[cma-l] PPL & PRS for Music Joint Licence for Community Radio

Fri Dec 2 11:14:05 GMT 2016

Gentlemen

I am obliged to you for your wisdom - less so for your cynicism.
The reason why I am "pedantic" as you put it James is that any formal arrangement has to be based on the use of clear incontrovertible language in order to be understood and then to be capable of legal interpretation and enforcement.
I suggest that one of the reasons why "all around us the World is going mad" - apart from the  obvious ones of religious and ethnic differences - is bad use of words from ignorance, carelessness or arrogance.
Further, I suggest that if someone asks you for a payment of this nature, relying on legislation, the onus is on him to offer the justification for his case ab initio rather than for you to have to go away and look it up.
That is all I am suggesting that PRSfM and PPL do, and as Alex has confirmed,  neither PPL nor PRS has ever submitted a statutory licensing scheme for approval within the terms of the Copyright Act and they have so far relied on their rights gained by exclusive contracts between them and record labels, performers and composers.

The word "rights" here is also open to question and definition - sorry!

Ian Hickling

Partner

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From: cma-l-bounces at mailman.commedia.org.uk <cma-l-bounces at mailman.commedia.org.uk> on behalf of James Cridland <james at cridland.net>
Sent: 01 December 2016 23:57:31
To: The Community Media Association Discussion List
Subject: Re: [cma-l] PPL & PRS for Music Joint Licence for Community Radio

Ian, when all around us the world is going mad, it's a wonderful thing to see you still requiring efficient and pedantically correct use of the English language.

When I reach agreement with someone wanting to use media.info<http://media.info>'s data, I give them a licence to use that data in the way we have agreed. I don't have to be a licensing authority for that. A good definition is (from Wikipedia, as it happens):

>> A licensor may grant a license under intellectual property laws to authorize a use (such as copying software or using a (patented) invention) to a licensee, sparing the licensee from a claim of infringement brought by the licensor. A license under intellectual property commonly has several components beyond the grant itself, including a term, territory, renewal provisions, and other limitations deemed vital to the licensor. <<

...which is exactly what is happening here. PRS/PPL are representatives of the record companies, performers and composers, all of whom have intellectual property of value. PRS/PPL licence their material on their behalf.

There is no "entitlement under law" for PRS/PPL to exist, which is why everyone's ignoring your requests to see one. Indeed, you are very welcome to reach individual agreements with each and every record company, composer and publisher to broadcast their material. I've had to do this before, for a live concert, and let me tell you how much fun it isn't: everyone wants slightly different terms for slightly different durations, and I remember having to faithfully promise to Moby's management that we'd turn off a live stream and only broadcast it on the radio. Of course I remembered to do that, and didn't leave the stream running.

Whatever you might think of PRS/PPL, it's certainly true that these changes cut the costs for community radio by significantly simplifying the paperwork. It's hard to really argue against that, but I appreciate your efforts.

Would you be able to colour your emails in blue ink, in future? I find it a useful colour code.

//j

On Fri, 2 Dec 2016 at 03:17 Ian Hickling <transplanfm at hotmail.com<mailto:transplanfm at hotmail.com>> wrote:

That's Stanford University and US law - no relevance over here fortunately.

Ian Hickling

Partner

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Office: 016 3557 8435<tel:01635%20578435>  (07h to 22h GTS)

Car: 075 3098 0115<tel:07530%20980115> (only responds when driving)

6 Horn Street, Compton, NEWBURY, RG20 6QS

________________________________
From: cma-l-bounces at mailman.commedia.org.uk<mailto:cma-l-bounces at mailman.commedia.org.uk> <cma-l-bounces at mailman.commedia.org.uk<mailto:cma-l-bounces at mailman.commedia.org.uk>> on behalf of Tony Bailey <ravensound at pilgrimsound.co.uk<mailto:ravensound at pilgrimsound.co.uk>>
Sent: 01 December 2016 16:39:26
To: cma-l at mailman.commedia.org.uk<mailto:cma-l at mailman.commedia.org.uk>
Subject: Re: [cma-l] PPL & PRS for Music Joint Licence for Community Radio

The term "licence" or "license" is used by an authority but it has also been used to give rights under an agreement:

http://fairuse.stanford.edu/overview/introduction/permission-tools-licenses-and-releases/

Tony Bailey

On 01/12/16 14:03, Ian Hickling wrote:

That's very informative - thank you.

But they've left out (or - Heaven forbid - ignored) two important aspects of the responses to their Joint Consultation:

1 - If this is a Licence - as opposed to a Service Charge - why isn't it issued by the only Licensing Authority in the system - which is Ofcom?  PRSfM and PPL are commercial businesses - not Licensing Authorities

2 - Despite many requests - there is still no categorical statement as to why PRSfM and PPL are entitled in Law to claim these payments - and precisely where this is written in UK Legislation.

Sorry - I know I've asked this many times before - but it's something we do need to have laid before us - and by the very people who are making these far-reaching demands.

My feeling is that broadcasters large and small who part with their hard-earned cash before being happy with the answers are rather unwise.

This isn't going to go away.
It makes no odds to us - we don't pay these charges - it's you out there, our friends and loyal Clients, that I'm concerned about.

Ian Hickling

Partner

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Office: 016 3557 8435<tel:01635%20578435>  (07h to 22h GTS)

Car: 075 3098 0115<tel:07530%20980115> (only responds when driving)

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