US satellite radio firm Sirius XM currently has a statutory licence from SoundExchange, but according to Billboard the company is seeking direct licences from labels in order to add more features to its service. Those features will apparently include allowing subscribers to record blocks of programming, and rewind / fast-forward during those recorded segments. The report suggests that Sirius XM is offering a royalty rate of 7% of its gross revenues to labels, as compared to the 7.5% it pays SoundExchange. “We’ve had a mutually beneficial partnership with the music industry for years and we welcome the opportunity to strengthen that relationship by entering into direct licenses with all record labels regardless of size,” says Sirius XM in a statement. There is a potentially thorny issue ahead in how labels who license Sirius XM directly will assign revenues to artists, though: a 15-20% regular royalty rate, or a higher 50% rate.
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