Monday, August 24, 2009

Internet radio. The Second Circuit is the first appellate court to determine whether a webcasting service that provides users with individualized internet radio stations, the content of which can be affected by the users ratings of songs, artists and albums, is an interactive service under 17 U.S.C 114(j)(7). If it were an interactive service, the webcasting service would be required to pay individual license fees to the copyright holders of the sound recordings of songs the webcasting service pays for its users. If it is not, it must only pay a statutory licensing fee set by the Copyright Royalty Board. The Court held that it was not an interactive service.

The decision in Arista Records, LLC. v. Launch Media, Inc. can be found here.

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