NAACP Opposes Effort to Change Online Royalties

The Internet Radio Fairness Act, a federal bill supported by Pandora, Clear Channel and others that would change the way online radio royalties are set, has come under new opposition from the NAACP, which said in a letter to members of Congress that the bill would “unfairly deprive artists and performers of fair pay for their hard work.”

The bill, introduced in September, would direct a panel of federal judges to use the same standard in setting royalty rates for Internet radio that they use for satellite and cable radio services, a change that Pandora and others believe would substantially lower their rates. It already has been opposed by music industry groups, as well as by the AFL-CIO. But the NAACP letter adds new pressure, portraying the issue not just as a business dispute, but as a civil rights matter.