LS Client Memo

ANNUAL WEBCASTER MINIMUM FEE PAYMENTS AND SMALL BROADCASTER ELECTIONS DUE JANUARY 31 FOR COMMERCIAL BROADCASTERS

3D"cid:image001.jpg@01C9DA43.071720B0" <= ![endif]>

Annual Minimum Fee Payment

Commercial broadcasters streaming sound recordings over the inter= net pursuant to the statutory licenses available under the Copyright Act are reminded that the annual minimum fee for 2010 is due to SoundExchange by = January 31, 2010. Presumably = because that date falls on a Sunday, SoundExchange has indicated that payments ma= y be submitted by February 1, 2010. The annual minimum fee payment is $500 per channel or station, which includes both channels that are simultaneous transmissions of over-the-air broadca= sts and internet-only channels. The minimum fee is nonrefundable and will be credited against any additional royalty fees that accrue to and are payable by the broadcaster in 2010. For commercial broadcasters that elected the terms and conditions negotiated by the National Association of Broadcasters and SoundExchange (the “NAB Settlement”), the an= nual minimum fee is capped at $50,000.

Broadcasters should submit payments to SoundExchange in the form of a che= ck or money order (made out to “SoundExchange, Inc.”), or by wire transfer. SoundExchange doe= s not accept payment by credit card. &nbs= p; For broadcasters that have elected the NAB Settlement, payments mu= st be accompanied by a signed 2010 Annual Minimum Fee Statement of Account Form. For broadcasters that have not e= lected the NAB Settlement, payments must be accompanied by a signed 2010 Commercial Webcaster Minimum Fee Statement of Account Form.

Annual Small Broadcaster Elec= tion

Commercial broadcasters wishing to be treated as a “Small Broadcaster” under the NAB Settlement must complete annual election forms by January 31, 2010. = Small Broadcasters are those that transmit less than 27,777 aggregate tuning ho= urs of programming during the prior calendar year and that reasonably expect = to do so again during the subsequent year.&= nbsp; Note that SoundExchange has not indicated that the deadline for Sm= all Broadcaster election extends beyond January 31. We therefore recommend that c= lients electing Small Broadcaster status for 2010 submit their election forms by= the January 31 deadline. To= elect Small Broadcaster status, a commercial broadcaster must complete the Notice of Election for Rates and Terms for Small Broadcasters for the 2010 Licen= se Period Form, and also may use that form to elect to pay a $100 “Pr= oxy Fee” per channel or station in lieu of providing reports of use of sound recordings. In additi= on, Small Broadcasters must pay a minimum annual fee of $500 per channel or station, accompanied by a signed 2010 Annual Minimum Fee Statement of Account Form designed for Small Broadcasters.

Streaming Royalty Fee Increase

Finally, broadcasters also are reminded that the royalty fee for streaming music increased from $0.0015 to $0.0016 per performance on Janu= ary 1, 2010. 2010 Monthly Statement of Account Forms for Broadcasters and 2010 Monthly Statement of Account Forms for Small Broadcasters reflect= ing this increase are now available from the SoundExchan= ge website (www.soundexchange.com).

Noncommercial broadcasters that stream sound recordings are subject to separate minimum annual fee and election requirements. Please contact your primary atto= rney in our office if you have any questions regarding a noncommercial broadcaster’s requirements or any matter discussed in this memo.

January 14, 2010

This memorandum is intended only as a general discussion of these issues and should not be regarded as legal advic= e.

We would be pleased to provide additional deta= ils or advice about specific situations if desired.

2000 K Stre= et NW, Suite 600 | Washington, DC 20006-1809
tel. 202.429.8970 | fax 202.293.7783 | www.lermansenter.com

To Unsubscribe= : Unsubscribe | To Update Client Info: Update Client Info