BMI PUTS A BLANKET OVER THE TV

Stations can take the blanket license and pay into the $85 million annual fee pool or opt instead for a per-program deal.

The pact, which runs retroactively from April 1999 through December 2004 (with payments for the period between April ’99 and December ’01 to be paid alongside new fees until the expiration of the term), also covers webcasts of stations’ locally produced programming.

TMLC’s former Executive Director, the late Jack Zwaska, was said to have been a driving force behind the blanket agreement until his death in February, and his colleagues saluted his efforts and tenacity.

And now, a word from the people who write the quotes for the people who did this deal.

"We have worked hard with representatives from the local television industry to create an agreement that fairly compensates BMI songwriters, composers and music publishers and encourages our television customers to use BMI works for the purpose of increasing their viewership," proclaimed BMI President & CEO Frances W. Preston. "I can’t wait to see how our tunes jazz up shows like Eye on Hattiesburg and Church Bake Sale Roundup."

"The new BMI local TV agreement gives our customers the stability of final fees and the flexibility to choose the best license for their stations," gushed BMI SVP Licensing John Shaker. "While both revenue and viewership have been reported as down, the increase in fees negotiated reflects the well-deserved recognition of the increased value of BMI’s repertoire. That’s what we told them, anyway."

"On behalf of more than 1,000 TMLC represented stations, we are pleased that blah de blee favorable license rates blah bloo," added TMLC Co-Chairman Catherine Nierle. "Blah blee bloo stations’ ability to control their license fees blah blooby blah."