Broadcasters defend radio stations’ free music

Broadcasters are defending radio stations’ ability to play music without paying musicians as Congress looks to update the copyright system. The National Association of Broadcasters released a new study arguing that musicians sell more songs when radio stations play those songs.

"This study highlights clearly the enormous value that radio airplay provides in promoting music and generating music sales," NAB Executive Vice President of Communications Dennis Wharton said. “Local radio remains the premiere platform for exposing new music and generating sales for record labels."

According to the study -- conducted by Nielsen and commissioned by NAB -- increased radio airplay has “an immediate” impact on a song’s sales and drives on-demand streaming of that song. The study noted to a strong correlation between radio airplay and sales, which is even stronger for country, Latin and Top 40 music.

The study also pointed to a previous Nielsen study, which found that 61 percent of people discover new music through AM/FM radio stations. Currently, AM/FM radio stations do not pay musicians to play their songs over the air, a facet of the current copyright system that some lawmakers are determined to change.