PPL Wants £1 Per Head

The music licensing company that collects royalties for public performances of artists’ work in the UK wants to raise tariffs, with small venues paying more than £1 per person attending an event.

Phonographic Performance Ltd. claims the proposals in its “consultation document,” which is open for discussion until Oct. 14, are the result of “substantive, third-party economic research” into the value that consumers attribute to music.

But organisations such as the British Beer and Pub Association, which began protesting the rate hike at the beginning of July, and various major music promoters are aghast at PPL’s proposals.

The BBPA says the new structure, which takes into account the number of people present and the duration of music being played, would be a “huge burden” on pubs.

As an example, a small pub company with six venues running up to three music events – such as a DJ – per week would face a massive increase in fees.

The BBPA says if each event drew a crowd ranging from 250 to 400 people, the pub company’s annual bill would rocket from £22,300 to £220,000 – a nearly 900 percent increase.

BBPA chief exec Brigid Simmons says such an increase is “unacceptable and totally off the scale,” while other examples show that some music venues may face increases of up to 2,000 percent.

The current fee for a club attended by 500 people with recorded music playing for three hours is £37.21. If PPL gets its way, that would go up to £609.38.

Noctis, the nightclubs equivalent of the BBPA, and the British Hospitality Association – who all vehemently protested when PPL last raised fees in 2005 – are all trying to persuade the licensing company to drastically scale back the proposals.

The new fees would apply to what PPL calls Specially Featured Entertainment (SFE), mainly discos and DJ events, but also include live music shows where recorded music provides the background between acts.

Various promoters and venue owners have been quoted in the media as saying the new rates are ridiculous and unaffordable. It’s likely that live music organisations will voice their opposition before the consultation period ends.

A PPL representative told Pollstar the company looks forward to “a constructive dialogue” with all licensees and trade associations and said that at this stage the proposals are no more than a basis for discussion.