Legal Definitions - Copyright Royalty Tribunal

The Copyright Royalty Tribunal was a government body in the United States that existed in the past. Its primary responsibility was to establish and monitor the specific fees, known as royalty rates, that certain users had to pay to copyright holders for the use of their published and recorded creative works. This mechanism ensured that creators were fairly compensated when their works were used in particular ways, such as by broadcasters or cable companies. The functions previously handled by the Tribunal are now carried out by different entities, specifically copyright arbitration royalty panels.

Here are some examples illustrating the types of situations the Copyright Royalty Tribunal would have addressed:

• Music Broadcasting Royalties: Imagine a scenario in the 1980s where a new commercial radio station was preparing to launch and wanted to play a wide variety of copyrighted popular music. The Copyright Royalty Tribunal would have been the government body responsible for setting the standard royalty rates that the radio station would pay to music publishers and songwriters for the public performance of their songs. This ensured that while the station could use the music to attract listeners, the creators received fair compensation for their work being broadcast to a wide audience.

• Cable Television Retransmission Fees: Consider a cable television provider in the past that wanted to include local broadcast television channels (like ABC, CBS, NBC, or PBS affiliates) in its service package. The Tribunal would have established the royalty rates that the cable company had to pay to the owners of the copyrighted content being retransmitted (e.g., the television networks or local stations). This system allowed cable companies to offer a comprehensive range of programming while ensuring the original content creators were compensated for the widespread distribution of their work through cable subscriptions.

• Jukebox Performance Royalties: In an era when physical jukeboxes were common fixtures in restaurants, bars, and other public venues, the owners of these machines needed to pay royalties for the public performance of the copyrighted music they offered. The Copyright Royalty Tribunal would have been the entity that determined the specific annual royalty fees that jukebox operators were required to pay to the music industry (artists, record labels, and publishers). This ensured that creators were compensated for their songs being played repeatedly in public settings, contributing to their income.