If you’re hep to the internet, you’ve probably come across a wave of information — and even outrage — on the Senate’s PROTECT-IP Act (PIPA) and its House companion, the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA). These controversial pieces of legislation have the stated goals of curbing foreign “rogue websites,” but the initial versions of the bills would have done way more than that.

FMC cares about artists’ ability to maximize value from their copyrights in a way that makes the most sense for them. The music industry is changing, and the internet is now the primary way that artists reach fans and expand their careers. That’s why we’ve championed causes like net neutrality, which lets musicians and songwriters compete on a level playing field alongside the biggest companies. It’s also why we felt compelled to voice concerns with current policy proposals. It’s not because we think that the bad guys shouldn’t be dealt with — it’s more a question of how.

In their original form, these well-intentioned (but deeply flawed) bills could have impacted legitimate online activity. Had such policies been in place a decade ago, we may have never seen many of the sites and services that are helping to power lawful music discovery, collaboration and compensation. We have been very clear since we started this organization more than a decade ago: lawmakers must consult with more than just the traditional industry trade associations when crafting policies that could impact how artists do business in the digital age. The blowback around SOPA in particular serves to show that millions of Americans — including countless musicians and arts organizations — share this perspective.

Due to the tremendous outcry over the scope and application of these bills, lawmakers have “hit pause” on rushing them through Congress. We think this is a positive development. It is crucial that policymakers recognize and understand the legitimate concerns of a broad array of stakeholders — including thousands of copyright owners — when crafting legislation that impacts the entire internet ecosystem. Hopefully, this message was heard loud and clear.

FMC statement on Congress going back to the drawing board

Play-by-play of the political process around SOPA/PIPA
  

We’re thrilled to announce that the major research phases of our Artist Revenue Streams project are wrapped up. Our team is now busy exploring all the fascinating ways to present the mountain of data we obtained about how musicians’ compensation picture is evolving. Our first public offering of some of this important information is taking place at the MIDEM conference in Cannes, France.

On Visionary Monday, join project co-director Kristin Thomson for an exclusive preview of what FMC’s research findings tell us about musicians’ evolving relationship with sponsors and partners, and how some artists are leveraging their own brand to support their work and connect with fans. Kristin will be at MIDEM from January 28 through January 31 — please kristin [at] futureofmusic [dot] org (email her) if you’d like to set up a meeting.

Thomson’s 10 minute presentation will be live webcast on Monday, Jan 30 at 5:30 AM ET (11:30 AM Cannes time) at http://blog.midem.com.

Stay tuned for more exciting info about the ongoing rollout of this groundbreaking research.

Are you looking for a job, a fellowship or an internship? Then we might be looking for you!

FMC is hiring two full-time salaried positions in our DC office: a Communications Associate to spread the word far and wide about FMC, and an Operations & Development Associate to keep the office running and the bills paid.

We’re also searching for a Public Policy Fellow to help us detangle the legal issues at the intersection of music and technology, and finally, we’re searching for some bright, energetic and self-directed people to intern with our Executive Director, our Deputy Director and our Events Director this summer.

These are all great opportunities to gain a more in depth perspective of the music/tech/policy world.

See here for all the details on all the positions.

It might not seem possible, but there were other things going on in the music-tech-policy space outside the rollercoaster ride that was the SOPA/PIPA debate. Here’s a roundup from FutureBlog:

The Curious Case of MegaUpload
On January 22, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and FBI seized MegaUpload — one of the world’s most popular “locker-and-links” services. Not only has the site been yanked from the internet, but several of the company’s principals — including a colorful (and many say disreputable) character, Kim Dotcom — have been arrested. Without getting into what’s alleged in the indictment, we wondered if or how the high-profile case might affect so-called “locker” or “cloud” services that musicians and other creators use to store and share files to which they own all the associated rights.
http://futureofmusic.org/blog/2012/01/23/curious-case-megaupload

Artists Getting Paid = High-Fives
SoundExchange recently reported that it distributed $292 million in royalties last year — no small sum. Payouts continue to grow quarterly, with a fourth quarter royalties distribution of $89.5 million being its largest to date.

