Broadcast Music Inc

When Ellen Cavalli opened her small dance studio a few years ago in Santa Monica, she didn't pay much attention to the letters she began receiving from the American Society for Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) and Broadcast Music Inc. (BMI). The wording in each letter was different, but the message was the same: In order for her to use recorded music in her new Studio West Dance and Exercise, she must comply with U.S.

Frances Preston, the long-reigning president and chief executive of musical performing rights agency BMI, said she would retire after 18 years. The agency, which licenses music and collects royalties for hundreds of thousands of music publishers and songwriters when their work is performed, said Preston would be succeeded by Executive Vice President Del Bryant.

Composer Thomas Newman received the Richard Kirk Award for Outstanding Career Achievement at Broadcast Music Inc.'s annual Film and Television Awards dinner Monday night at the Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel. Newman, 44, is a four-time Oscar nominee for the films "American Beauty," "The Shawshank Redemption," "Little Women" and "Unstrung Heroes." His other scores have included "The Green Mile," "The Player," "The Horse Whisperer," "Scent of a Woman" and "Fried Green Tomatoes."

BMI Unveils Corporate Use Accord: Broadcast Music Inc., a performing rights organization, announced what it called the first agreement to compensate songwriters and composers when their music is used by corporations, ranging from background music to sales presentations to company-sponsored aerobics classes. Companies would pay one annual fee based on the number of their employees, thus cutting the paperwork required. The agreement only covers BMI-licensed music.

Judge Upholds Effort for Music License Fees: A federal judge denied an antitrust claim by a coalition of cable television operators against Broadcast Music Inc., which holds the rights to more than 2 million musical compositions. U.S. District Judge Joyce Hens Green upheld BMI's effort to boost its revenue by requiring cable companies to pay a "blanket" license fee for music used in syndicated cable television programming.

Composer Thomas Newman received the Richard Kirk Award for Outstanding Career Achievement at Broadcast Music Inc.'s annual Film and Television Awards dinner Monday night at the Regent Beverly Wilshire Hotel. Newman, 44, is a four-time Oscar nominee for the films "American Beauty," "The Shawshank Redemption," "Little Women" and "Unstrung Heroes." His other scores have included "The Green Mile," "The Player," "The Horse Whisperer," "Scent of a Woman" and "Fried Green Tomatoes."

When it comes to collecting and paying royalties for songs played everywhere from radio stations to shopping malls, the Society of European Stage Authors and Composers is so far behind its competitors that few people have even heard of it. The sleepy organization is dwarfed by the music industry's two nonprofit giants--American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers and Broadcast Music Inc., which together collect an estimated 97% of the $700 million in performance royalties annually.

Fourteen soul acts will compete tonight at the Hollywood Palladium in the finals of the BMI Showcase, a twice-monthly competition designed to open music industry doors for young talent. This is the culmination of the third annual series of contests. The winning act, chosen by a panel of record company talent scouts, will receive a $1,000 prize, plus 20 hours of free recording studio time and the chance to star in a video.

BMI Unveils Corporate Use Accord: Broadcast Music Inc., a performing rights organization, announced what it called the first agreement to compensate songwriters and composers when their music is used by corporations, ranging from background music to sales presentations to company-sponsored aerobics classes. Companies would pay one annual fee based on the number of their employees, thus cutting the paperwork required. The agreement only covers BMI-licensed music.

When it comes to collecting and paying royalties for songs played everywhere from radio stations to shopping malls, the Society of European Stage Authors and Composers is so far behind its competitors that few people have even heard of it. The sleepy organization is dwarfed by the music industry's two nonprofit giants--American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers and Broadcast Music Inc., which together collect an estimated 97% of the $700 million in performance royalties annually.

Judge Upholds Effort for Music License Fees: A federal judge denied an antitrust claim by a coalition of cable television operators against Broadcast Music Inc., which holds the rights to more than 2 million musical compositions. U.S. District Judge Joyce Hens Green upheld BMI's effort to boost its revenue by requiring cable companies to pay a "blanket" license fee for music used in syndicated cable television programming.

Fourteen soul acts will compete tonight at the Hollywood Palladium in the finals of the BMI Showcase, a twice-monthly competition designed to open music industry doors for young talent. This is the culmination of the third annual series of contests. The winning act, chosen by a panel of record company talent scouts, will receive a $1,000 prize, plus 20 hours of free recording studio time and the chance to star in a video.

A federal court on Thursday refused to bar Home Box Office Inc. from airing shows containing songs managed by Broadcast Music Inc. and handed the composers' group a setback in its bid to collect millions of dollars in additional music royalty fees from the cable industry. U.S. District Judge John Sprizzo in New York refused to issue an injunction that would have prevented HBO from showing about 80 movies on its September schedule that contain BMI songs, including compositions such as "Batman."

The cable-TV industry is trying to block a leading performance rights organization from collecting music royalty fees from both cable networks and local cable operators for the same transmission. The industry argues that the new plan by New York-based Broadcast Music Inc. would violate antitrust and copyright laws. BMI collects millions of dollars in royalty fees on behalf of songwriters, composers and publishers.

A federal court on Thursday refused to bar Home Box Office Inc. from airing shows containing songs managed by Broadcast Music Inc. and handed the composers' group a setback in its bid to collect millions of dollars in additional music royalty fees from the cable industry. U.S. District Judge John Sprizzo in New York refused to issue an injunction that would have prevented HBO from showing about 80 movies on its September schedule that contain BMI songs, including compositions such as "Batman."

Whenever Michael Jackson is honored, it's news. Heck, whenever he leaves the house, it's news. And the promise of seeing the entertainer collect yet another award was enough to get almost every photographer and camera crew in Hollywood to the Regent Beverly Wilshire Tuesdayafternoon, when Jackson was honored at a lunch thrown by the music publishing organization BMI.

The cable-TV industry is trying to block a leading performance rights organization from collecting music royalty fees from both cable networks and local cable operators for the same transmission. The industry argues that the new plan by New York-based Broadcast Music Inc. would violate antitrust and copyright laws. BMI collects millions of dollars in royalty fees on behalf of songwriters, composers and publishers.