Please Help Save Internet Radio

[EBORG9]

Yesterday I was working and listing to 1.FM like i always do, and an announcement came over that congress is raising fees on Net Broadcasters, and it will possibly close many internet radio stations, and 1.FM may be included.

I know a lot of us listen to internet radio, and many mainstream blog and website owners have the plug in and widget for 1.FM and other online stations.
They are killing the messenger. How the **** are we supposed to find out about new stuff..Commercial Radio?
All you need to do to be heard on the matter is go to
SAVE NET RADIO.ORG
They have a very easy to use, email campaign set up to alert your Representatives of how you feel, There is also
media, if you would like to put a link on your Mainstream sites or blogs.

Here is a news story from The Seattle Post Intellencer:

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Editorial
April 23, 2007

It's not hard to figure out how to kill a relatively young, fledgling industry: Regulate it to death and slap as many unreasonable fees on it as you can. Last week, the Copyright Royalty Board did so when it upheld a decision forcing online radio stations streaming music to go from paying royalties based on a percentage of their revenues (as determined by the Small Webcasters Settlement Act of 2002) to paying flat fees per song.

The cost of per song will continue to rise. We're talking pennies here -- each song will cost $0.0019 by 2010, but those pennies add up fast, as the operator of one online channel lamented. His fees would jump from $140 a month to $1,500 a month. Those fees are retroactive for 2006, meaning even tiny, basement-run stations or operations such as Seattle's non-profit KEXP (kexp.org), which focuses on promoting independent music, will have to fork over sums of money that could hamper their online efforts. In a statement responding to the CRB decision, the station's executive director said, "Carrying this additional expense will likely require us to cut services or let go of projects." The magazine Wired reported that "the smallest Web casters ... likely will vanish unless the rates are overturned."

The fees collected largely will go to record labels, but down the line, this decision will harm them, too -- less exposure to music means lower CD and online song sales.

Congress should intervene and reverse this culturally asphyxiating decision.

SAVENETRADIO.ORG

Where is Al Gore when you need him?

[Zap]

Originally Posted by EBORG9

Where is Al Gore when you need him?

He's busy inventing the Internet's eventual replacement.


What about moving these internet radio stations off of US servers?

[EBORG9]

I am assuming that it, of course, will not affect stations outside of the U.S.which is why it makes me so mad in the first place.
It's the first step of the U.S. Congress imposing fees on the web.

Offshore is not an option for many stations, I mean if they could afford that they could pay the fees.

[Zap]

Originally Posted by EBORG9

Offshore is not an option for many stations, I mean if they could afford that they could pay the fees.

Don't know about that. I have Canadian hosting and it is cheaper than the US hosting I used to have. I have to think that other countries are the same. They are all competing with each other for your dollar.

And, perhaps, if a lot of these stations move to where the US can't touch them, then the lawmakers in the US might get the message. Instead of getting, for example, $50-$100 a month from station-X, they will no longer be getting anything. Their revenue will go down and that's hard to ignore, even for a politician.

[EBORG9]

I suppose that makes sense but does that still absolve you from the laws of the U.S. if your operations are still based here, or do you have to move everything to Canada or Costa Rica or what ever, to dodge the bullet?

[Zap]

That's a good question. Perhaps Waffles (he's an internet radio guy, I think) can interject here.
If the server hosting the broadcast is offshore and that's where people are tuning into, then perhaps a good case can be made for it.

[Ferre]

I am co owner of Radio Free Amsterdam. We are based in the Netherlands and broadcast mainly independent artists, I don't think this effects us, but I'll have to look into that to be sure.

[EBORG9]

Originally Posted by Ferre

I am co owner of Radio Free Amsterdam. We are based in the Netherlands and broadcast mainly independent artists, I don't think this effects us, but I'll have to look into that to be sure.

No. It's just the wacky U.S congress, I am pretty sure you can go ahead and give them the finger.

[Linda in NY]

Originally Posted by EBORG9

No. It's just the wacky U.S congress, I am pretty sure you can go ahead and give them the finger.

And when you do, post pictures !!

[littleFella]

Originally Posted by Zap

That's a good question. Perhaps Waffles (he's an internet radio guy, I think) can interject here.
If the server hosting the broadcast is offshore and that's where people are tuning into, then perhaps a good case can be made for it.

Who ever is affected has to check with their lawyer. To my knowledge if an act is deemed illegal by the US law then a person can prosecuted for that if one of the following is applicable:

- the act has been committed on US soil
- the act has been committed by a US citizen, regardless of where the act has been committed

Of course prosecution can materialize only if the "iron" fist of the US law can reach the culprit. In many cases the fist turns into just a middle finger.

[Zap]

Originally Posted by littleFella

- the act has been committed by a US citizen, regardless of where the act has been committed

That would make criminals out of every American tourist in an Amsterdam hash bar.