OMAA protests
AMOA agreement
The Ohio Music and Amusement
Association (OMAA) adopted a reso-
lution at its June 27 board of directors
meeting protesting the May agree-
ment between PJ..AOA and the Per-
forming Rights Societies on jukebox
license fees. In a strongly worded
statement. OMAA stated that "PJ..AOA
did not discharge its duties according
to directives and goals it initially pub-
licized and that the agreement is not in
the best long term interest of the juke-
box industry."
The PJ..AOA agreement was the
solution to an ongoing problem of
excessive license fees imposed upon
jukebox operators beginning with $8
per year in 1978 rising to $50 in 1985.
Jukebox operators were outraged
at the increase and had sought relief
with the PJ..AOA agreement. However.
the agreement fell short of providing
much relief. and in fact calls for an
increase to at least $60 in 1987. The
agreement provides a S I 0 rebate for
1985 and 1986. and a rebate of any-
thing over $60 for 1987 and 1988
provided there are II 0.000 jukeboxes
registered in 198 7 and I 15.000 in 1988.
Ohio operators are angry about
the agreement and how it was
obtained. Said OMAA president Larry
Van Brockel. "This agreement was the
best kept secret since the atom bomb.
PJ..AOA made no attempt to let us know
what was going on. There could even
be more things in the agreement that
we still don't know about. Even the
point about low compliance among
operators has not been challenged . I
believe the compliance is much
higher."
He went on to say. "The PJ..AOA
approached the OMAA to organize a
grass roots organization. to have our
members work hard contacting sen-
ators and representatives to make
them aware of our problem. We were
10
asked to do it and we did. We worked
hard. and all of a sudden we find out
an agreement was reached and we
didn't know anything about it."
This resolution. noted Van BrockeL
is not the opinion of one or two people
in the association. but represents the
whole association. " At our board
meeting it was I 00 percent unanimous
that everyone was extremely unhappy
with this agreement. " said Van
Brockel. " A group representing the
PJ..AOA came to Columbus to talk with
us about our feelings on the matter
which we told them in detail. How-
ever. they didn't give us any satis-
factory answers."
OMAA's resolution states its objec-
tions to the PJ..AOA agreement: ( I )
PJ..AOA's original goal was to mount a
grass roots campaign. not to negotiate
OJ;\ agreement that prohibits any
further legislative effort before 1989;
(2) the settlement establishes a new
floor to fees that only two years ago
were considered so oppressive as to
cripple the already staggering juke-
box industry; and ( 3) the settlement
seems to be the result of the Perform-
ing Rights Societies perception of lack
of unity on the part of PJ..AOA negotia-
tors.
Van Brockel said that the hope of
OM.AA by adopting this resolution. is
to emphasize to PJ..AOA that they are
representing operators all over the
country and they need the grass roots
campaigns and operator support
"Something as monumental as this
agreement should have involved
Dyal receives award
John Dyal. Philadelphia. Pennsylvania. right was given an award
by Standard Change-Makers. Inc. for the "Greatest Percentage of Increase
in Sales for 1984 ... The award was presented by John S. Dugan. national
sales manager. at the Company's 30th annual sales meeting in Indianapolis.
PLAY MfTER, September 1, 1985