September 16, 2016
Press Release
NEW YORK – September 16, 2016—Today, federal Judge Louis Stanton issued an order rejecting the US Department of Justice’s (DOJ) recent interpretation of the BMI consent decree, and concluded that BMI is free to engage in the fractional licensing of musical works. This decision immediately followed oral arguments heard today from both parties. Judge Stanton’s ruling is now the controlling interpretation of the BMI consent decree, and a copy can be found HERE.
Below is a statement from BMI President & CEO Mike O’Neill on today’s decision:
“As we have said from the very beginning, we believed our consent decree allowed for the decades-long practice of fractional licensing and today we are gratified that Judge Stanton confirmed that belief. Our mission has always been to protect the interests of our songwriters, composers and publishers, and we feel we have done just that. Today’s decision is a victory for the entire music community.”
ABOUT BMI:
Celebrating over 76 years of service to songwriters, composers, music publishers and businesses, Broadcast Music, Inc.® (BMI®) is a global leader in music rights management, serving as an advocate for the value of music. BMI represents the public performance rights in nearly 12 million musical works created and owned by more than 750,000 songwriters, composers, and music publishers. The Company negotiates music license agreements and distributes the fees it generates as royalties to its affiliated writers and publishers when their songs are performed in public. In 1939, BMI created a groundbreaking open-door policy becoming the only performing rights organization to welcome and represent the creators of blues, jazz, country, and American roots music. Today, the musical compositions in BMI’s repertoire, from chart toppers to perennial favorites, span all genres of music and are consistently among the most-performed hits of the year. For additional information and the latest BMI news, visit http://www.bmi.com, follow us on Twitter @BMI or stay connected through Broadcast Music, Inc.‘s Facebook page.
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