A debate over streaming royalty pay-outs is raging in the U.K. under the hashtags #BrokenRecord and #FixStreaming, where musicians, songwriters and composers are questioning fair remuneration. ERA CEO Kim Bayley is the latest to weigh in on the conversation.
In defense of streaming services, which have been receiving widespread criticism, "You don’t mend a #BrokenRecord by smashing the record player," Bayley said.
The conversation started with a campaign titled Keep Music Alive from The Musicians' Union and The Ivors Academy earlier in May. In light of live income lost as a result of the coronavirus crisis, the two orgs urged stakeholders to create an “equitable, sustainable and transparent” model for royalty distribution in the streaming era.
While Bayley has welcomed the debate, she warns that the debate is being distorted by misleading claims. “The streaming revolution saved the record business,” she said. “It would be short-sighted and self-defeating if in attempting to #FixStreaming, we ended up undermining it.”
