NAB’s Rehr Writes RIAA’s Bainwol On Content Protection In HD Age
NAB President & CEO David K. Rehr has taken pen to paper and corresponded with RIAA Chairman & CEO Mitch Bainwol expressing "the broadcast industry’s strong interest in collaborating to find a workable solution to content protection issues associated with terrestrial digital radio broadcasting.” In the letter, Rehr states…
Tthe transition to HD Radio is well underway and local radio broadcasters have a great deal invested in a timely and successful rollout of this new technology. The goal for our industry is to find a resolution that balances protection of copyrighted works against the important objective of ensuring the continued and rapid expansion of digital audio broadcasts. Such a balanced approach could, in fact, aid the HD Radio rollout by removing regulatory and legislative uncertainty from the marketplace.
NAB questions the degree to which HD Radio threatens copyright or will facilitate unauthorized, digital distribution of sound recordings. Those desiring to obtain and listen to pure, uninterrupted performances of sound recording in lieu of radio already have an abundant number of means to do so. Peer-to-peer file sharing and the hours of uninterrupted music that can be stored on CDs and discs are but a few such means. iPod uploads and digital music on the Internet would seem to present much larger and more immediate threats to copyright holders.
As such, NAB believes the scope of any piracy risk associated with HD Radio is likely more limited than RIAA has previously asserted. However, as content creators ourselves, radio broadcasters oppose piracy in all its forms and therefore hope that we can find an amicable solution to this issue.
We hope to continue dialogue with you as the radio and recording industries keep working towards mutually acceptable resolution of this issue. We therefore think it would be beneficial for members of NAB’s Audio Broadcast Flag Taskforce to meet with counterparts at the RIAA and in the recording industry.
