Pandora has been on a good run in courts recently, including a recent ruling that saw the personal radio service prevail in a case involving the royalties it pays to ASCAP.
Yesterday, though, the company had a setback in a separate legal battle with another licensing agency: BMI.
The case concerned BMI’s desire to have Pandora pay 2.5% of its revenues rather than the existing rate of 1.75%. Judge Louis Stanton of the United States District Court in Manhattan agreed, and while the overall decision has not been published, both BMI and Pandora were quickly into print with their opinions.
“Today’s decision is an enormous victory for the more than 650,000 songwriters, composers and publishers that BMI has the privilege to represent,” said BMI’s spokesperson. “This is an important step forward in valuing music in the digital age.”
And Pandora? “We remain confident in our legal position. We disagree with the Court’s ruling and will appeal to the same court that ruled in Pandora’s favor in the ASCAP case last week. We strongly believe the benchmarks cited by the court do not provide an appropriate competitive foundation for a market rate,” said its director of public affairs Dave Grimaldi.
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