|
Digital Music Service Providers Say Songwriters' Cut Too Large |
|
|
|
|
Written by Mike Stahl
|
|
Tuesday, 07 March 2006 |
|
Jonathan Potter, head of the trade group DiMA which represents the big digital music download services, says greedy publishers are a roadblock to business, and could hand the illegal P2P networks ultimate victory.
Asked what could help his members, (who include AOL, Napster and Real), Potter, put the blame on the collection agencies for negotiating a higher share of royalties on behalf of the songwriters they represent. Potter was speaking on a panel at the Digital Music Forum in New York, on Tuesday. "The publishers share has gone from 7.5 per cent, to 8.5 per cent, to 9.1 per cent. Our pie was shrinking but we were paying more and more to the publishers. This made the economics as upside down as the zero price point - it didn't allow people to do reasonable forecasting or price points," he claimed. The big four labels - which also own the big four publishers - set the wholesale rate for music MP3s which comprise the inventory for online businesses such as Apple, Napster and Real. The recording royalty remains to take up the lion's share of this - around 63 per cent to 65 per cent. But Potter turned his guns on the collection agencies. "If the price isn't right the price will go back to zero," he said, referring to the illicit P2P networks. Full Story
| Comments () >> |
 |
|
