Bringing Music To Everyone's Ear

As we endure the Covid-19 pandemic and wonder when this will end, the disputes between music labels and music platforms, like radio and internet, don't seem to have an end in sight. The radio industry has compulsory licence (CL) for music usage, and the Copyright Board order is a benchmark for royalties to be paid by the radio industry to music providers.

Which brings us to the debate on the applicability of statutory licence (SL) and CL to internet platforms that stream and broadcast music. Everyone agrees that the public suffers when music isn't made available to them. The basic intent of the copyright law is to protect owners of copyright. The statute is primarily drafted to achieve this goal. Another important goal is to ensure public access to copyrighted works, and that users of copyright are not harassed or stopped from disseminating copyrighted work in a legitimate manner for public enjoyment.