CD Baby back online after four day outage
CD Baby managed to restore its service at around 5am UK time this morning, after being out of action since last Thursday.

As previously reported, the music distributor said on Sunday that it had discovered a database issue while conducting routine maintenance last week, leading to the prolonged outage. No new music could be distributed to digital services via the platform during the downtime, and users were unable to access their data and analytics. Though the company has assured its customers that it was not hacked and that all data remains safe.

After getting the system back online this morning, CD Baby CEO Tracy Maddux said in a statement: "On the evening of Thursday, 16 Feb, we took our servers offline for normal, scheduled maintenance. During that process, our database became corrupted and the initial database restoration failed".

He went on: "As you might imagine, a database serving 500,000 clients worldwide and seven million tracks is pretty big, so the successful restore process took quite a while. Because we couldn't process data in the interim - such as CD sales or new album signups - our CD Baby retail and members sites remained offline for the duration of the emergency".

"We're now confident that your data has been restored and we're relieved to be back online offering our market leading services to you again", he continued. "If your music was already available through our distribution service, your fans would've still been able to access your tracks through our partner platforms. All sales and streams that occurred during the outage were not affected and you will be paid as normal".

He added that the company is now "working to make sure this won't happen again", though exactly what safeguards are being put in place is not yet clear.

CD Baby's parent company, AVL Digital, which acquired the independent music distribution service in 2008, was sold to private equity group Stephen Capital Partners in 2013. More recently, it relaunched the Soundrop brand as a YouTuber-focused distribution service earlier this month, having acquired its owner, Show.co, last November.

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The exclusive rights of PROs to license questioned in Spanish direct licensing case
There was an interesting ruling in the Spanish courts last week regarding the rights of songwriters to negotiate royalties direct with concert promoters for the performing rights in their own songs, rather than leaving the licensing of those song rights to a collecting society.

The case centred on a dispute between Spanish collecting society SGAE and a small venue in the city of Badajoz called Sala Mercantil, which in turn related to two shows that took place there all the way back in 2010. When SGAE tried to collect its royalties from those shows, which featured Spanish rock group Asfalto, the venue said it had reached a private agreement with the band over the right to stage a public performance of their songs.

Performing right royalties are usually collected from venues and concert promoters via the local collecting society, even if an artist is performing all their own songs, and therefore will ultimately receive that money.

Indeed, with a few notable exceptions, mainly in the US, when a songwriter joins a performing rights organisation, they basically assign the performing rights in their songs to the society, granting said society exclusive rights to license. It's generally accepted that once that has occurred, the songwriter can no longer strike up direct deals with venues or promoters, which must then get their licences via the collective licensing system.

Of course, a songwriter can always pull their works out of their society to do direct deals, and some PROs offer the flexibility to opt out of the collective licensing system in certain scenarios while allowing the society to continue to represent their songs in other scenarios. So, for example, a songwriter can choose to licence live performance directly - on a temporary or permanent basis - while allowing their society to continue to license their performing rights in all other scenarios.

And as previously reported, of late there has been an increase in the number of artists doing just that. Acts might shift to direct licensing in live in order to get their live performance royalties faster, or to avoid paying the PRO their commission, or because of the ambiguities that can occur when monies move between societies (eg you're a PRS member, but SGAE licenses your Spanish shows, and monies then have to move from one society to the other).

The move to direct licensing in live by an increasing number of artists is not without its critics, especially within the collecting society movement. Those critics mainly focus on the complications that occur when you have artists who are direct licensing and artists still in the collective performing at the same show, or especially at the same festival. That means the PRO needs to collect in addition to any direct deals.

However, the Spanish case is slightly different in that Asfalto didn't pull their live performance rights out of SGAE ahead of the 2010 gigs. Nevertheless, the venue did a direct deal with the band and that - its lawyers argued - meant that it did not require an SGAE licence for the shows. The judge hearing the case concurred, which basically casts doubt on the generally held consensus that - outside the US - a PRO has the exclusive rights to license its members' performing rights unless an opt-out is employed by the writer.

