Intellectual Property co-chair Amy Goldsmith wrote an article that was featured in IP Watchdog on “Musically Inclined: The Music Modernization Act of 2018.” In the article, Amy explores the recent disputes between Flo & Eddie, the owner of pre-1972 musical recordings, and Sirius XM, which publicly performed those recordings, regarding whether common law or statutory copyrights existed and if so, what level of compensation was due.

When Congress permitted sound recordings to be copyrighted over four decades ago, it didn’t extend that coverage to pre-1972 recordings. This issue, and the piecemeal nature of licensing for digital music on a per work, per song basis, were part of the impetus for the stakeholders in the music industry to work together to create the Music Modernization Act, signed into law on October 11, 2018.

Amy says in the article, “The Music Modernization Act also makes several significant changes to how the people who create music – songwriters, vocalists and instrumentalists – are compensated, and for the first time in U.S. copyright law, the work of producers and engineers is specifically recognized.”

Amy’s article will be reprinted in Investors Digest magazine. Click here to read the full article.