Re: S.505 Signed

It's interesting how little comment has been directed to the "Fairness in Music Licensing" provision. This began life as a wholesale exemption, an anti-ASCAP measure, exempting any public reception of a licensed transmission from a broadcast station. With little discussion in Congress, it ultimately was adopted, in a more limited (and almost incomprehensible) form as a considerably broadened "Aiken" exemption.

Moreover, as to the Term Extension, there had been some concern over how the extension would affect the termination right; i.e, would it defer the right for twenty years (to the benefit of publishers and other assignees) or increase by twenty years the recapture period, to the benefit of individual authors. As I read it, it seems, by silence, to do the latter. I find reference only to termination as to the twenty year extension where the termination right has heretofore expired. However, given the frequency of statutory opacity, I'm not sure that that is the proper construction and any comment would be appreciated.

Sheldon W. Halpern
The Ohio State University College of Law <shalpern[_at_]pop.service.ohio-state.edu> Received on Thu Oct 29 1998 - 15:46:21 GMT