Content Creators Coalition urges Congress to investigate YouTube's 'non-disparagement agreements' with artists
American artist-led lobbying group the Content Creators Coalition - aka C3 - has called on the judiciary committees in US Congress to investigate those recent reports that YouTube has included so called 'non-disparagement agreements' in partnership deals it has struck up with artists.

Various sources recently told Bloomberg that such clauses have been included in agreements reached between the Google video site and certain specific artists which YouTube is directly supporting by funding video production and/or marketing activities.

The inclusion of such terms is probably not surprising, given how much YouTube dissing there has been within the music community in recent years. The music industry, of course, is hoping to get copyright law reformed to reduce the reach of the so called safe harbour. Many record labels and music publishers - and artists and songwriters - reckon YouTube exploits the safe harbour to pay much lower royalties than other streaming services.

In its report on the 'non-disparagement agreements', Bloomberg conceded that such terms "are common in business", though noted that other streaming platforms directly supporting artists are not generally making similar demands.

Either way, in a letter to the chairs of the Congressional judiciary committees in both the Senate and the House Of Representatives, C3 argues that the 'don't-diss-YouTube' clauses are "clearly aimed at thwarting the Congressional review of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act's safe harbours as well as the public debate about the issue".

The US Copyright Office, which sits under the Library Of Congress, has been reviewing the American copyright safe harbour for sometime. Meanwhile in Europe, safe harbour reform is contained with the draft copyright directive that is still going through the motions.

Referencing the Copyright Office review, and the American music industry's resulting campaign calling for safe harbour reform, the C3 letter goes on: "An unprecedented groundswell of artists have called out Google for gaming outdated laws to facilitate YouTube's profiteering from rampant music piracy on its service. In filings to the Copyright Office, a cross section of music creators argue that the DMCA's safe harbours are actually 'safe havens' that allow platform monopolies to use the ubiquity of unlicensed free music on their services as a cudgel in negotiations to drive down their own licensing costs".

On the 'non-disparagement agreements', the letter goes on: "We are deeply troubled by recent reports indicating that 'YouTube has asked musicians to agree not to disparage the streaming-video service in exchange for promotional support, according to people familiar with the matter, a way to quell persistent criticism by artists'. Simply put, Google has abused its monopoly power to give artists pennies on the dollar and appears to be further abusing that power to buy the silence of artists who might otherwise speak out and draw public scrutiny to these practices".

The letter concludes: "With jurisdiction over copyright and antitrust laws, the judiciary committees are uniquely situated to get to the bottom of these apparent abuses. We ask that you do so swiftly".

BACK TO THE TOP OF THE BULLETIN

We Shall Overcome is public domain in the US after copyright case settled
The iconic protest song 'We Shall Overcome' has been confirmed as a public domain work in the US after the long running legal dispute on the copyright status of the piece was settled last week.

A lawsuit was filed over the copyright status of 'We Shall Overcome' in April 2016. The people behind the lawsuit argued that the song was no longer protected by copyright in the US, and in a bid to prove that fact they hired the lawyers who previously successfully argued that 'Happy Birthday' was also out of copyright Stateside.

Music publisher Ludlow Music - which registered the song with the US Copyright Office in the early 1960s - reckoned that the work was still in copyright.

However, versions of the song had been published prior to that date, most notably by an organisation involving folk singer Pete Seeger in the 1940s. Seeger is very much associated with the song, and amended and added to it over the years, though the actual origins of the original version are not known.

Either way, by US copyright rules of the time, any copyright that existed in the 1940s published version expired sometime ago. However, Ludlow Music argued that the version filed with the Copyright Office in the 1960s was an evolution of the song and therefore a derivative work subject to a separate copyright. Which it controlled.

With the most famous first verse of the song, there were some nominal differences between the version published in the 1940s and the version registered in the 1960s. In particular, the key lyric evolved from "we will overcome" to "we shall overcome". The question for the court considering the case, then, was whether or not those changes were sufficient to say that the 1940s and 1960s versions were two separate songs protected by separate copyrights.

