Admittedly this is off-topic, but do any of the other UK users know the copyright/licensing rules if a station’s output is re-broadcast (re-streamed?) by another unaffiliated station?
I ask this because one of our members found at the weekend that some other *@#~!$% station is rebroadcasting Leith FM for part of the day; as far as we know this is completely without our permission or knowledge :o (which is a separate issue).
But if we did want to do that (allow re-broadcast of our output), I presume it would be the re-broadcaster’s responsibility (and not Leith FM’s) to sort out PRS/MCPS/PPL licensing: correct? (And yes we DO want to put the fear of God into this other mob, who I won’t name and shame here).
Thanks in advance for any insights into this, chaps.
1) Un-authorised re-broadcast/streaming of your station
Cover yourselves - inform this party that you do not wish this to happen and give them a 7-day period to cease or you will make a formal complaint to whoever is regulating them (assuming that they are legit). ie: Complaint to OFCOM and certainly the PRS/MCPS mob who seem to enjoy making trouble
2) Authorised re-broadcast/streaming of your station
Hopefully your blanket PRS/MCPS agreement will permit such a thing, many of the internet ones have daft rules and given the recent aggro over whether a shop should pay a PRS licence to have the radio on for it’s customers, I would say that the “affiliate” would be wise to ensure that they are covered. Personally, I would not endorse such an affiliation until I knew they were playing by the rules.
I appreciate you can’t go into specifics but it would be helpful to know if this other lot are an internet-only entity or are another community station (PM me in confidence, if you like). Failing that, as long as they have a locally-presented breakfast “crew” and a Highland Thunder I think it’s quite acceptable (uk radio joke)
Yes, they are another FM community station (so licensing is AOK) and apparently they say it WAS arranged with someone from Leith FM. BUT… no-one on the LFM Board seems to know about it?!!
My principal thought right now is: are Ofcom OK with re-broadcast of a stream, regardless of anything else? We’ll need to check that tomorrow.
I’ll let you all know the upshot later on: ‘their’ Station Manager is on air until 2000 UK time!
It now seems that the ‘other’ station sent us an e-mail enquiring about the ‘re-streaming’ and a Duty Manager sent them a reply saying ‘yes, that’s fine.’ We’re trying to find out who that was; it looks like they didn’t tell anyone further up the food chain …
We’re also checking with the CMA and Ofcom for an opinion on the general kosher-ness of the concept. If they’re both OK with it, then we’re OK with it as well. I’ll let you know when I find out from my ‘elves’ who are researching this today.
