1) The document discusses a scenario where music is digitally fingerprinted upon creation and payments are automatically sent to artists when their music is used publicly, such as in TV shows. 2) While the technology exists to implement such a transparent system, the current process for tracking music use and paying artists is outdated and opaque. 3) The founder of a company called TuneSat aims to use fingerprinting technology to more accurately track music used on TV, which could help ensure artists are paid correctly and reduce misreported usage by up to 80%.

1. A Goal: Performance Royalty Accountability In 2012
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By George Howard
(follow George on Twitter)
Imagine a scenario in which the moment you create a piece of music it is: digitally fingerprinted
and registered (with the Library of Congress, and your PRO). Imagine then that when that music
is used in a TV show, this usage is immediately detected, and the public performance fee you
are owed is immediately transferred to your bank account.
Sound too good to be true? Well, the reality is that the technology for just such a scenario
described above exists. Additionally, we clearly have motivated buyers and sellers to make this
happen.
However, instead of moving toward a system like the one described above � a system of
transparency and accuracy � we continue to bumble through a system that really hasn�t
changed in the last 100 years or so.
If we�re to have any optimism towards the business of music continuing to grow � in an era
when music creators have seen their revenue from sales go from roughly $7 per sale for a full
album, to fractions of pennies for a stream of the same album � we MUST push for innovation
in the measuring, collecting, and paying of music usage.
I recently met, Scott Schreer, the founder of a company called TuneSat. In talking with him, my
optimism that we may indeed be tilting toward not only a healthy music business, but one where
songwriters can flourish, has been greatly enhanced.
This is not an ad for TuneSat. I�ve not used the service, and while, based on my limited
exposure to him, Mr. Schreer certainly is a very smart and passionate individual, I simply don�t
know enough about him or his company to recommend or not recommend it. I do, however, feel
strongly that it�s worth your time to check out and make your decision.
Rather, TuneSat represents a tangible example of how technology might alter the economic
fortunes for composers, artists, and publishers alike (anyone that has an interest in a royalty
stream).
Music used in TV, at last count, accounts for $800 million of the $2 billion distributed to
composers annually by the PROs in the US. Additionally, music used in TV represents
something akin to what radio used to represent for artists: exposure that can lead to
sales/streams of their work, ticket/merch sales, etc�

2. No one can deny that the goal of many musicians is to have their music used on TV. However,
the vast majority of musicians are woefully under-informed about how the process works.
It�s not their fault. As stated above, it�s an old and outmoded system; one that pretty much
defines byzantine.
For instance, question one: how much do you get paid when your song is played on TV?
Impossible to answer. The variables are many: is it a theme song, what time of day was it aired,
are there vocals on the track, is there anything else surrounding it (people talking, etc�), is it
background instrumental music. Beyond these, one massive distinction is whether or not the
song is what�s called a �featured registration� or a �non-featured registration.� A
featured registration is essentially a song that has a band or artist associated with the track (i.e.
a song that was released on a CD, available from iTunes). A non-featured registration is a work
that was written specifically for the TV show or ad. This distinction becomes very important
when you realize that a featured registration earns the writer six to ten times what a non-
featured registration earns when it�s broadcast.
These and other weighing factors make a huge difference to the bottom line of the rights�
holders whose music is used on TV.
However, there�s yet another problem. Mr. Schreer informs me that as much as 80% of all
music that�s on TV is misreported. This means that music is being broadcast on TV, and the
author (or copyright holder) is not getting paid the correct amount (if anything). Typically, this
misreporting occurs as a result of human error in conjunction with the byzantine classifications
used by the PROs in order to calculate weightings (and thus payments).
TuneSat�s goal is to use fingerprinting in order to reduce this number. Even a fractional
reduction when you�re dealing with $800 million represents tremendous value for artists.
I hope that they pull it off.
As we can see all around us (from the financial world to the Arab Spring) institutions that
eschew transparency are crumbling. Technology is making it increasingly difficult to obfuscate
the flow of information. As we increase transparency, we reduce transaction costs, and thus
increase profitability for artists.
This is truly our best hope. As the barriers of entry for broadcasters come down, and an
increasing amount of music is streamed, rights holders have an opportunity to make up in
volume what they are losing in margin, but only if we increase accuracy in collection, reporting,
and payment.
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George Howard is the former president of Rykodisc. He currently advises numerous
entertainment and non-entertainment firms and individuals. Additionally, he is the Executive
Editor of Artists House Music and is an Associate Professor of Music Business/Management at
Berklee. He is most easily found on Twitter at: twitter.com/gah650