Last year, in summary judgement, a judge ruled that they were not, and therefore at least the first verse of the song was public domain. Other questions remained over the wider song, however, which the judge said would require a full trial to consider. That was scheduled to take place next month.

However, a settlement has now been reached in which Ludlow Music has declared that both the melody and lyrics of 'We Shall Overcome' are "hereafter dedicated to the public domain". Which means third parties wishing to make use of the work in the US will no longer require a licence or need to pay any royalties.

It's fair to say that Ludlow, perhaps unsurprisingly, isn't especially pleased with the outcome of the case. After noting that an educational charity was the main beneficiary of royalties generated by the copyright, it also argued that a song very closely associated with the civil rights movement in the US would no longer have a protector.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the music firm said in a statement: "Now, given its more limited copyright protection, any individual, corporation, or advertising agency may use the song's words and melody in any manner they wish, including inaccurate historical uses, commercials, parodies, spoofs and jokes, and even for political purposes by those who oppose civil rights for all Americans. This is the saddest result of this case. In this era of hate and divisiveness, now more than ever, 'We Shall Overcome' should be a fully protected work and cherished as a national treasure".

The lawyers who led on the other side of the dispute were pleased with the outcome, which they reckon is very much for the common good. THR quotes attorney Randall Newman as saying: "We are pleased that this settlement resolves the litigation and puts the melody and all verses of the iconic song 'We Shall Overcome' into the public domain where it belongs. The defendants can no longer prevent how this song will be used in the future".

BACK TO THE TOP OF THE BULLETIN

Universal exec Charlie Walk accused of sexual harassment
Universal Music has said that it will conduct "a full and complete review" into allegations of sexual misconduct made against Charlie Walk, the President of its US-based label Republic Records.

The allegations were made by former Director Of Millennial Research & Marketing at Sony's Columbia label, Tristan Coopersmith.

Writing on the website for the life coaching company she now runs, she wrote about the excitement she felt in 2004 after being headhunted by Walk - who was then EVP Of Creative Marketing And Promotion at the Sony division. However, she says, as well as providing her with "opportunities beyond my wildest imagination", he "also made me feel sick to my stomach almost every day".

"For a year I shuddered at the idea of being called into your office", she writes, speaking directly to Walk in the letter. "You would stealthily close the door and make lewd comments about my body and share your fantasies of having sex with me. I was 27. No previous experience had taught me what to do in such a situation. So I laughed it off, gently reminded you that you were married with children, and tried to change the subject. But you were relentless. You would instant message me throughout the day making sexual remarks. Truly vulgar words and ideas. Pervasively".

She goes on to say that she was often invited to dinners, where Walk would put his hand on her thigh and whisper sexual comments to her. On some occasions, she says, while his wife was also at the table.

Coopersmith goes on to allege that, on one occasion, at an event at Walk's home, he "cornered me and pushed me into [his] bedroom and onto [his] bed" while his wife was in the next room. "You being drunk and me being six inches taller was my saving grace", she writes.

After a year, she says that she worked up the courage to tell another Columbia exec about Walk's actions. However, rather that repercussions for him, it triggered her exit from the company.

"He wasn't surprised", writes Coopersmith of her conversation with the other unnamed exec. "He told me that there was nothing I could do about it, but that he would help me co-ordinate a graceful exit if I wanted. I was paid to keep my mouth shut and my reputation intact. I'm ashamed of that piece but it's a truthful part of my story. I took that dirty money and moved to LA".

After this, Coopersmith worked as an Executive Director at talent agency CAA. However, she goes on, she feels that her success in the music industry was in part reliant upon keeping quiet about her experience of sexual harassment. Over time, she "saw there were so many Charlie Walks" and eventually decided to leave the industry altogether.

Walk, meanwhile, went on to become President of Sony's Epic Records from 2005 to 2009. He joined Universal's Republic Records Group in 2013, becoming its President in 2016. He is also a judge on new US TV singing competition 'The Four: Battle For Stardom', alongside Sean Combs, DJ Khaled and Meghan Trainor.

