Variety (May 1941)

Wednesday, May 7, 1941 P^RiEfr MUSIC 67 ASCAP-MBS DEAL DELAYED iiWhatASCAP-MutualDeal Implies:^ By BEN BODEC ^♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦4»4«*«»44* M * .Following is a summary in question and answer form of the various formulas agreed upon between Mutual and ASCAP for application to net- work and local station broadcasting: NETWOEK BLANKET LICENSE How moch will be the fee on network commercial business? Mutual will pay up to the end of 1944 a fee of 3% and for the next Ave years a fee of V/2,%, after deductions of agency commissions, frequency discounts together with line charges and a certain percentage of fixed sales expenses. Wliat did ASCAP previously collect on network commercial business from Mutual affiliates? The fees ranged from 3% to 5%, with the figure depending on the basic agreement between the station and ASCAP. Similar deductions were allowable. What will be the fee on network sustaining programs? Mutual will get a license for one dollar annually but for that it assumes half the obligation due ASCAP on any of its stations that do not take out an ASCAP license. The sustaining rate for the individual station will be a monthly payment equal to the highest one-hour published card rate, but in no event will it be more than one and a half times the sustaining rate by the station in 1940. What does ASCAP estimate it will'collect on the above bases from the Mutual Network direct and Its affiliated stations? It has no way of even guessing what it will be because it had not here- tofore collected at the source and because it doesn't know what portion of MBS affiliates will elect the per program plan over the blanket (an arrangement covering all commercial programs) formula. SINGLE STATION BLANKET LIOENSE What are the fees on commercial boslness and term of the agreement? Exactly the same as on network business. What is the license fee on sustaining programs? It is 12 times the highest hour rate, to be paid monthly, but this fee collectively is never to exceed one and a half times the station's 1940 sustaining fee. Stations having less than $50,000 gross receipts will pay a nominal $12 fee annually. SINGLE PER FROGBAM PLAN What will be the license fee on commerciar programs using ASCAP music? It will be 10% of the net receipts from musical shows, 3% from pro- grams using a theme song or a theme song coupled with bridge or inci- dental music, Vk% for a program using incidental music only and for Incidental music played by college bands in connection with football games. There will be no license fee on other sports events. What will be the license tees on sustaining programs under this plan? It will be 1% of the nation's highest card rate applicable to broadcasting time consumed. What are to be the bookkeeping mechanics under this plan? The station must furnish as to all musical programs an item by item list of all compositions broadcast, stating the title of the composition, the name of the composer, author and publisher, date of copyright, etc. Does ASCAP have to continue with the per program arrangement If it finds that it Is economically unfeasible, or is the station privileged to make 8 change from one plan to another? Yes, either way. ASCAP may elect to have the station operate on a blanket licensee formula if the payments under that formula have been less than 2% of the station's net receipts during any year, while the sta- tion itself may switch over if it finds that its payments have been in excess of 5% of its net receipts. OTHER PERTINENT ANGLES ASCAP has never before issued a license for more than five years. ASCAP for the first time under these licensees may not restrict more than 500 numbers, nor can it -withdraw a number once it has been tagged as (I theme song by a sponsor. Also for the first time ASCAP has got around what is known as the 'twilight zone' in netujorfc broadcasting and is in a position to apply its fees to all the money taken in for the sale of time by a network. Th'e 'tuiiltpht zone' refers to the difference between what the network col- lected for a station from an advertiser and the actual amount turned over to the station. In the past this situotton allowed the networks on advantage over local stations when it come to paying for music. The stations paid on the basis of the full card rate, whereas the network in principle paid on the bosis of the share, running frovi 20% to 37%% bf the station's network card it fumed ouer to the affiliated station. BUTIEB EXECS IRE GONEIDENI Mutual Hopes for Ratifica- tion of Pact Before Open- ing of Broadcasters' Con- vention, Though Only 36% of Stations Have Re- plied Thus Far — ASCAP Says Stipulations Are Legally