I don’t use this page often (or at all, really) for political causes. Yes, Stephen Harper is the devil but that’s nothing we don’t already know. But this cause is close to my heart, not only because I have an obscene amount of friends that are making music but also because I’m a musician myself.
The Copyright Board of Canada has recently set one of the worst royalty rates in the world to music streaming. It’s called Tariff 8. And it means that musicians around the world will be paid 90% less when their music is streamed by Canadian consumers.
What does this mean, you wonder? The pictures I have included as a part of this post should shed some light on the utterly ridiculous nature of Tariff 8.
Vancouver band Moist has used #LessThanPeanuts as a Twitter hashtag to describe the “deplorable ruling” of the Copyright Board on Tariff 8. Less than peanuts, indeed! It would take 51,863 plays of one of their songs like “Push” for the band to buy this jar of peanuts – if they get it while it’s on sale!
Shocking, isn’t it?
On June 16, 2014, a group of more than 70 music organizations from across the country released a joint statement in support of Re:Sound’s Application for Judicial Review of the Copyright Board’s Tariff 8 decision setting royalty rates for webcasting services in Canada. The Tariff 8 decision is a serious setback for the music community in Canada, for artists and the music companies who invest in their careers. The decision discards years of agreements freely negotiated between digital music service providers and the music industry and sets rates for music web streaming services in Canada that are less than 10% of the rates that the same services pay in the United States.
Here are 5 things you need to know about the Copyright Board of Canada’s ruling on digital streaming services.
If you’re on Facebook, please take a moment and join the I Stand For Music page. It was created as a space to amplify opposition to the Tariff 8 decision, and to show our support for recorded music and Canada’s music community. You can help by sharing this post or by inviting your friends to join the Facebook page.
Everyone enjoys music. This isn’t about propping up indie bands or lining the pockets of those who don’t need the money. It’s about principle.
Please lend your support.