Court accepts SOCAN, rejects Music Canada, as intervenor in base contribution review

By Ahmad Hathout The Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN) has been accepted as intervenor before the Federal Court of Appeal to explain the relationship between royalty payments and the making of Canadian content. The court said this week it found the largest rights management organization in Canada is “well-positioned” to address specific issues raised by Spotify, which argued in part of its appeal challenging the CRTC’s five per cent base contribution requirement that it was paying royalties to Canadian music artists. SOCAN argues the payment of royalties is simply a cost of doing business under...