Additionally, SoundExchange registered approximately 15,300 new artists, labels and rightsholders, an increase from the almost 12,000 in 2010. The organization also announced that it has expanded its international reach. More artists in their system means more checks cut for musicians. That system should hopefully be getting even more efficient: SoundExchange’s royalty payment mechanism is getting a technical overhaul that will continue throughout 2012.
http://futureofmusic.org/blog/2012/01/18/artists-getting-paid-high-fives

Can Torrents Go Legit?
A look at the technical benefits of torrent technology — speed, efficiency — and how incorporating torrents into legitimate music platforms could produce incentives to ownership, particularly where streaming is less viable.
http://futureofmusic.org/blog/2012/01/17/can-torrents-go-legit

The Times are a Bit Slow in Changin’ — Digital Music Sales Now #1
According to Nielsen SoundScan and Billboard, it was only last year that digital music downloads attained a majority of sales, if just barely. With 50.3 percent of the total, 2011 was the year that digital finally eclipsed physical products. How did this occur? More or less as you might expect: a combination of continued rising digital sales and a corresponding drop in physical sales. Meanwhile, digital track sales continued their upward trajectory with 1.27 billion paid downloads in 2011, an increase of more than 100 million over the previous year. Eight artists claimed more than 10 million individual track sales, (or seven if you prefer not to include the cast of “Glee”), which indicates not only the continued clout of the major labels, but also consumer confidence in legitimate digital music services.
http://futureofmusic.org/blog/2012/01/13/times-are-bit-slow-changin%E2%80%99-%E2%80%94-digital-music-sales-finally-become-1

SF MusicTech Summit
FMC founding Board member Brian Zisk continues to knock ’em out of the park with his SF MusicTech events. The tenth installment takes place on February 13, 2012 in — you guessed it — San Francisco, USA. It seems like only yesterday that Brian launched his first event; since then, SFMT has been the go-to gathering spot for visionaries in the music/technology space, including the best and brightest developers, entrepreneurs, investors, service providers, journalists, musicians and organizations who work with them at the convergence of culture and commerce.

FMC is once again proud to be a presence at SFMT: don’t miss Kristin Thomson talking about our revenue streams research, and be sure to say hi to our Executive Director Lissa Rosenthal, who will be gracing the panels and parties.

Get your tickets here: http://sfmts10.eventbrite.com, and use the discount code “promoFoM” for 20 percent off.

Congrats to Brian on what is sure to be another amazing conference!

Social Music Summit @ Digital Music Forum East
This NYC-based forum brings together music, technology and policy leaders for discussions, debate and networking about the future of digital music. This year’s event will cover topics about Music-Tech, Rights, Distribution, Monetization and the Future and will feature presentations by leaders and innovators in the music industry, with confirmed speakers from Google, Slacker, Island Def Jam Music Group, Tunecore, VEVO, Red Light Management, The Echo Nest, and more. Among them will be our own mover-and-shaker: FMC’s Kristin Thomson who will be talking about our Artist Revenue Streams project in a panel discussion about the future of technology and the music business on Thursday, February 23 at 4:45 pm. See you there!

For more information about the February 22-23 event, head on over to http://digitalmusicforum.com/east/ and use the discount code “FMC15” for 15% off registration.

On January 10, the Supreme Court of the United States heard oral arguments in FCC v. Fox — a case involving bare butts and fleeting expletives that nevertheless has real implications for creative expression and speech. FMC filed a brief in the case along with the Center for Creative Voices in Media that explains how the FCC’s “vague and arbitrary” indecency policies have a chilling effect on artistic expression.

Check out this play-by-play by FMC’s Chief SCOTUS Correspondent (and COO), Chhaya Kapadia, who was in attendance for the hot and heavy jurisprudence.
http://futureofmusic.org/blog/2012/01/11/fmc-fcc-v-fox

You can always contact us at suggestions [at] futureofmusic [dot] org if you have any questions.

Thanks,

Lissa Rosenthal
Jean Cook
Michael Bracy
Walter McDonough
Brian Zisk
Kristin Thomson
Casey Rae-Hunter
Chhaya Kapadia
Alex Maiolo
Anna-Kaisa Kaila

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