Broadcasting (Oct 1931-Dec 1932)

Broadcasters Open Fight on ASCAP McC°sker Weighs ° New NAB Policies Federal Agencies Probing Society's Royalty Activities; Schuette Urges Stations to Ban "Song Plugging" By SOL TAISHOFF NEW ATTACKS upon the American Society of Composers, Authors & Publishers, which may possibly result in ultimate dissolution of that organization for reputedly operating in restraint of trade, have been launched from several quarters, provoked mainly by the Society's allegedly extortionate royalty demands on broadcasters and by alleged discriminatory tactics employed to curry favor from certain groups. Several governmental agencies, including the Department of Justice, are inquiring into the activities and organization of ASCAP. Many members of Congress are acquainted with the copyright situation to the extent that they have indicated they will voice their disapproval of ASCAP on the floors of Congress. Finally, the broadcasters, through Oswald F. Schuette, NAB copyright director, have opened their counter-attack in a campaign of active resistance of ASCAP "song plugging" and "restricted numbers". Two Inquiries On IT WAS LEARNED by Broadcasting that the anti-trust division of the Department of Justice has instituted an investigation of ASCAP to ascertain whether its method of collecting tribute from performers of copyrighted music is in restraint of trade, and thus an undue burden on interstate commerce. The Federal Trade Commission, which has functions paralleling those of the Department of Justice in anti-trust actions, also is understood to be giving some thought to the matter, and one high official of that agency ventured the off-hand view that the Federal Trade Commission Act empowered it to take punitive action against ASCAP. These movements are direct outgrowths of the turbulent relations of broadcasters with ASCAP and that organization's steadfast refusal to modify its present demands, which would increase broadcasting royalties some 300 per cent next year. Through the NAB every effort has been made to work out an equitable scale. Mr. Schuette's last suggestion, spurned by the ASCAP board, was for a flat 4 per cent of net receipts royalty, plus sustaining fee, on programs employing ASCAP music only, as against the present demands of 3, 4 and 5 per cent, plus sustaining fee, on all program receipts whether or not ASCAP music is used. Faith Breach Charged THE DEPARTMENT of Justice apparently was spurred to activity by complaints from broadcasters against ASCAP, folkwing the break in negotiations last summer. Members of Congress also are believed to have complained to the department. Charges that ASCAP and its general manager, E. C. Mills, have failed to act in good faith with the broadcasters are said to be responsible for Mr. Shuette's determination to wage his campaign of active resistance. An incident cited was that on Dec. 1 Mr. Mills, at a Washington conference with a group of Senators who had received complaints from constituent stations about the copyright contract, promised he would work out a revised contract covering ASCAP music only, subject to his board's approval. When he returned to New York, he notified the stations that his board had refused to accede and that the original 3-4-5general income contract would stand. Schuette's Proposals UPON LEARNING from Mr. Mills that the ASCAP board would take no action on his proposal to revise contracts to 4 per cent of revenues actually earned by use of ASCAP until the next board meeting in January, Mr. Schuette announced his plans. In a circular to all cooperating broadcasters, Mr. Schuette reviewed the whole situation. (The circular is published below in full text.) First, he called for a ban on all "plugging" of music requested by ASCAP members over stations. Secondly, he asked that no further requests for permission to play "restricted" numbers be made. In many cases these restrictions have apparently been placed chiefly to induce stations to ask such special permission, which often is granted only in return for the promise from the station to perform some other numbers in which the publisher is interested, he asserted. Finally, he asked that all stations bar restricted numbers during the life of the present ASCAP contracts, so that numbers placed upon the restricted list by publishers shall be kept there. In that way, he said, publishing houses will understand that, until ASCAP has given some evidence of a genuine desire to deal fairly with broadcasters, they will not get the favored treatment they demand from stations. Mr. Shuette pointed out that out of 271 numbers on the current list of ASCAP restrictions, 219 or 81 per cent are controlled by directors of the Society. To the reports that anti-trust actions might be instituted against ASCAP, Mr. Mills has blandly replied to the music-trade press that the association is "willing" to dissolve. He has made that statement many times before, pointing out that a decade ago ASCAP was investigated by the government and was absolved of being an illegal combination. Mr. Mills has stated that dissolution of ASCAP would mean negotiations by broadcasters and other users of copyrighted music with individual publishers. This he said, would be far more expensive and complicated than dealing with one central organization. Text of NAB Plan MR. SCHUETTE'S circular to all "cooperating broadcasters" follows in full text: "Under the authority of the 'absolute power' given me by the unanimous vote of member and non-member broadcasters at the St. Louis convention of the NAB, I submitted a proposal to the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers to revise the copyright contracts by substituting for 3, 4 and 5 per cent of the entire revenues of broadcast(Continued on page 18) Hoover Sent Congratulations To Industry's President IN COMPLIANCE with the action of the NAB convention at St. Louis last month, a committee of the NAB board of directors, headed by President A. J. McCosker, WOR, Newark, is giving consideration to a concrete program carrying the convention policies. Plans for raising funds and for increasing membership through reduced dues to stations in the lower-income groups are being worked out and will be acted upon at a forthcoming general meeting of the board, probably to be held within the next 10 days. Among other things, the board is going over the names of individuals for possible appointment as director-general of NAB. Whether he will be some person outstanding in publfc life, or an individual prominent in radio, has not yet been decided. In the latter category the names of James W. Baldwin, Radio Commission secretary, Henry A. Bellows, CBS vice president just transferred to Washington, and William S. Hedges, director of WMAQ, Chicago, have been mentioned. High tribute to the new NAB president was paid by President Hoover in a letter to Mr. McCosker on Dec. 2, stating: "I send you my warmest congratulations on your unanimous election as president of the NAB at the recent annual convention in St. Louis. It is especially noteworthy that you were chosen from the field of independent broadcasters. "In view of the vast scope of radio broadcasters in the United States and the direct impress it makes upon the minds of the people, its possibilities for good in advancing industrial, scientific, cultural and amusement interests, this is a signal honor of high responsibility, which your character, broad experience and achievements give promise of successful discharge in the public interest. You have my cordial wishes in this work." Expensive Coverage CHOOSING to cover the Notre Dame-Southern California football game of Dec. 10 independently, WGN, Chicago, sent Quin Ryan, its manager and chief announcer, and Carl H. Meyers, chief engineer, to Los Angeles to handle the game over its own 2,500-mile leased wire. Ryan was assisted by sports writers of the Chicago Tribune and Meyers had the assistance of three former WGN engineers now in the sound departments of Hollywood studios — George Leverett, Paul Neal and Ralph Shugart. RADIO MERRY-GO-ROUND— This is how announcers and engineers of WPTF, Raleigh, covered highlights of the North Carolina State Fair. Using a portable broadcaster transmitting on 69 megacycles, they were able to describe scenes all over the fair grounds. This picture shows them on the carousel, but they also relayed their descriptions with this apparatus from the ferris wheel, whip and even from the monkey cage. Newspaper Buys ASSIGNMENT of WFBC, Greenville, S. C, from Virgil V. Evans to the Greenville News-Piedmont Co. (newspaper) was approved by Dec. 9 by the Radio Commission. The station operates on 1200 kc. with 50 watts. Page 6 BROADCASTING • December 15, 1932