New US law ensures better deal for musicians

Backed unanimously by the Senate and the House, the bill has been called "the most sweeping reform to copyright law in decades". The new law has been long coveted by many stakeholders in the music industry. 

“The Music Modernisation Act is now the law of the land, and thousands of songwriters and artists are better for it,” said Recording Industry Association of America president Mitch Glazier in a statement.

“The result is a music market better founded on fair competition and fair pay. The enactment of this law demonstrates what music creators and digital services can do when we work together collaboratively to advance a mutually beneficial agenda.”

Its groundbreaking update of Section 115 of the US Copyright Act has been praised by artists, record labels and politicians. Its major parts address challenges brought up by the Internet. Licensing of music has been made easier for persons or organisations holding rights and seeking payment for the streaming of their music online. 

Under the Compensating Legacy Artists for their Songs, Service and Important Contributions to Society (CLASSICS) Act, rights holders can now receive payment for music recorded before 1972. In other words, songwriters and singers previously not covered by American law can seek compensation in form of royalties if their music is used. 

There is also good news for music producers, who have been included in copyright law for the first time. The Allocation for Music Producers (AMP) Act allows for producers to receive better payment if their work gets played on satellite and online radio. Prior to this law, the rights management organisation SoundExchange had allowed producers to be paid their shares of royalties directly as instructed by artists. Now, the AMP Act provides a legal framework for direct payment. 

“This historic legislation has been a decade in the making," Digital Media Association (DiMA) CEO Chris Harrison said. "DiMA, and its streaming member companies are proud to have spearheaded this process from start to finish. Working together with our industry partners and lawmakers, we believe the creation of a new, modern system will provide better clarity and benefit publishers, songwriters, artists, record labels, and digital services."

For now, it is unclear how the Music Modernisation Act applies to music created by Africa-based acts signed to American record labels, as over the past few years such giants as Sony Music and Universal Music Group have made inroads into the continent. Streaming platforms such as Spotify have also shown an increased interest in African music content. 

Speaking about music creators, Trump said: “They were treated very unfairly. They’re not going to be treated unfairly anymore."