SESAC Offering Alternative To RMLC Settlement
SESAC is trying to get radio stations to sign an alternative to the settlement it reached with the Radio Music License Committee (RMLC), said Fletcher Heald attorneys Kevin Goldberg and Harry Cole on the firm’s blog Thursday. The letters offering…
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stations the alternative agreement offer a “reduced fee schedule” for 2016-18 if the stations sign by Nov. 15, the lawyers said. “We’re hearing a lot of chatter from radio stations on the heels of this letter, with stations confused as to (1) whether signing on directly with SESAC binds them to the settlement agreement or not and, (2) what to do.” RMLC “seems confident” that the actual settlement agreement “will result in license fees considerably below those now being offered by SESAC for 2016-2018,” the blog said. The SESAC offer also only goes to 2018, while the actual settlement agreement is for the next 20 years, the blog said. The deals are mutually exclusive, the blog said. Stations “can sign up individually for SESAC licenses, in which case they will be on their own to negotiate future fees on a one-on-one basis. Or they can sign up with RMLC, thereby aligning themselves with a broad cross-section of the radio industry on one side of the negotiating table -- with the added assurance of an arbitration process as a safety net if the negotiation fails,” said the blog post from the firm with broadcast clients. SESAC didn't comment.