Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
JUNE 30, 1923
CONDUCTED BY V. D. WALSH
CHAIRMAN OF BROADCASTERS' ASS'N MAKES STATEMENT
Paul B. Klugh Takes Exception to Article Appearing in the Last Issue of The Review—Gives
in Detail the Attitude Which His Association Assumes on Copyright Situation
Paul B. Klugh, executive chairman of the
recently organized National Association of
Broadcasters, with headquarters in New York,
which takes in a number, though not in any
sense all, of the larger radio broadcasting sta-
tions of the country, takes issue with, some of
the statements made in the article in the Music
Publishers' Section of The Review last week
entitled: "Ask Mechanical Royalties for Broad-
casting Songs."
Mr. Klugh declares that the American So-
ciety of Composers, Authors and Publishers does
not offer licenses to broadcasting stations at
nominal figures, as stated in the article, and
that "the amounts they ask would be a hard-
ship on any broadcasting station, in addition to
which no assurance is given that the amounts
will not be very materially increased during the
years to come.
"Furthermore," he says, "broadcasters do not
recognize the right of any publisher or body of
publishers to collect money for licenses granted
under the Copyright Act, because broadcasters
maintain that they do not 'publicly perform for
profit.' " This is, of course, a matter of opinion
which the courts will probably be called upon
to decide.
Mr. Klugh also questions the intimation thai
standard publishers are members of the Society
of Composers, Authors and Publishers, there be-
ing only the name of one standard publisher on
the list in the hands of the broadcasting asso-
ciation, and that concern having consistently re-
fused to release its music for mechanical repro-
duction.
Regarding the reference to the attempts being
made by the Broadcasters' Association to line
up amateur songwriters, small publishers, etc.,
Mr. Klugh states that his organization does
not intend to encourage or assist publishers or
songwriters to form any so-called independent
association regardless of statements to that
POPULAR STANDARDS IN DEMAND I
RED - SEAL.
"SERIES-
CAPITOL MARCH
CONNECTICUT MARCH
effect emanating from trade sources, and he
also denies that the Association has ever sent
letters and contracts generally to the trade sug-
gesting the assignment of mechanical rights in
exchange for broadcasting privileges. Said Mr.
Klugh: "We, however, have a commonsense
workable plan which should be encouraged by
every publisher, songwriter and trade paper,
which will be briefly described, and we object
to the characterization of our well-merited ef-
forts as 'absurd' and 'unmitigated gall,' as is
done in the article."
The Executive Chairman of the Broadcasters'
Association also questioned the attitude of The
Review in handling the entire radio question
from the angle of the music publisher and his
interests rather than impartially and with the
broadcasters' interests also in mind. In refer-
ence to this it may be stated that The Review
has a direct opinion on this entire question,
which it has presented in its columns and which
it sees no reason to change from the informa-
tion contained in the Broadcasters' Association
statement.
In view of what has been said and published
regarding the plans of this new organization of
broadcasters, which at this time does not take
in the number of stations such as those con-
trolled by the Radio Corp. of America, the
Westinghouse interests, the General Electric
Co., etc., which operate independently, a state-
ment of some of the hopes and plans of the
broadcasters as outlined by Mr. Klugh will
likely prove interesting to the music publishing
fraternity. These statements are offered here-
with without comment:
"The National Association of Broadcasters
has no fight with any publisher or songwriter
inside or outside of the American Society of
Composers, Authors and Publishers," writes Mr.
Klugh in his statement.
"The stations belonging to our members are
not conducted for profit, and for this reason
compensation is not paid to the artists who
perform. These stations cost many hundreds
of thousands of dollars yearly to maintain. All
this money is going out and nothing coming
in. The grave question confronting broadcast-
ers is whether radio entertainment can be per-
manently maintained without paying artists and
performers, and if such payment is to be made,
where is the money to come from?
"The National Association of Broadcasters
proposes to develop an income for members
partially to support the very meritorious and
worthy purpose of paying artists what they
rightfully deserve. To this end the Broadcast-
ers' Association contracts with publishers or
songwriters to broadcast their music. If a song
is well known or is put out by a regularly
organized music publisher, they expect no re-
turn in any manner whatsoever for their broad-
casting efforts. However, where a publisher
does not maintain, and perhaps has not the
means of employing professional departments,
and the entire organization which goes with
successful music publishing, the Broadcasters'
Association asserts that it can create a market
for the music of such publishers and in return
for this service is entitled to a small and fair
percentage of the mechanical royalties if, when,
and as created. This is obviously fair.
"There is no force known to man having the
potentiality of radio broadcasting. Through it,
in one week, a musical composition which pos-
sesses merit can be introduced to eight million
listeners, many of whom are at remote points,
SONGS THAT SELL
1
You Know You Belong
to Somebody Else
(So Why Don't You Leave Me Alone ?)
Down Among the Sleepy
Hills of Tennessee (new)
Dearest
(You're the Nearest to My Heart)
— You Tell Her—I Stutter
When Yon Walked Oat Someone Else
Walked Right In
(new)
Indiana Moon (new)
Pickles (new)
That Old Gang of Mine (new)
— L o v e (My Heart Is Calling YOB) (new)
Ala Moana (new)
I Wish I Co«ld Cry Over Someone (new)
Home (new)
Some Day You'll Cry Over Someone
Homesick
Nuthin' But
By the Shallmar
—
Open Yonr Arms, My Alabamy
Ivy (Cling to Me)
Some Little Someone
Some Sunny Day
Come on Home
Just a Little Love Song
Yankee Doodle Blues
Universal Dance Folio for 1923
IRVING BERLIN'S NEW
Music Box Revue
Crinoline Days
Lady of the Evening
Porcelain Maid
Pack Up Your Sins
= Will She Come From the East?
Little Red Lacquer Cage
— The
Bring On the Pepper
and Go To The Devil
IRVING BERLIN, Inc.
1607 Broadway* New York
in small villages, in towns, at cross roads, on
farms, in the mountains, in other words, people
located where they would never be influenced
by the expensive plugging programs of regular
publishing practice. Furthermore, when these
people hear a song on the radio and like it,
they have no means of knowing when they may
hear it again. It is not like the phonograph,
where, .if a song is liked, it can be turned on
again and heard over. If they like a song which
has been broadcasted, their only recourse if they
want to hear it again is to go out and buy the
roll, or record, or sheet music, and it is at this
very point that the broadcasters maintain
they can perform great services to publishers
and create a market for records, rolls and sheet
music where it has never been before. It is
a mistaken idea that broadcasting destroys the