In a statement to Entertainment Tonight, Walk denied the allegations made against him, saying: "It is very upsetting to learn of this untrue allegation made by someone who worked with me fifteen years ago, without incident".

He went on: "There has never been a single HR claim against me at any time during my 25+ year career, spanning three major companies. I have consistently been a supporter of the women's movement and this is the first time I have ever heard of this or any other allegation - and it is false".

While Sony Music has offered no comment, Universal said that it would investigate despite the alleged incidents taking place before Walk joined the company: "While it appears this blog post relates to the period prior to Mr Walk's appointment to his position at Republic Records, we take the allegations very seriously and intend to conduct a full and complete review of this matter".

Fox, which broadcasts 'The Four', said in its own statement: "We have only recently learned of these past allegations regarding Mr Walk. We are currently reviewing this matter and are committed to fostering a safe environment on all of our shows".

As a result of the #MeToo movement, an increasing number of women have come forward with allegations of sexual harassment and assault against men in the music industry, including several major label execs. In December, Warner Music in the US launched an investigation, following claims of misconduct by two senior members of staff. Meanwhile, a Warner exec in Sweden was fired earlier the same month. Prior to #MeToo, in May last year, Epic Records President LA Reid departed the company suddenly, seemingly following a harassment allegation.

--------------------------------------------------

CI owner State51 rejigs putting three businesses under one board
Independent music group State51 has announced a restructure that will bring its three core businesses - technology platform OpenIMP, digital music delivery experts CI and label services business The State51 Conspiracy - under one board.

That board will consist of the group's founder Paul Sanders as well as Paul Curran, the former Sony COO who has been Chair of CI since 2011, and Beggars Group director and UK Music Chair Andy Heath.

Confirming the rejig, Sanders said: "When I started out in digital music in 1991 I realised that a 21st century music company would need to be radically different to the old model. We now operate in a digital market, but the music industry needs scale and brave new thinking to meet the challenges of the 2020s".

On the rejig itself, he added: "This restructuring configures us to deliver our massive technology advantage with an unmatched depth of music industry knowledge and State51's legendary creativity".

The company has also been accepted to participate in the London Stock Exchange's Elite programme, which seeks to support privately owned businesses as they "prepare and structure for their next stage of growth".

On the firm's plans for growth, Curran told reporters: "Scaling up to the challenges and opportunities of the future global music industry requires - on top of deep music and technology knowledge - world class business skills, and we have been planning accordingly. It's rewarding to see that this depth of preparation is now being recognised by bodies such as the LSE, as State51 becomes the first music company to be accepted into its Elite programme, which also notes our ambitions for the business".

He continued: "Having been Chairman of CI since 2011 I have watched State51 develop. It has been exciting to have helped with the consolidation of the businesses and I am positive that the group is now perfectly placed to offer a very distinct route to market for artists and labels".

--------------------------------------------------

Tom Overbury joins Syco
Tom Overbury has been announced as a new Senior A&R Manager at Sony's Syco Music. He was previously in the same role at Warner/Chappell.

In a statement, Overbury says: "I feel honoured to be given the opportunity to join Syco and work with Simon Cowell, Tyler Brown and what is an exceptionally talented A&R team. Their track record is one of the most respected both in the UK music industry and around the world, and it's one I'm determined to add to".

The there mentioned Syco Music MD Tyler Brown adds: "Tom has enjoyed great success signing and working with some incredible artists and writers, including our own Ina Wroldsen. We're delighted to welcome him to the Syco A&R team".

Tom Overbury did sign Ina Wroldsen to Warner/Chappell, that's not a lie.

BACK TO THE TOP OF THE BULLETIN

Scottish live industry calls on Scottish government to adopt agent of change
DF Concerts boss Geoff Ellis has called on the Scottish Parliament to introduce the 'agent of change' principle into planning law in the country in order to protect music venues.

The UK government recently announced that it would implement the principle into its planning guidelines. However, those rules only apply in England. The Welsh government, meanwhile, announced plans to implement the rule last May.

Agent of change basically puts the onus on property developers to protect new residential buildings from sound emanated from existing buildings nearby.