Okay NBC-CBS NEGOTIATING Robbins Signs Parrish Mitchell Parrish has been signed by Jack Robbins to another year's contract. This Is the fourth lap for the lyricist JOE REICHMAN the pagliacci of the piano And His Orchestra Coming Up YICTOK NO. 27357 NUMBER TEN LULLABY LANE -VICTOR NO. 87300 WISE OLD OWL 5G INFRINGEMENT SUIT VS. SEP DISMISSED Milwaukee, May 6. Judge F. Ryan Duffy in Federal court here dismissed the $5,000 copy- right infringement damage suit brought by Eric Karll, local com poser, against the Saturday Evening Post for allegedly using the Green Bay Packers' theme song, 'Go, You Packers, Go,' in a story by Russ Davis titled 'And a Little Town Shall Lead Them' in its issue of Nov. 30, 1940. Faulty service caused dismissal, arid Robert A. Hess, legal rep for the songwriter, at once set out to remedy this by instituting a new action against Curtis Publishing Co., of Delaware, the distributing corpo- ration, as distinguished from 'The' Curtis Publishing Co., of Pennsyl- vania, the publishing'corporation. Fred Weber Protests Mifler's Tactics, Says Deal Solely Concerns Mutual Counting the Chickens Pair Signs for Decca Sylvia and Chila, Mexican song- stresses at Havana-Madrid, N. Y. nitery, have been signed by Wally |-Downey for a series of Decca I recordings. I They will wax 16 Latin tunes. Heads of the Mutual Broadcasting System yesterday (Tuesday) showed no signs of dismay at their inability to produce enough votes from among affiliated statiops to ratify the licensing contract that had been negotiated with the American So- ciety of Composers, Authors and Publishers. These MBS officers and executives expressed themselves as still confident that they will obtain the necessary accord before the of- ficial opening of the National As- sociation of Broadcasters' conven- tion in St. Louis, Tuesday (13). The network will hold a meeting of its aftiUates at the Chase hotel in that city Saturday afternoon (10) regard- less of whether the contract is mean- while ratified. Up to late yesterday Mutual's home office had heard from 36% of the 188 stations to whom it had ad- dressed the contract formulas worked out with ASCAP and had asked for early approval. The ratio between those favoring the ac- ceptance of an ASCAP deal and those preferring to wait until the industry meeting in St, Louis was about even. Meanwhile both NBC and Columbia are speeding up their own negotiations with ASCAP for a set of formulas which they can pre- sent to their own affiliates during the convention and thereby, if possi- ble, prevent Mutual from being the flrst network to go back on the air with ASCAP music. Both NBC and CBS have had accountants for the past several days busily engaged with ASCAP executives develop- ing a statistical basis for their own needs. In any event, it has been disclosed by ASCAP, NBC and CBS will have to agree to the same deal that has already been okayed by the Mutual board of directors and stockholders. During the hectic period which followed the consum'hiation of agreements between Mutual and ASCAP last Thursday (1) the U. S. Department of Justice became the center of much finger-pointing. Sev- eral broadcasters had complained to the department that the terms of the MBS-ASCAP agreement were in violation of the ASCAP-Government consent decree, and ASCAP quickly rushed some spokesmen to Washing- ton, Saturday (3), to counteract this move. After the department, ac- cording to ASCAP officials Monday (5), had gone over all the contracts involved the Society was assured that the former conformed in every way with the provisions of the de- cree. There was some discussion about the telegram sent out by Neville Miller, NAB prez, advising Mutual affiliates that an analysis of the MBS-ASCAP contracts would be offered at the convention, but ASCAP, it is said, refrained from committing itself on any legal im plication which might be associated by other sources with Miller's movi Sentiment aired in ASCAP official ranks within the past few days has been that since peace with all three networks looked imminent it might be untoward for the Society to be- come involved in any legal recrimi nations. Had the required votes of ap proval come in by yesterday from MBS affiliates, ASCAP music would have become part of Mutual's schedule on Saturday (10) for the first time since Dec. 31. ASCAP officials say they have no way of determining how great the organization's income from radio would be under the contracts offered Mutual, but a rough estimate derived from one such source is that if NBC and Columbia take the same contract as Mutual's, the Society's income from network broadcasting will be around $3,500,000 a year. With local station fees included