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ASCAP said that the settlement would allow it to press on
with talks with the department over how to amend a decades-old
consent decree that governs how songwriters are paid.
Under the settlement, ASCAP will pay $1.75 million for entering
into some 150 exclusive contracts with songwriters and others
even though a court order barred ASCAP from blocking them from
directly licensing their own music.
"With these issues resolved, we continue our focus on leading
the way towards a more efficient, effective and transparent
music licensing system and advocating for key reforms to the
laws that govern music creator compensation," said ASCAP CEO
Elizabeth Matthews in a statement.
ASCAP and Broadcast Music Inc (BMI), which license about 90
percent of music heard on online services and in movies and
restaurants, have been pressing the Justice Department to change
or scrap agreements it reached with them in 1941 in order to
take into account changes that have come with the rise of music
streaming services like Pandora Media Inc.
ASCAP represents artists like Beyonce, Billy Joel, Katy Perry
and Hans Zimmer.
Currently, any dispute over the cost of a license goes to "rate
courts," which were established by 1941 consent decrees and are
based in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of
New York.
ASCAP collected more than $1 billion in 2015, and distributed
$870 million to its members.
(Reporting by Diane Bartz; Editing by Sandra Maler)
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