Well, this is good news, because I love a good copyright tribunal. The chief executive of MCPS-PRS, the body that collects royalties on behalf of UK based publishers and songwriters, says that it is unlikely Britain's recording and publishing sectors will reach an agreement on digital revenues without going to court.
As previously reported, the UK publishing sector has been in dispute with the record labels and key download platforms for a while regarding what cut of digital music sales should go to the publisher and songwriter. With neither side seemingly willing to budge in the debate, the BPI, as representative of the record labels, last year announced it would take MCPS-PRS to a copyright tribunal in order to force an agreement.
With the start date for that tribunal hearing now set for 25 Sep, MCPS-PRS boss Adam Singer has told reporters he had hoped an agreement could be reached out of court, but that it was now looking unlikely.
The Times quotes Singer as saying: "I think most people assumed that a deal would be thrashed out before a formal tribunal proceeding began. As far as we can see, that is now unlikely. But talks are still ongoing, as both sides would like to avoid going to court. We are determined to see that the creatives get their fair share of the cake in a digital age."
MCPS-PRS are looking to secure their members a higher cut on digital music sales than they currently get from physical CD sales because, they say, the record label incurs less costs in the digital space. However the record labels and digital music companies say that the publishing sector is ignoring the investment the recording industry has made in establishing the legitimate download space, and that their current royalty demands are just not feasible.
Despite Singer's pessimism regarding the chances of reaching an agreement before the tribunal hearing later this year, a BPI spokesman told the Times this week: "The talks remain open as far as we are concerned".
Of course if a tribunal does go ahead, you essentially end up with representatives of publishing houses like those owned by Universal, EMI, Warner and SonyBMG sitting across the room from representatives of record companies owned by Universal, EMI, Warner and SonyBMG, all arguing over how to cut up the pie. Which is great news for lawyers. And anyone who likes a good tribunal. See you there, I'll bring the Jaffa Cakes.