ASCAP's revenue might figure between $4,500,000 and $5,000,000. The Society's returns from broadcasting in 1940 was some- what short of $5,000,000. ASCAPCOINLOSS TO KEEP BASIC POLICY In the final negotiating session be- tween Mutual representatives and ASCAP spokesmen last Wed.. (30), the Society elected to make a sub- stantial money concession rather than surrender its privilege of work- ing out the next contract (1949) without arbitrators. Mutual fought hard for the inclusion of the arbi- tration clause and only withdrew from this position when ASCAP of- fered to extend the application of the 3% fee from what was originally set at eight months - to the first four years of the contract. The concession meant the giving up of many thousands of dollars in revenue but the ASCAP board felt that in the long run its retention of the right to do business without the intercession of outsiders will prove more valuable. Also ASCAP is able to maintain an old tradition, that of never having had to use or submit to the service of arbiters. MBS-ASCAP details as to terms of the proposed contracts on page 68, ASCAP DONATES MUSIC FOR ARMY PROGRAMS Spartanburg, S. C, May 6. WSPA, BMI-signatured, same as WORD, its companion station, has been given okay signal from ASCAP for broadcasts of ASCAP music dur- ing station's nightly talent shows from Camp Croft, 18,000-man army training center here. Programs being non-commercial and with time donated by station (soldiers as talent) ASCAP wired Camp Croft officials 'ASCAP is happy to grant' permission to the men of Camp Croft to use any of the work of our members on non- commercial programs, provided the radio station donates the use of its facilities.' Following is the wire which NevilU Miller.ypresident of the.National As- sociation of Broadcasters, sent to members last Thursday (1), or shortly after Mutual had come to an agreement with ASCAP on licensing formulas affecting itself and its af- filiates: 'In order to eruible N.A.B. mem- bers to comprehend the effect of Mutual-ASCAP proposal a factual analysis is being made. This will be transmitted to stations in time to be available for consideration at conventions.' Fred Weber, Mutual general man-, ager, the following day (2) wired Miller as follows: 'Your telegraphic communica- tion has reached our attention." We are amazed that you should proffer an analysis of the ASCAP proposal while it is en route and before it was received by Mu- tual stations. We wonder what circumstances prompted you to make such an analysis, since the Mutual Copyright Committee sent a complete analysis with the proposals. We understood that the National Association of Broadcasters was an association supported by the entire radio Industry. 'Recently the association has demonstrated an increasingly alarming tendency to enter into controversial subjects affecting competition between the older networks and the Mutual Broad- casting System. This is em- phasized by your action in enter- ing into a matter of business which solely concerns the affili- ates and Mutual. We protest against your attempts with others to coerce, influence, or restrain the free choice of ac- tion of independent broadcasting stations.' On Saturday (3) Alfred J. Mc- Cosker, Mutual's chairman and presl« dent of WOR, New York, dispatched the following telegram to MBS mem- bers: 'The National Association of Broadcasters and others are frantically endeavoring to sabo- tage your consideration of ASCAP's proposals. Ask your- selves these questions: Why did another network, in advance of the submission of proposals to you, send telegrams stating that ASCAP's proposals were unac- ceptable? Why did the presi- dent of the NAB gratuitously take upon himself the task of i analyzing the ASCAP proposals ( for Mutual and subtly imply that \ no decision should be made on those proposals until the conven- tion? Why did two shareholders of Mutual (John SHepard III andHulburt Taft, Jr.) send wires to our affiliates condemning our proposals and at the same time ask them to withhold their de- cisions until after the conven- tion? 'Is not the reason as obvious as It is unfair? The other networks are concerned because they will for the flrst. time be compelled to pay their share of ASCAP music (Continued on page 68) ATTFNTinUI ^o"^ machine operators HIILIIIIUn. Have You the Newest Hit— "111 Be With You In APPLE BLOSSOM TIME" ;-2aH!rcc' ov The ANDRtWS SISTERS In ^llc Unrvcr-.d Pic;-j,-r: ■ DUCK PRIVATES' . • Dcccj Record—The Andrews SisJcrs Vrcfor Record Wayne King Ulucbird Record—Dick Todd Okch Record—Fr.inkie Maitsrc In pr,'p-rr:?ior. • Fox Trof Ar,-. by ):cl: Msroi W.iln Arr. by Ted l^.ilc BROADWAY MUSIC CORP, 1619 BROADWAY, NEW YORK