ASCAP COMPOSER BILL OF RIGHTS

[Chris Alpiar]

Hey all! As some may know, ASCAP recently has created a petition for all its members and non members alike to sign. It is a good list of general rights we deserve as content creators. The bill of rights is however aimed at content creators vs. the world and does not cover many issues that composers face on issues between us and ASCAP.

Personally I suggest supporting the ASCAP bill of rights, it is some really good stuff! At the same time I want to suggest that in this time of creating rights for composers via petition, that we do the same for issues between us and ASCAP.

Mark Northam of the Film Music Magazine FMPRO Email discussion list has offered an excellent start at what the ASCAP COMPOSER BILL OF RIGHTS should contain! We are opening all these points up for discussion and would like input on any of them, suggestions on how to make them stronger, and other points you feel should be included.

When we have drilled down to what our bill of rights should include we will put it to a vote, issue by issue. When we have collectively agreed on these issues I will create a web petition for people to sign digitally and send to ASCAP.

I think its a really important step towards reclaiming some semblance of a reasonable existence in this day and age, I hope you agree and contribute here. Please make note of which points specifically when you reply so we can try and keep it at least a teeny bit organized.

ASCAP COMPOSER BILL OF RIGHTS
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1. The right to be paid for all performances of your music on radio and TV using the latest technology




2. The right to a response from ASCAP member services reps for all questions regarding ASCAP royalties




3. The right to address the Board of Directors in person for a limited time at each Board meeting




4. The right to know how ASCAP is spending our money - full disclosure by ASCAP for multi-million dollar decisions involving member dollars, such as IMJV, MediaGuide, etc and any other matters other than salaries.




5. The right to see the at-source amount that a foreign PRO paid ASCAP before ASCAP takes it's "deductions"




6. The right for independent candidates to take part in the ASCAP election process by petition with a reasonable signature requirement, enacted in time to collect signatures for the next elections in January, 2009.




7. The right to know when and if our board members show up for board meetings (ie, the attendance records)




8. The right to know the voting records of our board members on issues of importance to us




10. The right for background instrumental music to have an equal opportunity for feature performance pay as a background vocal has based on a fair and impartial decision as to the importance of the music to the particular scene




11. The right to negotiate a larger than 50% split for writers (like they currently have in several other countries)




12. The right, like publishers have, to belong to more than one US society so we can split our catalog among the society that pays it the best. This right is also enjoyed by every non-US writer, but is denied to US writers.




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[Chris Merritt]

Hi Chris - I think we need to tighten up every thing ambiguous. For example, number 6 should list a maximum petition number requirement, (I suggest 5 or 10 signatures.) We should remove frivilous phrasing like on number eight remove - "on issues of important to us." and say"The right to know the voting record from past and present of our board members."

[John Stone]

Chris,
I have been super interested in this on fmpro. If my opinion means anything, (since deciding to so to SACEM ) after a year of
strings on fmpro. I will have to go with a USA pro when I get things rolling sometime this year and therefore this bill of rights will apply to me if I register with ASCAP.

Point 1, Though it is addressed in the best wording (simple and open to interpretation) it still sums up nothing for ASCAP. They apparently track without modern technology and I am sure they will not make an effort to do this tracking without intense
pressures from government. This could be the most imoprtant issue with this bill of rights! We know that ASCAP makes money from the loose paper trail they work with and I believe they will resist this tracking as "too expensive" or "not available at this time as digital rights mangement issues being discussed in the courts and Congress need to be evaluated...blah...blah...blah...".

Point 2, ASCAP by laws do not adddress this?

Point 3, Board of Directors rarely speak to share holders, again the ASCAP bylaws must circumvent direct communication...

Point 4, Full discloser is part of any public corporations bylaws why is ASCAP different?

Point 5, I hope if I am accepted by SACEM that I will be in a position to know these fees, but I wonder if the French PRO will disclose this information to me. I am still in the process with them and might not even be accepted by SACEM.

Point 6, I thought that over 2000 member signatures were the requirement to become a board elected official?

Point 7, Attendence records are not mentioned in the ASCAP bylaws? This also seems unjust to ASCAP members.

Point 8, Why are voting records not public record, who wrote the ASCAP bylaws anyway? This is a member supported organization it seems that public record is the only standard the USA has to check any organization, is ASCAP a private corporation or a public organization?

Point 9, I don't see a line for point nine, what happened to it?

Point 10, Tracking methods must be spelled out in this, how will music as opposed to song be tracked? The method used today must be not suffice; will the method be modernized by digital rights management, can it be worded this way?

Point 11, 50% writer or publisher or both? Is it in the ASCAP contract already as a 50% split? Should writers accept agreements with their publishers that cut them out of ASCAP splits?

Point 12, It seems that writers in Europe still have more rights than they do in the USA, do the publishers really control the decisions at ASCAP. Is that why Doug Wood is a publisher as well as a writer, as he has said on fmpro?

And Chris, you are not alone in this despite the lack of responses. With modern trends for more direct license music, could ASCAP, BMI & SESAC be on the verge of loosing their clout? Are they holding on to the advantage they have gained in the old paper trail world, just long enought to trail blaze into the future of digital rights mangement?
Or, do you think that they are keeping writers of instrumental work at bay long enough to collect for songwriters; hoping the library world of music production will become so profitable that tv, film & other advertising media will just blow off the original writers, thus accelerting the demise of written music in this century.