Or in the words of Andrés Marín from the legal firm representing the venue, OpenLaw, who spoke about the case to IQ: "The owners of these rights are the authors, so they are the ones who should be able decide what to do with them. If a composer and performer negotiate directly with a third party and agree to give away or even collect their copyrights directly, the SGAE has no right to try to collect, or recover, the rights the artist has not claimed. This ruling, therefore, opens a door that, until now, was closed to artists represented by SGAE: to be able to decide whether to collect their own royalties".

A spokesperson for SGAE, also speaking to IQ, insisted that the judge in this case had misunderstood the law, partly by confusing performer rights and author rights, the band in this scenario being both the performer and the writers of the songs being performed.

Pointing out that members of the Spanish PRO can always opt-out of certain licences, but that Asfalto had not in this case, the SGAE spokesperson added: "If any of our members want to withdraw certain rights, there's a procedure for it. But what we can't do is have both systems: If they have a blanket licence, they can't then administer their rights directly as well - it would be chaos for us".

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Librarians and law professors speak up for ReDigi as digital resale case rumbles on
While the idea of buying downloads first hand becomes increasingly antiquated for an ever growing chunk of the market, the legalities of buying second hand downloads are still being considered in the US courts. This despite download resale platform ReDigi reaching a settlement with Capitol Records on damages last year, and then filing for bankruptcy. Both ReDigi and others have now filed new papers with the appeals court.

As previously reported, ReDigi offered a service via which people who had bought downloads from legitimate platforms could then resell those digital tracks to other people. The record industry quickly cried foul - doubting ReDigi's insistence that its technology ensured a track was wiped off a seller's machine once a sale was completed - while adding that even if it did, the digital transfer of an MP3 file from one computer to another constituted a copy, and that required a licence from the copyright owners.

ReDigi argued that the so called first sale doctrine - the principle under American law that allows people to resell CDs - should apply to digital. But the record industry said that that principle should only apply to physical product, not least because when you resell a CD no new copy is made, whereas copying has to occur to digitally transfer a file.

Capitol Records - then still an EMI subsidiary - led the legal battle on the record industry's behalf and ultimately won. Though ReDigi quickly vowed to appeal, and has continued that process despite reaching the aforementioned deal on damages with the now Universal-owned Capitol last April and then filing for bankruptcy in August. To that end, the digital firm filed new papers with the Second Circuit Court of Appeals earlier this month.

Now, according to MediaPost, various third parties have filed so called amicus briefs supporting ReDigi's interpretation of US copyright law, and its argument that its model was protected by the first sale doctrine and/or other fair use rights. ReDigi's supporters include the American Library Association, which says that the ruling against the digital firm creates legal uncertainties around various online library initiatives.

The filing by the American Library Association and others claims that allowing the resale of digital content has no detrimental effect on copyright owners. It states: "So long as the seller's copy is deleted, the ReDigi service leaves the copyright holder no worse off than it would be due to the transfer of a physical copy under the first sale doctrine".

Meanwhile, in a separate amicus brief, a consortium of law professors also hit out at the precedent set by the ruling in the ReDigi case, stating: "By eliminating all practical methods of transferring digital purchases, the District Court completely foreclosed the sorts of secondary markets - used book and record stores, libraries, garage sales, even gifts and bequests - in the digital marketplace that have played a crucial role in promoting access and preserving culture in the analogue market".

It remains to be seen if this debate is resolved before the very concept of the MP3 download is wiped from the public consciousness.

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UK Music welcomes new search engines code
Cross-sector music industry trade group UK Music has welcomed a commitment by Google and Microsoft's Bing to do more to demote and delist links to copyright infringing sites and material from their respective search engines.

As previously reported, the two web giants' UK divisions have signed up to a voluntary code of conduct after government-instigated talks that also involved record industry trade body the BPI, plus the Motion Picture Association and the Alliance For Intellectual Property.

