UPDATE: Read our FCC petition response comments here.
A2IM has been involved in many issues related to AM/FM radio including radio station ownership rules and radio access, including payola. In 2007 the FCC, working with A2IM, levied fines on four station groups and set Rules of Engagement as to how radio should operate. Last week, nine radio groups petitioned the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), to change the Sponsorship Identification (SID) rules when a radio station plays music in exchange for compensation. Currently, pay for play must be disclosed at the same time the song is aired.
The NY Times and other publications recently reported on this topic.
The key proposed elements of the petition include:
• All sponsorship/pay-for-play programming would be announced collectively only once per daypart (e.g. AM Drive, PM Drive) initially then only once daily. The given example announcement was “some of the music [and/or] sports programming that you hear on this station is sponsored [or paid for] by Interscope, Sony, Universal Records, or the Washington Nationals. For additional information, please visit our website at www.WXYZ.com or contact the station at 12345 Main Street, Washington, DC 20036, info@wxyz.com, or 202-555-1234.”
• Under the guise of “harness[ing] the power of the Internet in an innovative way”, the petition leaves the burden of transparency as to the airplay that has been paid for up to the public to research directly on their own time on the Internet.
• Opens the door to more unrestricted “pay for play” required payment initiatives by the AM/FM radio broadcast groups .
As in the past, A2IM will be filing comments with the FCC related to these new “pay for play” rules proposed by the radio broadcasters. In advance of our filing, we request that our members share their views and histories related to radio access.
Read our FCC petition response comments here.
Related:
A2IM Comments on FCC Media Ownership Rules (2010)
A2IM Comments on FCC Media Ownership Rules (2012)
A2IM’s Filing with the FCC in Billboard