I submit that by keeping the advertisers shareholders happy, the USA PRO's could be creating a world in which (in our lifetimes) we will see only licensed music on film, television etc., and no more work for studio instrumental music .
JS

[Brian Scott Phraner]

Chris,
This is a great start. I agree with the other replies so far in as much as careful thought needs to be put into the wording and phrasing of the statements so they get the idea across without providing easy loopholes for ASCAP to wiggle in. For example, #2 "The right to a response from ASCAP member services reps for all questions regarding ASCAP royalties". This could technically be met by an automated response of "Thanks for your questions. We feel your pain. Signed, Your Member Services Rep".

As a composer in the position of just starting to get paid for composing I have a hard time understanding what all the implications of these rights mean, let alone making informed comments and suggestions about them. I have been a member of ASCAP for a couple of years (and received my first check from them last Jan 08) and I am very concerned about the state of things with the PROs. I have been on the FMPRO list since early this year and even though I have yet to join in on the conversations I have read all 2683 posts since I joined. It has been pretty amazing...

Brian Scott Phraner
friends in the garden

[Chris Alpiar]

Thanks for getting into the issues guys! I am going to keep pushing this around a while before I make a compilation of suggestions to Mark Northam (this is *his* draft really I am just tryng to help facilitate action ;-)

[Kevin Mathie]

Hi all!

I just replied to Chris on the Fmpro email list, but as I thought about it, I should probably repost my reply here, so it'll have a more permanent home.

Here's what I wrote to Chris:

---

Chris,
Thanks for the link. I missed the original Fmpro email that had the Composer Bill of Rights (hereinafter CBR) -- plus several subsequent digest issues -- due to a lineup of deadlines that were drowning me. So, while I kept hearing about it after I resumed reading Fmpro, this is the first time I read it.

First off, really nice! Well done, Mark.

I'll bookmark this page and read it again, so as to mull it over, but for now I only have two suggestions. Actually my suggestions are really based on one thought. The original draft of the CBR reads in part (emphasis added):

4. The right to know how ASCAP is spending our money - full disclosure by ASCAP for multi-million dollar decisions involving member dollars, such as IMJV, MediaGuide, etc and any other matters other than salaries. 8. The right to know the voting records of our board members on issues of importance to us

If I remember correctly, when I joined ASCAP, it touted itself as being "owned by its members," or something along those lines. Well, if that's still true, then everything ASCAP pays out needs to be disclosed to us, even what they pay in salaries. Afterall, it's our money they're using! While I can appreciate the desire to keep salaries discrete out of respect for the employees in question, giving permission for secrecy in this regard can potentially lead to abuse. Other organizations owned by "the people" make salaries public, so this idea is not without precedent. For example, in the state I live in, all state-owned colleges and universities publish all salaries of everyone they employ -- professors, administrators, janitors, adjunct teachers, et al. And, it's really easy to get that info. Just walk up to the school's library and ask for that school's current financial report, and it's usually just sitting there in a 3-ring binder near the front desk.

Along those same lines, I don't think we should qualify what kind of voting records should be disclosed. Who decides what issues are "important to us"? No, I think we should drop the qualification, and simply state that ALL voting records should be disclosed. Period.

Anyway, that's my two cents. I'll mull things over and see if I can contribute at least 3 cents, but, honestly, the bill looks great. I'd be willing to back it as it stands right now, even without any alteration.

So, Chris, what's next? Is this sort of an open letter to ASCAP that they can feel free to ignore? Or is there a game plan that goes along with this to get ASCAP to make this Bill of Rights a reality?

[Adrian Peek]

I'm affiliated with BMI, but I agree and support all 12 Rights as they are. If ASCAP receives enough pressure, perhaps BMI and SESAC will fall in as well.

Adrian Peek

[Chris Alpiar]

pointing at something and claiming its bullshit never changes anything. Instead of posting your grievances post ideas for solutions. Please try adn be constructive here, thanks

[Ed Baker]

Hey Chris - Where does the bonus money come from that ASCAP pays some artists to sign with ASCAP? I agree, there needs to be a better accounting of our money, what's coming in and how it's being spent.

I also agree with those who believe music should be paid 1-1, no weighting formula.

Executive Board meetings - the minutes should be made public and published in Playback.

What is the follow up plan after sending the petition to ASCAP? Will there be a public discussion of the issues? What if ASCAP shows no interest in the results of this Bill Of Rights?

Thanks Chris and Mark!

[Ed Baker]

Brian, I agree with you. I have no doubt ASCAP will show no interest in this bill of rights. Those running ASCAP do not support the rights of any member who challenges ASCAP. Also, composers show very little interest in getting involved. The response to this bill of rights is a great example. I was wondering what would happen when ASCAP either rejects or ignores this bill of rights.

[Chris Alpiar]

Ah yea, my favorite C. Wright Mills quote :)

Keep your eyes out, very soon will some really big new things be happening with room for everyone to participate. More info coming in the next week or so

[Chris Alpiar]

I disagree, but that is going to take a little time to prove to you.

[Ed Baker]

Hey Chris, I'm not sure which part you are disagreeing with - ASCAP ignoring this bill of rights, ASCAP not supporting members who challenge ASCAP, or composers showing little interest in getting involved to make a difference.