The BPI said yesterday that it hoped the new code would "kickstart collaboration between the parties to demote links to websites that are dedicated to infringing content for consumers in the UK. The code will accelerate the demotion of illegal sites following notices from rights holders, and establishes ongoing technical consultation, increased co-operation and information sharing to develop and improve on the process. It will also enable new practices to be adopted where needed".

UK Music, of course, brings together the various music industry trade organisations, including the BPI, the indie sector's AIM, the Music Publishers Association, the various bodies representing music creators and their managers, plus collecting societies PPL and PRS. Although the BPI has led on the voluntary code, UK Music has also been calling for search engines to do more to combat piracy, and has put pressure on government to force such an obligation on web firms if they don't voluntarily step up their anti-piracy activity.

Welcoming the new voluntary code, UK Music boss Jo Dipple said yesterday: "This is the culmination of years of discussions between rights holders and search engines. UK Music welcomes any progress that makes our digital markets more efficient. Throughout Parliament's consideration of the Digital Economy Bill, UK Music called for such a code of practice and for it to be enforceable. This is progress and all parties must work to ensure the code has effect. Government has a manifesto commitment to fulfil".

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Doc Brown signs publishing deal with Sentric Music
Rapper, actor and comedian Doc Brown, real name Ben Bailey Smith, has signed a new publishing deal with that there Sentric Music.

"After ten years in business, Sentric is now at a point where it can offer real creative A&R to the right kind of act", says Sentric CEO Chris Meehan. "We've done a handful of exclusive agreements with carefully selected artists, and Doc Brown is a really exciting addition to that roster. He's already made a name for himself with his unique blend of music and comedy, and we look forward to helping nurture his musical career".

Smith himself adds: "Sentric are such a young, forward-thinking outfit and the whole team is down to earth and properly about the music. For me, that is a perfect fit. No doubt I'm a joker, but I'm serious about my music and so are Sentric. I'm the type of guy who is also looking to push the envelope and I had the feeling from day one these were the right guys to come on this journey with me. I'm fully gassed!"

That must be uncomfortable. Covering all of his previous songwriting work, the deal comes as Smith prepares to fully return to his musical career after almost a decade. His new album, 'Stemma', features collaborations with Mikill Pane, Example, Matt Wills, Andy Burrows, Luc Skyz and Poisonous Poets, among others.

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DHP Family announces plans for Borderline
Live firm DHP Family has announced that central London venue Borderline will re-open on 16 Mar following an extensive refurbishment. DHP acquired Borderline along with North London venue The Garage last year from Live Nation, which had taken control of the two spaces via its purchase of MAMA & Company in 2015.

The new owner says that its revamp of the Borderline building includes a "significant reconfiguration of the venue layout" that will create "a flowing space that provides the best possible experience for both performer and audience". A new sound and lights system has also been installed, all of which, DHP hopes, will "breathe new life back into what has been described as one of the last surviving landmark live music venues in the heart of London's Soho district". Club nights as well as gigs will be part of the new Borderline programme.

The firm's MD George Akins says: "As well as complete design overhaul, we plan to introduce our award winning model of venue management to bring the Borderline up to the company's premium offer in terms of design, service and product as well as programming and entertainment. It has an amazing music heritage and we want to take that legacy forward to re-establish the Borderline as the leading live music venue in central London for future generations".

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Bauer announces its radio coverage of the BRIT Awards
While ITV has the telecast and YouTube the global streams, Bauer will once again be handling the radio coverage of tomorrow's BRIT Awards, having first struck up a partnership with the record industry's big awards bash last year.

A show called 'Live At The BRITS' will air on various Bauer stations tomorrow evening, including national channels Kiss and Heat Radio plus regional stations in the media firm's City Network, including Manchester's Key 103, Liverpool's Radio City, Newcastle's Metro Radio, Sheffield's Hallam FM, Glasgow's Clyde One and Edinburgh's Forth One.

The show will be fronted by Kiss breakfast show host Melvin Odoom, with Tom Green, who presents breakfast on the channel three version of Bauer's city stations, chatting to winners as they are escorted off the main stage under that big fat telecoms tent of goodness.

