AfterDawn: Tech news

Pandora and Internet radio need your help

Written by Andre Yoskowitz @ 28 Sep 2008 12:23 User comments (4)

Pandora and Internet radio need your help Last month we reported that SoundExchange had killed off Internet radio by upping royalties to levels that cannot be sustained by any company. Pandora, the largest and most popular of current Internet radio companies, admitted that day that they are most likely going to have to shut down if the royalty charges are not lowered.
Yesterday we received an email from a Pandora representative which was very interesting and I will post in its entirety later in this article. In the email, the rep says that the RIAA and SoundExchange have come to their senses and are ready to agree to lower royalties to levels where an Internet company can survive and the trade groups can make the profit they want. It appears there is another roadblock however, one being brought forward by the traditional radio broadcasters, most notably Clear Channel Communications. The entire email as we received it:



Hi, it's Tim from Pandora;

After a yearlong negotiation, Pandora, SoundExchange and the RIAA are finally optimistic about reaching an agreement on royalties that would save Pandora and Internet radio. But just as we've gotten close, large traditional broadcast radio companies have launched a covert lobbying campaign to sabotage our progress.

Yesterday, Congressman Jay Inslee, and several co-sponsors, introduced legislation to give us the extra time we need but the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB), which represents radio broadcasters such as Clear Channel, has begun intensively pressuring lawmakers to kill the bill. We have just days to keep this from collapsing.

This is a blatant attempt by large radio companies to suffocate the webcasting industry that is just beginning to offer an alternative to their monopoly of the airwaves.

Please call your Congressperson right now and ask them to support H.R. 7084, the Webcaster Settlement Act of 2008 - and to not capitulate to pressure from the NAB. Congress is currently working extended hours, so even calls this evening and over the weekend should get answered.

If the phone is busy, please try again until you get through. These calls really do make a difference.

Representative Jerrold Nadler: 202-225-5635

Thanks so much for you ongoing support.

Tim


If you enjoy web radio as much as I do, you will make at least one phone call in support of H.R. 7084.

Previous Next  

4 user comments

128.9.2008 13:08
13thHouR
Inactive

Support the service or lose it. Phone everyone in your phone book ppl to show their support.

American's need only apply...

This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 28 Sep 2008 @ 1:16

228.9.2008 15:48

mailbox is full

328.9.2008 20:48

Calling and informing all on my phone book.

429.9.2008 14:22
1bonehead
Inactive

NAB, greed at it's worst

Comments have been disabled for this article.

Latest news

Roomba Combo j7+ review - Clever trick allows robot vacuum finally to tackle home with rugs and carpets Roomba Combo j7+ review - Clever trick allows robot vacuum finally to tackle home with rugs and carpets (06 Jun 2023 9:19)
Roomba Combo j7+ is the very first Roomba model to combine robot vacuum with mopping features. And Roomba Combo j7+ does all that with a very clever trick, which tackles the problem with mopping and carpets. But is it any good? We found out.
Neato, the robot vacuum company, ends its operations Neato, the robot vacuum company, ends its operations (02 May 2023 3:38)
Neato Robotics has ceased its operations. American robot vacuum pioneer founded in 2005 has finally called it quits and company will cease its operations and sales. Only a skeleton crew will remain who will keep the servers running until 2028.
5 user comments
How to Send Messages to Yourself on WhatsApp How to Send Messages to Yourself on WhatsApp (20 Mar 2023 1:25)
The world's most popular messaging platform, Meta-owned WhatsApp has enabled sending messages to yourself. While at first, this might seem like an odd feature, it can be very useful in a lot of situations. ....
18 user comments
How to Enable Bluetooth on Stadia Controller How to Enable Bluetooth on Stadia Controller (11 Feb 2023 1:04)
Google shut down its streaming game service Stadia late last month and this means that some people have Stadia controllers lying around that seem to be of no use. That is fortunately not the ....
2 user comments
Guide: How to Kick Unwanted Guests from Your Netflix Account Guide: How to Kick Unwanted Guests from Your Netflix Account (26 Jan 2023 2:14)
Sharing a Netflix account with a person in a different location is possible and indeed very common, although the company doesn't necessarily enjoy this behavior from their customers. However, ....

News archive