The lack of such an obligation has been a particular issue for music venues, which often move into run down areas of cities where rents are cheaper, in turn helping to regenerate those areas. Once made more desirable, the area attracts developers, who build new properties, into which new people move, who then complain about the noise from the venue that made it an area they'd like to live in in the first place.

The cost of sound proofing is prohibitively high for most small venues, and sound limits imposed by local councils in the wake of complaints often make putting on gigs impossible. Meanwhile, by the point this becomes a problem, the property developers are generally long gone.

The UK government's recent announcement on agent of change followed a campaign by various music industry groups and proposed new legislation presented in Parliament by Labour MP John Spellar. Geoff Ellis is now leading a group of Scottish live music industry reps in calling on the government there to implement agent of change in Scotland too.

"Right now, music venues in Scotland are under threat and we need to act quickly to protect their future", he said in a statement. "Our venues are vital - they're incubators for future headline acts, bring communities together through live concerts and generate £334 million to the Scottish tourism economy - therefore it's crucial we make sure they remain open".

A Scottish government spokesperson said: "We are looking at whether more can be done".

For more on the campaign, click here.

BACK TO THE TOP OF THE BULLETIN

BBC announces details of The Biggest Weekend
The BBC has announced more details about the big music festival it is staging in May because, you know, Glastonbury is on a fallow year and Glastonbury is the only music festival in the UK, which means we are all relying on the BBC to fill the void.

If only someone else somewhere in this country of ours would think to set up a music festival that the BBC could champion and cover and support. But no, all you lazy fuckers continue to refuse to stage innovative, invigorating and awe-inspiring music events, so the BBC is going to have stage its own thing to have any live music to broadcast this summer.

With that in mind, it's put in calls to Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran, Noel Gallagher, Snow Patrol, Beck, Billy Ocean, Manic Street Preachers, Courtney Barnett, Nigel Kennedy, Eliza Carthy & The Wayward Band and Public Service Broadcasting. Between them they'll play at four sites around the UK on the bank holiday weekend at the end of May.

Because, yes, the BBC's Biggest Weekend festival is a truly national event. It takes place in Coventry, Perth, Swansea and Belfast. So that's England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland all covered.

Which means the UK's community of brilliant, risk-taking, game-changing independent festival promoters - oblivious of where they are based - will all be equally fucked over by an empire-building, silo-inhabiting, arrogance-infested British Broadcasting Corporation that would much rather compete with the music industry than champion it.

Now, live from inside that arrogant silo, here is Empire Builder In Chief, Bobby Shennan, with some waffle: "The Biggest Weekend is going to be a once-in-a-lifetime festival for everyone that loves music, whether they are at the venues in person or enjoying the whole spectacle of performances being streamed through iPlayer along with all our TV, radio and digital networks. Wherever you are in the country, you will be part of the biggest music event, with the widest selection of musical genres, the BBC has ever put on".

BACK TO THE TOP OF THE BULLETIN

Frank Turner announces new album and tour dates
Frank Turner has announced that he will release his seventh solo album, 'Be More Kind', on 4 May.

"I wanted to try and get out of my comfort zone and do something different", says Turner of the new LP. "Somewhere in the record, there's a convergence of the ideas of personal and political, which is a central theme of the album".

A particular topic in the lyrics is empathy with your enemies, he adds: "You should at least be able to inhabit the mental universe of the people you disagree with. If you can't do that, then how do you communicate with people other than through force of arms, which is something we all agree is a bad idea".

That said, the first track released from the album finds him in staunch opposition to the claim that the alt right movement is somehow punk rock. "That filled me with a mixture of incredulity and anger", he says. "The idea that Breitbart or Steve Bannon think they have anything to do with punk rock makes me extremely angry. These ideas are surfacing again that collectively as a species we've already shot down".

Have a listen to '1933' here.

