I was looking at going legal and getting myself a broadcasting lisence , so I can stream music as a hobbie not for any gain, but in the uk you have two bodies ppl and prs both wanting money out of you, instead of one simple lisence that could be affordable to people like me they both try and screw you for as much as they can, then they wonder why piracty exisit. make it afforable abd cheap and everyone would go legal try and ripp of the customer and make him pay hard, then he aint going to. so who are the losers, the greedy ppl and prs.
no wonder so many dont have an lisence
- Thread starter mikenico
- Start date
I couldnt agree more, why PPL & PRS cant offer a combined license and a more affordable one for hobby broadcasters is beyond me.
We have just gained our licenses, the PRS one was quite a simple process but the PPL one was a long and drawn out process with a lot of back and forth between us and PPL.
I think that both PRS & PPL see internet broadcasters as a bit of a cash cow, its money for old rope for them with most broadcasters never getting anywhere near the maximum level of listener hours.
Quite a few stations that I have come across do not bother with licensing because of the hassle and the cost and I am sure if they made it more affordable for hobby broadcasters then more would license and become legal.
Mind you that is the same as music purchases, if music downloads and CDs were made more affordable then piracy would decline, but thats another subject.
We have just gained our licenses, the PRS one was quite a simple process but the PPL one was a long and drawn out process with a lot of back and forth between us and PPL.
I think that both PRS & PPL see internet broadcasters as a bit of a cash cow, its money for old rope for them with most broadcasters never getting anywhere near the maximum level of listener hours.
Quite a few stations that I have come across do not bother with licensing because of the hassle and the cost and I am sure if they made it more affordable for hobby broadcasters then more would license and become legal.
Mind you that is the same as music purchases, if music downloads and CDs were made more affordable then piracy would decline, but thats another subject.
In the Netherlands the copyright authorities seem to be a bit more joined up but the cost is stil a few hundred Euros making it only affordable to medium size stations.
But to be fair they have open, honest and transparent discussions about the issues facing the music industry and fund a yearly conference and music event for EDM genres alone, I am sure they must do similar for other genres.
My Dutch is still fairly basic (probably now reached the level of a young teenager) but I can still read their websites and understand how the system operates.
This is why even in a long term economic depression across Europe the music industry in their country (everything from internationally acclaimed trance and hardstyle to the Dutch-language piratenliedjes played in the rural areas) is still thriving.
Also the copyright lot simply have to accept that since the 1980s, many artists especially EDM and independent genres forego their entitlement to royalties in order to get radio airplay on pirate/alternative stations. In many cases the artists, DJs and presenters are all from the same team anyway! In fact they did accept it but I have a nasty feeling that because unlike pirates most net broadcasters are far easier to trace, these are seen as "low hanging fruit" by ambitious legal eagle types...
One thing which annoys me is the UK copyright authorities do not publish a list of exactly which labels are affiliated to them, and do not divulge this info without asking for more personal info of the enquirer.
I know for a fact many smaller EDM and independent labels are not registered to any of the copyright agencies (after all anyone can distribute music now), so the lack of customer service is not acceptable - after all if we are buying new studio equipment, we give our business to the company which responds quickest with the best price and delivery time.
But to be fair they have open, honest and transparent discussions about the issues facing the music industry and fund a yearly conference and music event for EDM genres alone, I am sure they must do similar for other genres.
My Dutch is still fairly basic (probably now reached the level of a young teenager) but I can still read their websites and understand how the system operates.
This is why even in a long term economic depression across Europe the music industry in their country (everything from internationally acclaimed trance and hardstyle to the Dutch-language piratenliedjes played in the rural areas) is still thriving.
Also the copyright lot simply have to accept that since the 1980s, many artists especially EDM and independent genres forego their entitlement to royalties in order to get radio airplay on pirate/alternative stations. In many cases the artists, DJs and presenters are all from the same team anyway! In fact they did accept it but I have a nasty feeling that because unlike pirates most net broadcasters are far easier to trace, these are seen as "low hanging fruit" by ambitious legal eagle types...
One thing which annoys me is the UK copyright authorities do not publish a list of exactly which labels are affiliated to them, and do not divulge this info without asking for more personal info of the enquirer.
