negotiate a compromise
when powerful friends in congress were willing to legislate a FULL
victory for their business friends," Richard Finkelstein writes in
Arts on the Line.

Arts on the Line explains that although in the debate, music
licensing fees were disturbingly characterized as government
taxes imposed on small business, "This is just not true at any
level at all. In fact songwriters constitute the SMALLEST of
businesses and their royalties are no different in concept than
those collected by others such as Newt Gingrich, when writing
books....Most songwriters earn $10,000 a year or less and the
average fees paid by businesses licensing music amount to $1.58 a
day."

Representative Doggett pointed out, according to Arts on the
Line, that the songwriter's property "is just that; it is property
every bit as real as a trade name, every bit as real as the script
for a movie or for a new book, every bit as real as a new phone
system or a copying machine. Music is the property of the
songwriter who created it.  And when music helps attract people to
a restaurant, and that is what this is all about is the desire of
the National Restaurant Association to take someone else's
property for free, they may not offer any free lunch around
America but they are willing to take for free the property of
someone else to help them promote their profits in the
restaurants."

Representative Clement (D-TN) stated that the Sensenbrenner
amendment would be devastating to our Nation's song writers.
"Rather than deny their right to make a living, he said, "Congress
should recognize the importance and significance of these gifted
and talented individuals."

"Mr. Chairman, I love restaurant owners. I have plenty of them in
my district. But they are not entitled to the free use of other
people's property. Period, said Representative Nadler, (D-NY)
according to Arts on the Line.

"You had all heard the refrain (to use a songwriting term) from
Congressional debate on the NEA: 'If the arts are so good let them
prove themselves on the free marketplace', Richard Finkelstein
writes in Arts on the Line.  "Unfortunately the same Congressmen
who say this when convenient, try whenever possible to LIMIT
ACCESS to the free market for these very artists......The same
Representatives that cry the shrillest for 'property rights' no
longer seem to care when those rights extend to artists."

The recorded vote on the amendment was ayes 297, noes 112, not
voting 22. The bill will now move to The Senate. "Please let your
Senators know how you feel on this issue," Finkelstein says.

Source:

Richard S. Finkelstein, ARTS ON THE LINE
(arts-alert-usa) ---
http://spot.colorado.edu/~finkelst/aotl.htm
The full debate text is available at
http://spot.colorado.edu/~finkelst/copyrt.htm