Turner will also be touring in support of the album, starting in April. Tickets go on sale on Friday, here are the dates:

13 Apr: Manchester, Academy
15 Apr: Dublin, Academy
18 Apr: Belfast, Limelight
20 Apr: Aberdeen, The Garage
21 Apr: Edinburgh, Liquid Room
22 Apr: Newcastle, Academy
24 Apr: Sheffield, Academy
25 Apr: Liverpool, Academy
27 Apr: Bristol, Academy
28 Apr: Exeter, Great Hall
30 Apr: Cambridge, Corn Exchange
1 May: Southampton, Guildhall
2 May: Southend, Cliffs Pavilion
4 May: Leicester, Academy
5 May: Oxford, Academy
8 May: Hull, City Hall
9 May: Norwich, UEA

BACK TO THE TOP OF THE BULLETIN

Absolute Radio, Eminem, Arctic Monkeys, more

Other notable announcements and developments today...

• Absolute Radio has announced that its Absolute Radio 90s station is now available nationally on digital radio. Absolute's Content Director Paul Sylvester said something about "the 90s renaissance".

• At The Drive-In have released new EP 'Diamanté', ahead of UK tour dates in March. The run of five shows kicks off on 9 Mar at Brixton Academy.

• Ultimate Painting have announced that they will release new album 'Up!', on 6 Apr. From it, this is 'Not Gonna Burn Myself Anymore'. The band are touring the UK in April.

• Podcaster John Dredge and Validator MJ Hibbett have launched new collaboration, John Dredge And the Plinths. Their debut release, 'The Emergency EP', is out now. Here's the video for lead track, 'Going Down'.

• Benjamin Lazar Davis will release new album, 'Nothing Matters', on 4 May. From it, this is 'A Love Song Seven Ways'.

• Eminem will play two shows at Twickenham Stadium on 14-15 Jul. Tickets go on sale on 2 Feb.

• Great news everybody, Arctic Monkeys were yesterday confirmed as headliners for this year's TRNSMT festival in Glasgow. Yes, Arctic Monkeys! What a coup.

• Great news everybody, Arctic Monkeys were yesterday confirmed as headliners for this year's Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona. Yes, Arctic Monkeys! What a coup!

• Great news everybody, Arctic Monkeys were yesterday confirmed as headliners for this year's Flow Festival in Helsinki. Yes, Arctic Monkeys! What a coup!

• Great news everybody, Arctic Monkeys were yesterday confirmed as headliners for this year's Mad Cool festival in Madrid. Yes, Arctic Monkeys! What a coup!

• Great news everybody, Arctic Monkeys were yesterday confirmed as headliners for this year's NOS Alive festival in Lisbon. Yes, Arctic Monkeys! What a coup.

• Check out our weekly Spotify playlist of new music featured in the CMU Daily - updated every Friday.

BACK TO THE TOP OF THE BULLETIN

Paul Cattermole's S Club 7 BRIT Award back on eBay after sale falls through
I know many of you wept when you missed out on acquiring the 2000 Best Newcomer BRIT Award currently owned by S Club 7's Paul Cattermole. You can dry your tears though, because he's been stiffed on the payment, meaning it's back up for sale on eBay again.

Cattermole recently told the NME that he'd put the trophy up for sale on the auction site in order to pay off some bills racked up after he'd sustained an injury during a performance of 'The Rocky Horror Show' last year.

The sale had raised over £66,000, which surprised Cattermole as much as anyone. He did express some concern that it had been sold to a fan who lives on the other side of the world, because he'd said that he would hand deliver it. But it turns out he may have misidentified who the buyer was anyway, because it doesn't sound like they're that much of a fan.

"Well, I am gutted that the winning bidder was total time waster", he wrote on Twitter, announcing the new sale. "He just wanted to wreck my sale. Grab yourself a bargain! Everyone thinks it's sold!"

Actually, second round bidding is already up to £61,400, so not that much of a bargain. Cattermole adds that he would prefer that "no time wasters" take part in the bidding this time around.

After the original sale, Cattermole put his other BRIT Award up for auction - the 2002 Best Single trophy - which sold for just under £66,000. No word yet if that sale's also fallen through, but maybe keep your eye out. Maybe that could be your bargain.

BACK TO THE TOP OF THE BULLETIN