Clear Channel’s Attempt At “Indie Outreach” Strangely Resembles Pickpocketing

noah | June 22, 2007 3:30 am
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So remember that payola settlement from a few months ago, the one that was supposed to give indie labels a leg up on the radio by mandating that a certain amount of programming had to be on those labels? Well, we thought that the intent of the program would be torpedoed by the shows airing during “public affairs” hours (also known as “7 a.m. Sunday”), but Clear Channel’s version of the program, which is called Discover NEW! Artists and somehow includes the Universal-signed Sick Puppies among its ranks, is somehow worse, and not just because it includes that very crummy Australian band. The wrinkle is this: Bands and labels that agree to the deal agree to sign away their royalty rights in perpetuity:

The Future of Music Coalition contends that Clear Channel is forcing independent musicians to sign a contract containing language that gives up musicians’ rights to a performance royalty if the company uses their music for Webcasts.

“This is outrageous,” FMC executive director Jenny Toomey said. “This is like the fox getting caught in the henhouse a second time and arguing that he shouldn’t get in trouble because he was leaving the hens alone. He was just eating all their eggs.”

A copy of the license agreement on WWDC 101, a Clear Channel station in Washington, includes language saying: “You grant to Clear Channel the royalty-free nonexclusive right and license in perpetuity (unless terminated earlier by You or Clear Channel as set forth below) to use, copy, modify, adapt, translate, publicly perform, digitally perform, publicly display and distribute any sound recordings, compositions, pictures, videos, song lyrics …”

Specifics of what, exactly, Clear Channel would do with those songs (maybe play them?) aren’t offered up by the eight-page document; Contentinople is theorizing that this little bit of legal dancing is merely laying the groundwork for Clear Channel to start its own record label, which we guess would technically be an “indie”–and it’s an interesting theory, given that the promotional apparatus of radio stations and billboards is already in place. But wouldn’t that seem like some sort of unfair vertical integration as well?

Musicians say Clear Channel cheats on pact [Hollywood Reporter]

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