TORONTO, June 6, 2011 /CNW/ – Re:Sound Music Licensing Company announced today it has filed tariff proposals with the Copyright Board of Canada that would extend the term of several of its current tariffs and increase the potential income for music creators in Canada.
Re:Sound’s proposed tariff rates largely reflect changes sought in prior filings and would update the rates assigned to various music users to compensate creators for their work. The rates proposed reflect the most up-to-date understanding of the fair value of music.
“Music has a clear and significant value – for instance, over 80 per cent of commercial radio airtime is spent playing music,” said Re:Sound President Ian MacKay. “We need to ensure tariff rates reflect the economic significance of music and that Canada leads the way in valuing music and compensating creators.”
The proposed renewals include Tariff 1A (Commercial Radio), Tariff 1C (CBC Radio), Tariff 2 (Pay Audio), Tariff 3 (Background Music), and Tariff 4 (Satellite Radio). Re:Sound has also applied for a renewal of Tariff 7 (Motion Picture Theatres).
Re:Sound’s tariff filings also propose various amendments that would make the collection of existing tariffs more efficient and fair. These proposals include standardized and consistent music use reporting for broadcasters and provisions to encourage accurate and timely music use reporting.
Following Re:Sound’s filings, it is the role of the Copyright Board of Canada to establish fair and equitable royalty rates and collection policies after considering the evidence presented by Re:Sound and other interested parties in a public hearing. More detail on Re:Sound’s filings can be found at www.resound.ca
About Re:Sound
Re:Sound Music Licensing Company is the Canadian not-for-profit music licensing company dedicated to obtaining fair compensation for artists and record companies for their performance rights. On behalf of its members, representing thousands of artists and record companies, Re:Sound licenses recorded music for public performance, broadcast and new media. All of the money collected by Re:Sound is distributed to our members, less only our actual costs. Created in 1997 (as NRCC), our member organisations are ACTRA RACS, ARTISTI, MROC, AVLA and SOPROQ. For more information, please visit us at www.resound.ca.
