Web radio services go offline over licence fee; Broadcasters asked by recording industry to pay for online streaming

Web radio services go offline over licence fee; Broadcasters asked by
recording industry to pay for online streaming

Chua Hian Hou -- The Straits Times (Singapore) , March 11, 2009 Wednesday

A DISPUTE over licence fees has forced most of Singapore's radio
stations to stop streaming online.

Following an amendment to the Copyright Act last November, the
Recording Industry Performance Singapore (Rips) asked radio
broadcasters to pay an annual licensing fee if they wanted to continue
their Internet radio service.

Currently, over-the-air radio stations are exempted from having to pay
royalties to record companies. The November amendment, though,
clarified that this exemption did not extend to Internet streaming
services.

Because of this, said Rips general manager Barbara Wong, broadcasters
need to obtain 'licences to continue their Internet streaming, just as
their counterparts in many other jurisdictions are required to'. She
declined to elaborate as 'these friendly negotiations are still
ongoing'.

Last week, though, MediaCorp and Safra Radio suspended the Internet
streaming of their radio stations. MediaCorp runs more than a dozen
radio stations, including Class 95 and Yes 93.3; Safra Radio operates
two, Power98 and 88.3 Jia.

A MediaCorp spokesman said it is 'still continuing with our
negotiations with Rips...The service will be resumed if we can come to
an agreement'.

Safra Radio did not reply by press time, but a notice on its website
said that 'Internet streaming of Power98FM is no longer available
until further notice'.

For now, SPH UnionWorks' Radio 91.3 and Radio 100.3 stations remain
online. A UnionWorks spokesman declined to comment, citing ongoing
negotiations.

A source familiar with the issue here told The Straits Times that one
of the main stumbling blocks is the five-figure sum per station each
year that Rips wants. If Rips and the broadcasters cannot reach an
agreement, the broadcasters may simply stop their Internet radio
services for good.

No statistics are available on the popularity of Internet radio with
Singapore audiences, but according to a 2008 American study, 13 per
cent of Americans aged 12 and above listen to Internet radio every
week, up from 11 per cent in 2007.

In an effort to retain Internet radio here, broadcasters can approach
the Copyright Tribunal, a specialist intellectual property dispute
resolution body set up by the Government. Going before the tribunal is
voluntary, but once the tribunal decides, its ruling is binding.

If all else fails, the broadcasters can challenge Rips in court on
whether there is a need to pay.

Power98 fan Edward Lim is sad to see Singapore radio stations log out.

'It's nice to have it available when I'm at work or overseas. I guess
I'll just listen to my MP3 collection or go to sites like Last.FM,'
said the 31-year-old IT professional.

chuahh@sph.com.sg