Music Modernization Act Moves Forward in Senate

On April 26, the House passed the Music Modernization Act (MMA), H.R. 5447, by a unanimous 415-0 vote. This legislation is the byproduct of the multi-year copyright review shepherded by House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte (VA-06) and combined three previous standalone measures – the Music Modernization Act (H.R. 4706), which addresses issues relating to songwriter and publisher compensation by on-demand streaming services, the CLASSICS Act (H.R. 3301), which addresses royalties paid to owners of pre-1972 sound recordings, and the AMP Act (H.R. 881), which addresses royalties paid to music producers.

A companion version of the MMA was introduced in the Senate on May 10 by Sen. Orrin Hatch (UT). On May 15, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on the bill, Protecting and Promoting Music Creation for the 21st Century, which featured witnesses such as MMA supporters Mitch Glazier of the Recording Industry Association of America, David Israelite of the National Music Publishers' Association and songwriter, performer and record producer Smokey Robinson, as well as critics such as Meredith Rose of Public Knowledge. The committee plans to move forward with passage in the Senate as quickly as possible.

Both the House-passed and Senate-introduced versions of the MMA include legislation negotiated by NAB to ensure that broadcasters are insulated from changes made to the ASCAP and BMI rate court processes.