.Best Net Radio Hero

Pandora's Tim Westergren

The future of Internet radio looks brighter, thanks in a huge way to
the tireless efforts of Pandora’s Tim Westergren, champion of
independent artists and darling of indie record labels. The rock star
of web radio, Westergren deserves praises on high as the de facto
spokesman in the years-long battle against exorbitant and unfair music
royalties Internet radio stations are forced to pay for webcasting
sound recordings as required by the Copyright Royalty Board. The net
radio industry leader, Oakland-based Pandora is a web radio station
that lets users create personalized radio stations through the Music
Genome Project, technology that recognizes similarities and patterns in
music. To stave off the predatory fees and to save Internet radio,
Westergren mobilized a movement, resulting in millions in political
donations, ads on activist blogs, and listeners’ letters to produce a
massive grassroots-lobbying onslaught on Capitol Hill that paid off in
Congress. Some sticking points remain on the royalty rates issue, but
just this summer President Obama signed the Webcaster Settlement Act of
2009, which gives webcasters like Pandora and certain other
broadcasters and webcasters more time to continue negotiations for an
equitable settlement with the recording industry and copyright holders.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

East Bay Express E-edition East Bay Express E-edition
19,045FansLike
14,598FollowersFollow
61,790FollowersFollow
spot_img