Oxenford: Global Music Rights Has 'Lost Patience'

Recent music licensing lawsuits against three broadcasters by Global Music Rights indicate the music licensing entity “has lost patience with stations that have not entered into agreements to play their music,” wrote Wilkinson Barker broadcast attorney David Oxenford posted Oct. 7. According to legal filings in U.S. District Court, GMR sued Red Wolf in Connecticut, Southern Stone Communications and Black Crowe Media Group in the Middle District of Florida, and One Putt Broadcasting in the Eastern District of California. The courts could potentially lower the damages requested, but “even the threat of such damages has been enough to put many of the original file-sharing music sites out of business,” Oxenford said. Radio stations avoiding playing GMR-licensed music “is a difficult if not impossible task given the songwriters that GMR has signed who have full or partial copyrights in a wide variety of popular music," the blog post said. Commercial radio stations that haven’t reached a licensing agreement with GMR “or otherwise taken action to avoid the need for that license should discuss this issue with their attorneys now to see what actions they can take to avoid potential liability later,” Oxenford said.