A House panel has approved draft language of the Section 115 Reform Act (S1RA), which addresses various aspects of digital song licensing and royalty distribution. S1RA is backed by the Digital Media Alliance (DiMA), National Music Publishers Association (NMPA), and - who else - the RIAA.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation has strongly opposed S1RA and has been joined by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), Sirius Satellite Radio, RadioShack, and XM Satellite Radio (to name a few) in voicing their opposition to S1RA.
EFF Deeplinks has a ton of additional info as well as a Coalition Letter Opposing S1RA, where both XM and SIRIUS took part in submitting. My favorite line from the letter:
"The bill is a back-handed technology mandate that will stifle innovation."
[via Digital Music News]
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