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Google signs deal to keep music videos on YouTube
Chris Laker3 Sep 2009
YouTube today ended a block on music videos after agreeing a royalties deal with songwriters' association PRS for Music to end a six-month dispute.
The video-sharing website made thousands of official music videos unavailable to UK users in March after its parent Google failed to reach an agreement over fees.
But YouTube announced it has agreed to pay an undisclosed lump sum to PRS, in a deal which will last until 2012.
The deal is understood to be worth millions of pounds and is backdated to January 2009 when YouTube's previous licence expired.
YouTube is expected to take around a week to reinstate the thousands of deleted music videos back on the site.
Andrew Shaw, PRS' managing director of broadcast and online, said: "It is important that those who are creating music - the writers and composers we represent - be rewarded when their works are used.
"YouTube is a popular online video destination, and this new licence continues to support musical talent.
"This is an achievement for songwriters, composers and the YouTube community alike and it reinforces the value of our members' work."
Earlier he told BBC Breakfast 90% of the members earned less than £5,000 a year, adding: "For them all the money they receive from us is really their living.
"They don't get paid for writing songs. They get paid when their songs are used and that's why deals like the one we've just struck with YouTube are so important."
Patrick Walker, YouTube's director of video partnerships, said: "We are dedicated to establishing and fostering relationships that make YouTube a place where existing fans and new audiences can discover their favourite content - whatever it might be.
"We are extremely pleased to have reached an agreement with PRS for Music and look forward to the return of premium music videos to YouTube in the UK where they will join a variety of other content to be enjoyed by our British users."
YouTube has arranged for several musicians, reportedly including UK act Florence and the Machine, to be "guest editors" for the return of music videos, choosing their favourites for the site's home page.
"We'll have to wait for the appropriate content to go live before we can share more, so stay tuned. Enough talk, - here's to the return of great music videos!" a spokesman said.
Before the row started, millions of music fans were able to view music videos for free on the website.
As negotiations between the two sides turned increasingly bitter, PRS said Google wanted to pay "significantly less than at present to the writers of the music".
Google countered by saying it was being asked to pay "many, many times more for our licence than before" and that it would lose the firm money every time a video was played.
The internet giant described its decision to pull the videos as a "painful decision" which it knew would cause "significant disappointment".
PRS for Music collects licensing fees in the UK for 60,000 songwriting and publishing members.
Meanwhile, YouTube is reportedly in talks with Hollywood studios about renting new-release movies online.
The move follows similar deals by Apple's iTunes and others.
A final deal would be contingent on pricing and an agreed release date, people familiar with the talks said.
Reader views (3)
Great news... a 'win-win' deal
Paul x
- Paul, Bromley, 03/09/2009 18:45
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And just how much does PRS actually pay to the composers?
- Bj, London, 03/09/2009 10:36
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Why bother? Just use a proxy and you'd be able to view anything anyway.
- Bob, Cheam, 03/09/2009 08:59
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