No victors in CRA and PPCA copyright stoush

A spokesperson for Radio’s industry body Commercial Radio & Audio (CRA) told us in response:

“PPCA have claimed victory due to an increase in the rate payable by Australian radio. The facts tell a different story. The 38% achieved is in stark contrast to the enormous 150% increase they were seeking from the vast majority of stations. This outcome could have been achieved through negotiation which would have avoided costly legal fees for both parties.

This result places further cost pressure on the sustainability of Australia’s local radio industry who have a long history of proudly supporting Australian music and will continue to do so.

There is also nothing to suggest this increase will go to Aussie artists – in fact, it is the major global record labels that own the PPCA who will directly benefit from this increase.

CRA and PPCA/ARIA do not yet have access to the Court’s full findings, so we cannot comment on their claim in relation to the 1% cap yet but we understand there is absolutely nothing in the Tribunal’s judgment that supports their claim.”

While a 38% increase does indeed look good up front to Australian music artists reading this, there will be fine print and what the CRA says is also true, by the time it trickles down, the artists may see a very small portion of that.

The other unresolved matter is whether the findings adjust the quota of Australian music that radio stations are required to play. More information on those quotas, as they stand currently, are here.

If that is reduced, radio stations may become more judicious around which Australian artists are played, with more of that 38% going to non-Australian artists, which was surely not the point of the exercise in the first place. Australian acts who do get played would be the ‘sure bets’, meaning more for established artists and even harder for new acts to build a following.

In the US, radio stations do not have to pay royalties to artists and labels. Gene Simmons from Kiss spoke last week in congress saying that is basically “robbery”. Spotify emerged in the first place to compete (albeit paying a pittance themselves) against US radio, which pays nothing. Some of these long held safeguards were in place to not just support the Australian music industry but encourage radio stations to seek and find new local acts, not just play more Taylor Swift.

Another possible outcome could be that radio stations reduce the amount of music they play. Instead of 8-10 songs an hour you get six, with increased host chatter. That way less royalties are paid to adjust to the 38% increase, but the music industry loses out again. A 2024 study of the economic impact of the quotas and caps argued that changes would be beneficial for the Australian music industry.

This legal battle has already affected Australian radio with CRA cancelling its annual radio awards, the ACRAs, saying they would instead have to reallocate resources to “crucial priorities, including significant cost pressures incurred from ongoing legal matters with the PPCA.”

CRA already knows they have incurred losses as a result of this battle. Next year, as the results play out, local Australian artists may also find they weren’t the winners either.

Jen Seyderhelm is a writer, editor and podcaster. Email: [email protected]