[Fmpro] CPA music? - Just curious

[Michael S Patterson]

I was wondering if anyone knows the history behind the various
weights of music? I don¹t. Does this go back before the days of TV?
There must have been a time where music was just tabulated
and payed out. 

I¹m guessing this is a decision that was made at some point at
ASCAP or BMI. And who were the decision makers behind this
shift?

Michael S Patterson
 


On 11/27/07 7:10 PM, "James Ryan" <jeryan at optonline.net> wrote:

> Hey Mark,
> You know only too well that this list (not necessarily the individual
> members) is neither respected, nor particularly feared at ASCAP.  When
> no one in authority comments on the postings, it is my understanding
> that they don't feel it's even necessary to comment, leave alone take
> time from their busy schedules to dig up facts and figures to defend
> themselves from a tiny little army with rubber swords.   They just
> don't give a %^*$ what the FMPRO thinks.  When I suggested a while
> back that we write letters to get watermarking going, even creating a
> form letter for everyone to just put on their stationery, sign and
> mail, I had the wonderful and embarrassing experience to stand before
> John LoFrumento and hear him describe the small handful of letters he
> received from a list that I believe is over a thousand strong.  I had
> no support, he knew it, and the results are what we have today - no
> watermarking, no electronic tracking of any kind for score.
> 
> The FMPRO is not a force.  It is not a cohesive whole with a mission.
> It is a discussion group consisting of members who are too busy or too
> complacent to make their wishes known or felt in any meaningful way,
> at least that is what seems to be it's current posture.  That is why
> the union conversation comes up each year and dies a month or so
> later.  Without the cohesive force of thousands of complaints backed
> by some kind of action, be it legal or whatever, you, my friend, can
> fume and rage about the abuses until you wear out your computer, and
> without an organized, monetized unit of force, it  will come to very
> little.
> 
> Please don't get me wrong.  I don't think there is an instrumental
> composer or CPA composer alive that is "just fine" with getting paid a
> fraction of what a songwriter gets and not getting paid at all when
> they get missed in the survey.  None of us believe that it's fair, or
> if somebody does, let's hear the reasons.  What seems to be prevalent
> is a kind of lazy hopelessness, a feeling that nothing they (we) could
> ever say or do would make any real difference.  I admit that I'm more
> often than not, guilty of it myself.  As a result, we go round and
> round, rehashing the same complaints, but never (or rarely) actually
> doing anything.
> 
> Interestingly, the PMA and AMP don't seem to be getting much further,
> and they are a whole lot more organized than film composers.  They did
> get the "jingle cap" proposition kicked out a few years back, and they
> may have been instrumental in getting the raise to 20%, but I have no
> facts on how that actually came about, so I'm just guessing.  I think
> Doug Wood may also have been one of the big forces in pushing it
> through.
> 
> So unless you have a big litigation law firm with deep pockets and an
> interest in changing the status quo, or a relative or lover in the
> Justice Department......let's talk about music!
> 
> Well now.  That was a cheery little missive, wasn't it?
> 
> Best,
> James
> 
> On Nov 27, 2007, at 8:38 PM, Mark Northam wrote:
> 
>> On 11/27/07 10:51 AM, "James Ryan" <jeryan at optonline.net> wrote:
>> 
>>> According to an ASCAP rep who prefers not to be quoted on this list,
>>> when ASCAP raised the score rate to 20% from 16% it wasn't enough to
>>> make the underscore gang happy, and it was a big whack to the
>>> songwriters.  The earning songwriters are fewer in number than the
>>> composers, so they had to shoulder a fairly hefty royalty cut to
>>> compensate for the upgrade to the much larger number of score
>>> composers.
>> 
>> I always am skeptical of anyone who is afraid to say things
>> publicly, but is
>> more than happy to state them "as fact" privately. It's at the root
>> of so
>> many of the problems in this industry, especially with the PROs
>> where there
>> is such a huge lack of facts and everybody is left trying to fill in
>> the
>> blanks.
>> 
>> Personally, on more than one occasion, I've been told of PRO officials
>> instructing members to dismiss anything and everything they read on
>> the
>> FMPRO list, especially data coming from myself, as lies and
>> falsehoods. But
>> not once has any PRO official ever factually challenged a single
>> word I've
>> written. This kind of "knife in the back" behavior is deplorable,
>> and a sign
>> of desperate, cowardly people who can't win on the issues, and instead
>> choose to "discredit the messenger". The fact that ASCAP officials who
>> monitor this list refuse to answer so many questions posed to them
>> on this
>> list also makes the case for the integrity of what is posted here.
>> If the
>> facts revealed here were wrong, any responsible business would step
>> in and
>> correct people. Have we seen a single "correction" from ASCAP? Never.
>> 
>> Simply put, they have too high a price to pay for engaging informed
>> members
>> on the way ASCAP treats composers, because they have an indefensible
>> case.
>> There is absolutely no financial justification that has ever been
>> presented
>> by ASCAP or any of its officials to justify the horrific weighting
>> formula
>> that decimates the value of score music. There is no justification for
>> killing watermarking at ASCAP. There's no justification for lousy
>> tracking
>> of CPA music. The only reason all of these are done is fairly
>> obvious: more
>> money for the songwriters. But is ASCAP willing to present one shred
>> of
>> financial or statistical evidence to support this "claim"? Never.
>> Not once.
>> Nothing. Nada. All we hear is deafening silence as they apparently
>> hope the
>> latest round of embarrassing disclosures and revealed information
>> will blow
>> over and they can get back to the EXPO or whatever other sideshow
>> they're
>> promoting (with our money) to create the perception that they are
>> fair,
>> accountable, transparent, etc etc. while their back office works
>> overtime to
>> funnel every penny possible to the songwriters - especially the "hit"
>> songwriters. In other words, their only way "out" is to remain
>> silent and
>> take their lumps.
>> 
>> James, I'd like to ask you to ask your ASCAP rep to supply some
>> facts and
>> figures to back up the claim about the number of earnings
>> songwriters being
>> fewer in number than the composers. With the prevalence of song on
>> TV today,
>> that's something that needs clarifying. While the number of earning
>> songwriters are fewer in number, so are the instances of song (than
>> score),
>> so I need some more data to fully understand the facts here.
>> 
>> And if your rep is unwilling to provide these figures, that's reason
>> enough
>> in my book to heavily discount any statements from that rep. We are
>> working
>> in a large information vacuum with the PROs, and for them to state
>> facts
>> without any numerical references just doesn't wash. We've been
>> deceived too
>> many times, and there have been too many assumptions made by all
>> sides in
>> this controversy regarding broadcast and member numbers and
>> statistics.
>> 
>> Time for some good ole hard, cold data!
>> 
>> Best,
>> 
>> Mark Northam
>> 
>> 
>> ---------------------------------
>> Mark Northam, CEO
>> Global Media Development Group
>> 
>> http://www.FilmMusicInstitute.com - Film Music Courses and Seminars
>> 
>> 1-800-774-3700 ext. 702 / 310-645-9000 ext. 702
>> http://www.gmdgroup.com
>> Yahoo/Skype: marknortham  /  AIM: mnortham
>> 
>> 
>> 
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> 
> _______________________________________________
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> http://www.filmmusicmag.com
> 
> Best of FMPRO: http://www.fmproquotes.com - Quotes site  by Billy Hale Music
> 
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