CPCC applies for music tax on memory cards

[D. Hugh Redelmeier]

| From: David J Patrick <djp-tnsZcVQxgqO2dHQpreyxbg at public.gmane.org>

| Musicians are paid on the basis of airplay frequency, so that the musicians
| "on the charts" get the dough, while everyone else gets to go fly a kite.

Actually, it seems as if the proportions are based on equal weighting
of airplay on commercial stations (a nasty bias) and sales sample
"based in SoundScan Data" (which covers "91% of all record sales in
Canada").

<http://cpcc.ca/english/infoCopyHolders.htm>

I don't disagree with your point, I just try to be completely accurate
about the way it works.

I find that the proportion going to publishers and record companies a
bit odd (high).

Mind you, the download breakdowns are really odd too.  I seem to
remember that Wierd Al talked about how much he got for his backlist
and it was horrible.  Remember how little function the publishers and
record companies have in this new world.

The question is: what model should we have to reward various folks in
the music business, past and present?  The levy has some nice
features, especially when a lot of the alternatives are DRM-based.  I
just don't see how to make it workable.

BTW, nothing released with sufficiently restrictive DRM should count in a 
survey for dividing up the levy pie: it isn't being being made
available for copying.

One fascinating distortion: only Canadian stuff gets levy payouts (the 
actual rules are a bit more intricate than that).  That would change if 
other countries agreed to a levy system that covered Canadians.

    The Copyright Act identifies the general types of copyright holder
    on whose behalf private copying royalties are collected and which
    are eligible for payment. Songwriters, music publishers, recording
    artists and record companies – those with rights in the
    music copied – are all eligible. While songwriters and
    music publishers are eligible regardless of nationality, only
    Canadian recording artists and record companies may receive
    payments under current law.

See also <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Private_copying_levy>