What are the Exclusive Rights in Copyright Law?

All creators deserve credit and recognition for the art they create. Sadly, however, creators and their work are often taken advantage of. The exclusive rights in the U.S. copyright law are basic rights given to all creators to help protect their art and themselves from copyright infringement and improper exploitation of their work. Exclusive Rights allow creators to gain control over their art and provide creators with opportunities to exploit their art for profit.

Our guide is an explanation of what the exclusive rights in copyright law are and how they are helpful to artists.

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In this newsletter:

Quincy Jones, the legendary musician and producer with a seven-decade career and 28 Grammy wins, passed away at 91 on November 3.

After a lengthy dispute and an arbitration proceeding, the Radio Music License Committee and SESAC have finalized their rate agreement for 2023-2026.

The government has been reviewing the rules about which foreign performers should get equitable remuneration when their recordings are broadcast or performed in the UK. There was a plan that all foreign performers should earn ER, but a compromise means some performers will still miss out.

Now, the details...

Exploration Weekly - November 8, 2024
Compiled by Ana Berberana

Quincy Jones, Legendary Producer, Composer and Music Executive, Dies Aged 91

Legendary producer, music executive, and composer Quincy Jones has died, aged 91. “Tonight, with full but broken hearts, we must share the news of our father and brother Quincy Jones’ passing,” his family said in a statement issued to the Associated Press. “And although this is an incredible loss for our family, we celebrate the great life that he lived and know there will never be another like him.” The AP reports that Jones died Sunday night (November 3) at his home in Los Angeles, surrounded by his family. In an influential music career spanning seven decades, Quincy Jones worked as a composer, record producer, artist, arranger, conductor, instrumentalist, label executive, film & TV producer, magazine founder, multi-media entrepreneur, and humanitarian. He earned 80 Grammy Award nominations, including 28 wins across various categories: jazz, R&B, pop, rap, spoken word, children’s, cast album, instrumental arrangement, music film, and music video, not to mention Record of the Year, Album of the Year, and Producer of the Year.

RMLC-SESAC Rate Officially Set for 2023-2026 Following Lengthy Dispute, Arbitration Battle

One lengthy dispute – and one arbitration proceeding – later, the Radio Music License Committee (RMLC) and SESAC have resolved their rate-negotiation disagreement for 2023-2026. Both the performance rights organization and the radio representative confirmed the development following an involved battle concerning payment particulars. Unsurprisingly, said battle saw the PRO pushing for better compensation while the RMLC pursued lower rates more in line with those behind its ASCAP and BMI agreements. Moreover, this wasn’t the RMLC’s first licensing-confrontation rodeo with a PRO – or even its first dust-up with Blackstone’s SESAC. To be sure, a related release put out in 2017 by the RMLC about a separate showdown is noticeably similar to comments pertaining to the newer battle. In any event, with SESAC having kicked off the aforesaid arbitration proceeding in April of 2023, the relevant panel has opted for a 0.2824% rate on each station’s net revenue, up roughly 10.4% from 0.2557%, per radio trades including Radio Ink. According to the same source, a substantial discount will remain in place for non-music stations – though “specific long-form terms are still being finalized.” And while only time will reveal the exact terms (and potentially the rate sought by SESAC when talks first began) at hand, SESAC president and COO Scott Jungmichel touted the decision as a victory.

Proposed UK Copyright Amendment Will see US Performers Frozen Out of Equitable Remuneration Deal

The UK’s Intellectual Property Office has announced a plan to amend copyright law so that more foreign performers can earn equitable remuneration when their recordings are broadcast or performed in the UK. ER refers to the payments performers receive, under law, when recordings on which they appear are broadcast or played in public, which is administered by collecting societies like PPL. Some foreign performers don’t currently get any ER from UK airplay or performances, and the IPO plans to change that. However, the changes are not as radical as previously proposed, meaning fewer foreign performers will newly qualify for ER, with those appearing on tracks released by US labels not automatically benefiting. That’s because, the IPO says, the more ambitious plan that was originally proposed would hit UK label revenues more significantly than the government agency had anticipated. Based on input from labels, the IPO now estimates that basically allowing all foreign performers to earn ER would “reduce UK record labels revenue by £7.4 million per year”, which “equates to an approximately 5.3% reduction to UK record label annual profits”. That reduction, argued the labels, would impact on their “abilities to invest in new British music and artists” and “less investment by UK record labels could undermine the quality or quantity of British music enjoyed by the public”.

Germany’s GEMA Launches “AI Charter” Laying Out Legal and Ethical Principles for AI in Music

Earlier this fall, German performing rights collection society and licensing body GEMA introduced a licensing model for AI developers, making it the first collection society to establish a licensing-based policy to address the use of copyrighted music in training AI. Now, the collection organization is taking another step in developing AI policy, unveiling an “AI charter” meant to guide the use of AI technology in music, and assert the rights of human creators in developing AI-driven music-making technology. “Generative AI provides opportunities but also carries significant risks for the rights and livelihoods of creators,” GEMA CEO Dr. Tobias Holzmüller said in a statement. “In our understanding, human creativity is at the center and the use of musical works created by people in the context of generative AI must be dealt with in a transparent manner and must attract fair pay. This is what we highlight with our AI charter.” The first of the AI charter’s 10 principles asserts that “the development of generative AI is obligated to the well-being of people,” and AI must “not displace or drive out human creativity, especially not by exploiting pre-existing creative work.” Other points include protecting intellectual property rights, ensuring the right to a “fair remuneration model” for all creators whose works are used in AI, and requiring AI developers to be transparent.

Random Ramblings

  • Quincy Jones’ Legacy in 14 Essential Songs.
  • How drums act as the beating heart of folk music through different eras.
  • Confessions of a Spotify vandal.
  • Study explores the economic value of the German music industry.
  • The viral search for a mysterious ‘80s song may finally be over.

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