NSAI COMMENTS ON DOJ ASCAP/BMI CONSENT DECREE STATEMENT
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE (January 15, 2021) – The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Anti-Trust Division head Makan Delrahim today addressed DOJ’s review of the ASCAP and BMI Consent Decrees.
NSAI has encouraged DOJ to make no immediate changes to the decrees. Rather, we advocated allowing time for the impact of the new Music Modernization act to be fully realized. This is the path DOJ took. Delrahim largely spoke about the four-year review process during the tenure. He made few specific recommendations, but the two NSAI wants to highlight are:
COMPULSORY LICENSES – He said compulsory licenses “are not the answer” and that any future changes Congress may consider should allow songwriters the ability to negotiate in the free market. This is something NSAI and songwriters have advocated for decades.
FIVE-YEAR REVIEW – He suggested DOJ consider reviewing ASCAP and BMI Consent Decrees every five years. That essentially means a never-ending review process. Such frequency should only happen with a stated goal of ELIMINATING the decrees.
Delrahim applauded ASCAP and BMI for launching their new SONGVIEW database which will allow music users/licensees to more easily find song ownership data. This is an important step NSAI joins him in praising.
