‘Artists are at breaking point’: Removing radio caps will boost musician income by 78%
Australian artists receiving radio play would see a potential 78% income boost if the current caps limiting royalty payments were removed.
This is according to a new report by Mandala released on Wednesday by the PPCA, which looks to showcase the results of removing these radio caps on Australian artist income, the potential knock-on investment in Australian artists and music that comes from increased revenue streams, and the impact on radio profit margins from potentially higher royalty rates.
The Copyright Act 1968 limits sound recording royalties at 1% of broadcast revenue for commercial radio broadcasters, and $0.005 per head of the population for the ABC. The actual royalty rate paid by commercial radio stations Australia is 0.4% of broadcast revenue.
Interesting figures that totally ignore both the Orchestral sector and the freelance Session player community which is the backbone of most of the commercially released recordings in Australia.
Removing the Cap without sharing broadcasting royalties with these constituencies is unfair and out of step with the rights enjoyed in the UK, Europe and now India.