Nadler, Collins, Jeffries Look to Build on 2018 Copyright Success
Copyright-focused lawmakers are looking to build on the Music Modernization Act’s 2018 success with new projects this term, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., told us. Jeffries said he’s in discussions with House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., and ranking member Doug Collins, R-Ga., all original MMA co-sponsors.
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Collins told us he has discussed “some things” with Jeffries, citing content protection and film industry piracy. “There’s several ideas that we’re working on right now. We’ll just have to see where those go,” Collins said. Focus will continue on creating space where “individuals who share their creative brilliance can continue to do so and benefit from the fruits of their labor,” Jeffries said. “I have no specific ideas that I’m prepared to advance in the public domain because I want to have a conversation with all the stakeholders.”
“We have a number of pieces of copyright legislation” in consideration, Nadler told us. The chairman isn't aware of any specific proposals to replace the ASCAP and BMI consent decrees if DOJ eliminates them (see 1811080044). The MMA stipulates that DOJ notify and consult Congress before eliminating those measures (see 1806280062). The decrees can be analyzed, but the legislation is framed around them remaining active, Nadler said. “We’re not assuming they’re going to be removed. … That’s not to say they should never be changed, but not suddenly.” DOJ didn’t comment.
“The consent decrees went on way too long, but they can’t just be arbitrarily dropped,” given the infrastructure built around them, Collins said. “We’ve had that discussion with them.” It’s too early to know what an alternative framework might look like, he added.
The priority now should be ensuring oversight of the MMA and “that it’s implemented properly,” co-sponsor Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., told us. The Content Creators Coalition (c3) said it plans to work closely with the Senate and House Judiciary committees on MMA implementation, “with a particular eye toward ensuring that royalty money flows to the songwriters who are owed it and that the [mechanical licensing collective] created by the MMA operates transparently.”
Another focus c3 cited is revision of Digital Millennium Copyright Act safe harbors implemented in 1998. When those provisions were enacted, “we couldn’t imagine what the social media platforms would look like now,” Collins said. He asked whether sites like Facebook are more news media or “bulletin boards for the world. With algorithms and filtering, they’re acting more like news media.” MPAA, the National Music Publishers' Association, Public Knowledge and Electronic Frontier Foundation didn’t comment.
The entertainment industry also will monitor how tech platforms are yielding “monopoly power” to “devalue music,” c3 said. “Creating a more level playing field with a fair market is badly needed, which is why musicians and songwriters will continue fighting for artists’ rights in the digital age.” Collins said he doesn’t believe “big is bad,” but he asked how concentration of power might “keep others from the marketplace.