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programming in non-musical fields forbade the use of as much music as the AFM demanded.
“When, year after year, we have seen our budget dissipated uselessly and beyond our control, it is not difficult to understand that we have been most reluctant to plan as we would have liked,” he declared. “The fact that we have maintained a fine musical structure despite this condition is only an indication of what we might have done if things had been different.”
Network Testimony. In his formal statement, Mr. Mullen outlined the operations of NBC, its owned and operated stations, and its Radio Recording Division. He also explained NBC’s contractual relations with the
Copyright Law Amendment Proposed
As the Petrillo hearing drew to a close on Thursday (22), Rep. Carroll D. Kearns (R-Pa.) proposed a bill “to clarify the greatly confused recording industry” by amending the copyright law. Chairman Hartley and Rep. Landis favored it, later reports said. Not yet drafted in final form, the bill was described by Rep. Kearns thus:
“This bill will make it mandatory that records used by radio stations, juke boxes and revenue receiving services must bear the label, ‘For Commercial Use Only.’
“Records for individuals and home use will con¬ tinue to be labeled, ‘For Home Use Only.’
“My bill will propose that it shall be unlawful for any radio broadcasting station, juke box, or others, using records for commercial purposes to use record¬ ings or transcriptions made for individual or home consumption.
“And that concerns, using records for commercial use, shall not be permitted to use records for this purpose unles they carry the label, ‘For Commercial Use Only.’
“My bill will further provide that the purchaser of these records labeled ‘For Commercial Use Only’ shall pay regulated amounts so that additional monies can be paid to the leader, instrumentalists, and all such artists engaged in the making of recordings.
“This bill will serve to clarify the greatly confused recording industry and serve further to protect the public and the performer and assure recordings for commercial use and for individual and home use.”
AFM, and submitted as exhibits the network’s six cur¬ rent contracts with AFM locals.
Reaffirming NBC’s efforts to encourage FM develop¬ ment, he pointed to the network’s offer to permit dupli¬ cation of AM network programs by affiliated stations on their FM outlets. Citing the results of this as a gain in audience on the FM bands, he said :
“We believe that in thus restricting the develop¬ ment of FM broadcasting, the union is following an un¬ sound policy which is opposed to its own interests, as well as to the interests of the public.”
Mr. Mullen outlined difficulties with television on the same score, and proceeded to delineate for the Committee the subjects suggested by the networks as in need of settlement in the negotiations with the AFM and Mr. Petrillo, which were in progress last week even as the hearing continued.
The subjects were network and owned and operated station AM broadcasting, duplication of AM and FM broadcasts, network and owned and operated station FM broadcasting, use of musicians on coopei’ative and participating programs, Chicago formula for sale of musicians, network and owned and operated station television broadcasting and duplication of AM and FM shows on television, interchangeability of musicians on AM, FM, and television, production and use of ex¬ isting and new motion picture film for television, re¬ mote and overseas pick-ups, transcriptions, staff musi¬ cians, and phonograph records.
Mr. Ream’s statement covered the same areas, but in greater detail as to past negotiations with the union. The statement was devoted primarily, however, to negotiations looking toward duplication of AM pro¬ grams on FM.
Mr. Woods’ statement cited figures on payments to musicians in 1947 by ABC-owned and operated stations in five cities. The total, he said, was approximately $1,700,000.
The ABC president’s statement was given prin¬ cipally to a discussion of single-use, delayed and re¬ corded repeat broadcast transcriptions. He explained the meanings of the terms to the Committee, and illus¬ trated with examples of their use in various situations.
He concluded his statement with a summary of the basic difficulty in dealing with the AFM. Petrillo’s desire “to increase the employment of musicians in . . . smaller cities.”
“The union is made up of 225,000 members, scat¬ tered throughout the country,” he said. “A great pro¬ portion . . . are part-time musicians. He has fre¬ quently appealed to the networks for aid. We cannot aid him because we are legally unable, and personally unwilling, to exert pressure upon our affiliated stations to hire musicians, when they feel that such employ¬ ment is unnecessary.”
Mr. Streibert’s statement was devoted to cooperative programs, the quota system, restrictions on off-theline recordings, and duplication by FM stations.
Costly and Burdensome. The Mutual board chaii’man, in his conclusion, characterized the union’s prac¬ tices as “troublesome, costly and burdensome to the industry.”
After the luncheon recess on Monday, Chairman Hartley grouped all four network executives at the witness table at the same time for joint responses to the Committee’s questions.
In the informal questioning. Rep. Gerald W. Landis (R-Ind.) asked Mr. Mullen what changes he considered necessary in the Taft-Hartley Act to further collective bargaining. Mr. Mullen replied with his statement on expiration of contracts, and added:
“But if one small group of men can deprive the peo¬ ple of music as they want it, in spite of the Lea and Taft-Hartley Acts, then maybe some new legislation is needed.”
Rep. Ralph W. Gwinn (R-N. Y.), calling the recital of figures “very dull,” asked for “human interest ex¬ amples of Mr. Petrillo’s arbitrary, capricious, and even ridiculous actions, as in the Sarasota case.”
Chairman Hartley interrupted here to explain that he had sent to his office for a clipping on the Sarasota
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JANUARY 26, 1948-66