And if you thought all that sounded exciting enough already, brace yourselves for more. Yes, here's a quote from Bauer Radio Group MD Dee Ford: "We stand up for the UK music industry at Bauer and we're so honoured to continue with this fantastic partnership and support the incredible music talent, showcased so fantastically at the BRITs. We've got a very special content package in store this year both on-air and online, to bring UK music fans even closer to the awards and the artists than ever before".

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Amanda Palmer and Edward Ka-Spel announce album
Amanda Palmer has announced that she is releasing a new album with the Legendary Pink Dots frontman Edward Ka-Spel. 'I Can Spin A Rainbow' will be released on 5 May.

The album marks the realisation of a lifelong ambition of Palmer's to work with Ka-Spel. However, when she first flew to the Netherlands to begin recording in 2015, she was told that advanced cancer meant he had less than a week to live. Returning a year later, with Ka-Spel still very much alive, they set up shop in Imogen Heap's Hideaway studio and made the record.

"We merged our songwriting heads and poetic worlds to make a new universe", says Palmer. "We would sit in Imogen's house drinking cups of tea, bemoaning the state of the upcoming election, binge drinking in the UK, the refugee crisis, our internet addictions, frightening news we had read, our relationships and then we'd distil all of the ingredients of our fears and conversations into song form".

"The rainbow metaphor - which is also a nod to the 'spinning beach ball of death' on a Mac - was a wide-open image that kept popping up as a recurring theme on the record", she continues. "It's both dark and light at the same time. To me, the songs are simultaneously frightening and comforting, like a thunderstorm heard from a living room".

Ka-Spel adds: "Making this record with Amanda felt a little like discovering a twin you didn't know you had, until a mysterious email lands in your inbox at a particularly auspicious moment. Some things are just meant to be..."

The pair will perform songs from the album live at Heaven in London on 13 May. Tickets go on sale on Friday.

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Glassnote Records, 7digital, David Bowie

Other notable announcements and developments today...

• Glassnote Records UK has hired Lauren Fitzgerald - formerly with Columbia Records and more recently Twitter - to take on a digital marketing and streaming strategy role across Europe.

• 7digital has done a deal with in-car audio company DTS which will see the digital music firm provide hi-res audio to net-connected car stereos. Vauxhall and Toyota are among the car makers that DTS currently works with.

• David Bowie's 'Labyrinth' soundtrack is being reissued on vinyl. Everyone is very excited.

• You know that new Lana Del Rey track? Well, it has a video now.

• Tall Ships have released the video for new single 'Petrichor'.

• Craig David has announced that he will play the Ageas Bowl in his hometown of Southampton on 1 Sep. Tickets go on sale on Friday.

• Blondie have announced that they will play the Roundhouse in London on 5 May. And they've released another track from their new album. This one, 'My Monster', was co-written with Johnny Marr.

• Broken Social Scene have announced two UK shows for May. They'll play the Albert Hall in Manchester on 23 May and Brixton Academy on 24 May.

• Car Seat Headrest will head out on a little tour of the UK in August, starting with a show at The Forum in London on 29 Aug.

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Roger Waters considering performing The Wall on US Mexico border
Pink Floyd's Roger Waters has said he may perform his former band's 1979 album 'The Wall' on the US-Mexico border in protest against Donald Trump - and particularly, of course, the US President's plans to build a wall along that border.

Speaking to AFP, Water says that the album is "very relevant now with Mr Trump and all of this talk of building walls and creating as much enmity as possible between races and religions".

"There will first need to be an awakening against these far right policies", he adds. "The sewers are engorged by greedy and powerful men as I speak to you. Music is a legitimate place to express protest, musicians have an absolute right, a duty, to open their mouths to speak out".

This is not the first time that Waters has spoken out against Trump. On inauguration day, he posted a video to Facebook of a performance in Mexico City from the previous September, which features anti-Trump videos behind the stage.

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