MUSICIANS CALL FOR STREAMING REFORM

More than 150 British musicians are calling on the Prime Minister to update U.K. copyright law to increase revenues from streaming to creators. Annie Lennox, Paul McCartney, Bob Geldof, Lily Allen, Chris Martin and Kate Bush are the among names backing the campaign.

In an open letter, the signatories are asking Boris Johnson to change two words in the 1988 Copyright, Designs and Patents Act that would mean artists, performers and songwriters receive the same rights they have in radio, otherwise known as equitable remuneration. The campaign arrives as the Government is pulling together a report on recommendations following the end of its sessions into the economics of streaming.

The letter is also asking the PM to make an immediate referral to the Competition and Markets Authority in order to address “the extraordinary power wielded by multinational corporations at the expense of songwriters.” In addition, signatories are asking for a regulator “to ensure the lawful and fair treatment of all music makers by the industry."

The letter is backed by The Musicians’ Union and The Ivors Academy and has also been signed by Joan Armatrading, Gary Barlow, Celeste, Roger Daltrey, Brian Eno, Marianne Faithfull, Stevie Nicks, Jimmy Page, Jessie Ware and lots more. The MU has published a public petition to reinforce the call.

“Streaming is replacing radio so musicians should get the same protection when their work is played on streaming platforms as they get when it’s played on radio,” Horace Trubridge, General Secretary of the MU, said. “As the whole world has moved online during the pandemic, musicians who write, record and perform for a living have been let down by a law that simply hasn’t kept up with the pace of technological change.”

Read the full letter below.