Copyright Holders May Audit Royalty Numbers

WASHINGTON (CN) - The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress plans to allow copyright holders of programs rebroadcast on cable systems to view account statements filed by the cable providers.

Cable operators and satellite carriers pay royalties to and file statements of account with the agency every six months for the use of statutory licenses that allow for the retransmission of programming carried on over-the-air broadcast signals.

However, until enactment of the Satellite Television Extension and Localism Act, copyright holders did not have the right to audit the statements even though they were the beneficiaries of the royalties.

The Copyright Office is accepting public comments until Aug. 13, on a proposed rule to open the account statements.

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