National Music Publishers Association

The National Music Publishers' Assn. Inc. and the Recording Industry Assn. of America have come to an agreement on the licensing of songs distributed over the Internet. The new procedures will "substantially" reduce the time and effort needed to clear music publishing rights for the delivery of music via the Internet, the agencies said. The agreement is between RIAA member record companies and the Harry Fox Agency Inc., a subsidiary of NMPA. The accord comes as Napster Inc.'

Listen.com struck a key licensing deal with the National Music Publishers Assn., the latest in a series of agreements that are clearing the way for online subscription music services. San Francisco-based Listen.com is developing a service called Rhapsody that will let consumers hear and sample music on demand.

Listen.com struck a key licensing deal with the National Music Publishers Assn., the latest in a series of agreements that are clearing the way for online subscription music services. San Francisco-based Listen.com is developing a service called Rhapsody that will let consumers hear and sample music on demand.

The National Music Publishers' Assn. Inc. and the Recording Industry Assn. of America have come to an agreement on the licensing of songs distributed over the Internet. The new procedures will "substantially" reduce the time and effort needed to clear music publishing rights for the delivery of music via the Internet, the agencies said. The agreement is between RIAA member record companies and the Harry Fox Agency Inc., a subsidiary of NMPA. The accord comes as Napster Inc.'

Backed by the National Music Publishers' Assn., a California songwriter on Monday filed a class-action lawsuit seeking to block Sony Corp. from selling its digital audiotape recorders in the United States. In a 24-page lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, songwriter Sammy Cahn and four other plaintiffs accuse Sony of "actively promoting the ability of DAT recorders to make perfect digital copies of compact discs" and thereby infringing the plaintiffs' copyrights.

Napster Inc. said Monday that it reached a tentative settlement with a major music publishing group, a deal that provides both a sizable cut of royalties for songwriters and a precedent for how publishers and labels would divide online music revenue. Under the tentative pact between the controversial Redwood City, Calif.-based online song-swapping service and the National Music Publishers Assn.

Backed by the National Music Publishers' Assn., a California songwriter on Monday filed a class-action lawsuit seeking to block Sony Corp. from selling its digital audiotape recorders in the United States. In a 24-page lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, songwriter Sammy Cahn and four other plaintiffs accuse Sony of "actively promoting the ability of DAT recorders to make perfect digital copies of compact discs" and thereby infringing the plaintiffs' copyrights.