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3/6/36
AS CAP ENDS DIRECT TESTIMONY;
RADIO TO BE HEARD NEXT WEEK
The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Pub¬ lishers concluded its direct testimony before the House Patents Committee on the pending copyright bills March 5 after being allowed two weeks.
While the agenda, for next week has not been prepared, it was said that radio interests ana others will be given an opportunity to be heard next week. James W. Baldwin, Managing Director of the National Association of Broadcasters, expects to take the stand Tuesday morning. A3CAP representatives will have a chance for rebuttal testimony at the conclusion of the hearing, the Committee Clerk said.
E C. Mills, General Manager of AS CAP , was the principal witness this week, the other two principal witnesses being show¬ men Rudy Vallee and George M. Cohan.
"Priae of authorship is inherent in a crea.tor" , Mr.
Mills said, "and the creator should be protected and adequately compensated for his work. "
Appearing in opposition to the Duffy Bill, which the broadcasters favor, he said: "Without music, the radio is inartic¬ ulate. "
He told the Committee that copyright laws were passed for the public and not for creators, "because it is the public which accepts or rejects a man's creation, is entitled to its bene¬ fits and in turn should provide compensation for the creator. "
He assailed cooyright provisions which, he said, speci¬ fied the same remuneration to the author of "Flat Tire Papa,
Mamma's Gonna Give Him Air", that John Philip Sousa received for phonograph renditions of his marches.
Mr. Mills urged the Committee against approval of adherence to the Berne Convention which provides automatic copy¬ rights in all countries which are signatory.
"We would be no better off under the Berne Convention despite the fact there is no nationality in music", he said. "It is impossible for United States citizens to protect their rights in Italy or Germany, for example.
"Why not an aristocracy of these people who create?" he asked. "Give them protection and encourage them as guaranteed unde our Constitution. Or if you do not believe in that theory, then let's kill all copyright laws and kill creation with it."
Mr. Mills told the Committee tha.t $80,000,000 worth of radio time was sold on the air in one year, that $50,000,000 was paid by radio listeners to power and lignt companies for energy to operate their sets, and that $500,000,000 was scent for radios.