As if halving its royalties for music streaming last week wasn’t a big enough plea to YouTube, PRS For Music is really making sure the video site gets the message. Its online and broadcast MD Andrew Shaw took to the airwaves of BBC Radio 4′s You & Yours programme on Monday, saying about the rate cut: “We very much hope that this is to enable to them to return music to users who enjoy their service in the UK.” Talks are ongoing, Shaw said.
No wonder PRS wants YouTube back – the site contributed 40 percent of PRS members’ plays at one point last year. But Shaw was clear that won’t see Google’s site treated as a special case and denied the rate slashing was specifically designed just to lure it back: “Our organisation is here to license the entire market… This consultation period started long before the YouTube dispute arose.” Shaw admitted that YouTube was significant but said PRS has lots of online payees like Spotify and Napster.
On the rate change, Shaw says: “We’ve reduced the per track minimum, but in exchange for this we’re charging a higher percentage of revenue when those sites become more successful.”
Excellent! I hope YouTube hang in there & make those PRS thieves crawl. I still enjoy YouTube immensely and fully support YouTube in their position against PRS!
@ Robert: "those PRS thieves" as you term them represent the music creators. Without their creativity You Tube would have virtually no content . All credit to PRS for defending their members' corner rather than acquiescing from the start, or in the case of many Performing Right Organisations failing to even enter the fray. Music composers have a right to be compensated for their work, especially from a site which would not exist without the fruits of their inspiration