ACS

Following a High Court Ruling on the charging regime for the broadcast of radio and recorded music in shops, retailers are one step closer to a fairer deal on licence fees. The judge found that an earlier ruling by the Copyright Tribunal which upheld the charging regime imposed by Phonographic Performance Limited (PPL). Ruling on the case Mr Justice Kitchin stated that the fees regime that they had imposed was "inconvenient, cumbersome, expensive, and involve a waste of judicial and public resources”.

ACS Chief Executive James Lowman said: “We are delighted that this latest battle has been won. We believed that the scheme and charges were unfair and illegal. We still have more hurdles to overcome, but we will continue to press for a refund for those retailers left out of pocket.”

ACS was represented alongside other organisations by Eversheds LLP and brought a case against PPL when they put up their fees for both broadcast and recorded music by combining them as one single scheme. This increased background music charges for many businesses by between 200 and 400 per cent.

This ruling could potentially lead to a reduction in the music fees paid by all users of copyright music in-store and may result in the reimbursement of overpaid past fees to many businesses. The Copyright Tribunal is expected to reconvene in 2009 to revisit the issue and come up with a revised position on the appropriate level of charges.

Contacts:
Shane Brennan Public Affairs Director
01252 515001/ 07921 372 978
Nina Collins Communications Coordinator
01252 515001
Michael Saxton/ Julie Kirby Grappa PR
020 7602 9222

Notes to Editors:

1. ACS (Association of Convenience Stores) is the voice of local shops, representing over 33,000 convenience stores. ACS helps local shops thrive through lobbying, support and networking opportunities.