I know for a fact many smaller EDM and independent labels are not registered to any of the copyright agencies (after all anyone can distribute music now), so the lack of customer service is not acceptable - after all if we are buying new studio equipment, we give our business to the company which responds quickest with the best price and delivery time.
GeminiRadio
New Member
In Ireland the cost is very high as well....So I am finished even before I start.I see on the forums here that some stations are looking for shows.How does this work? Would you record your programme and send it as an mp3 file or something similar?
There are two ways of doing it.
Some stations accept live shows, where you connect directly to the server with your encoder software. The music can either come directly from your computer, or via a conventional radio studio setup via a mixer/console connected into the input of a soundcard.
This requires a level of trust and commitment on both sides, and a slightly greater level of tech knowledge to get a good quality and reliable sound, and not too many gaps (dead air) between shows. it is not rocket science though and easily achievable through teamwork.
Other stations do indeed accept recorded shows as MP3 files, ideally at the same bitrate of the station output.
With regard to the copyright / legal issues the usual precedent is the broadcaster should take on this responsibility, following the practice of established broadcasters (I work as an engineer for a community radio station in my town and our copyright covers both the FM and online broadcasts. It is expensive but just about within the budget of the station).
Some stations accept live shows, where you connect directly to the server with your encoder software. The music can either come directly from your computer, or via a conventional radio studio setup via a mixer/console connected into the input of a soundcard.
This requires a level of trust and commitment on both sides, and a slightly greater level of tech knowledge to get a good quality and reliable sound, and not too many gaps (dead air) between shows. it is not rocket science though and easily achievable through teamwork.
Other stations do indeed accept recorded shows as MP3 files, ideally at the same bitrate of the station output.
With regard to the copyright / legal issues the usual precedent is the broadcaster should take on this responsibility, following the practice of established broadcasters (I work as an engineer for a community radio station in my town and our copyright covers both the FM and online broadcasts. It is expensive but just about within the budget of the station).
Our licenses in the UK for a Limited Small Webcasters License have come to just over £400 for the year, we are a start up station and if things go well we will probably have to move up to the next level of licensing when we renew next year which has quite a dramatic price increase that comes with it.
I must agree, I approached both companies and tried to explain I would not hit anywhere near their lowest figures in the first year and would it be possible to spread the licence across two stations. I got a definite no, and no sort of negotiation on a reasonable price. I think the fact is in the UK they have this preconception that all radio stations should have such a huge start up budget, which is not the case with internet radio and never will be. The PRS and the PPL need to get their heads together and find a way of finding a simple way of monitoring shoutcast servers and working out the number of songs v the number of listeners and coming up with a fair price.....but they know that wouldnt work out in their favour
I think you need to use some common sense here and decide realistically what size station you are looking to start.
In my opinion, if you are broadcasting with less than 20 listeners and the authoritive bodies do not provide an affordable solution then just run the risk and do it unlicenced. I mean come on, what else do they expect you to do? Are they really gonna take you to court for under 20 listeners? I find that very unlikely.
As soon as you go beyond that then I think we're talking more mass numbers and it's time to cough up or stay tiny.
In my opinion, if you are broadcasting with less than 20 listeners and the authoritive bodies do not provide an affordable solution then just run the risk and do it unlicenced. I mean come on, what else do they expect you to do? Are they really gonna take you to court for under 20 listeners? I find that very unlikely.
As soon as you go beyond that then I think we're talking more mass numbers and it's time to cough up or stay tiny.
AaronG97
New Member
I'll be brutally honest here, I've never bothered with a license. My stations never had tonnes of listeners and therefore I don't see the point.
If I was earning back from the station, then sure, give some back to the artists who give me the music to play - but I'm not.
If PPL / PRS was to start chasing me, I'd probably get one to get them off my back. But until then, I don't see the point in stressing over it. There are too many UK based, online unlicensed stations for PPL / PRS to deal with. They will only chase the bigger stations, they can get more money out of them.
If I was earning back from the station, then sure, give some back to the artists who give me the music to play - but I'm not.
If PPL / PRS was to start chasing me, I'd probably get one to get them off my back. But until then, I don't see the point in stressing over it. There are too many UK based, online unlicensed stations for PPL / PRS to deal with. They will only chase the bigger stations, they can get more money out of them.
LeahJohnson
New Member
You've just articulated my thoughts. Seriously, who pays for something that appears to be such a waste of time and money and pain in the neck while it's not obligatory?