Boss Loss

Here's an interesting article by Ben Sheffner about Bruce Springsteen suing a bar for playing his music without paying. Actually, ASCAP sued and brought Bruce along as the plaintiff, and the bar isn't that small. But there's been publicity so Bruce's people deny they knew anything about the lawsuit.

This is silly on a number of levels, as Sheffner notes. Bruce is part of ASCAP and he knows what they do. They collect money for use of his songs, and one way you do that is by suing people. In fact, when you join ASCAP you give them explicit permission to do this. Furthermore, this is hardly the first lawsuit Springsteen's been involved in. He's been plaintiff in dozens of such lawsuits. It's the cost of popularity.

But Sheffner isn't saying booooo, he's saying Brooooooce! This is just what Springsteen and ASCAP should be doing. Bruce can afford to turn down his massive ASCAP royalties since he has other major revenue streams, but what of the small-time songwriters? This is how they make their dough and he needs ASCAP out there filing lawsuits.

Well, yes and no. Yes in that you can make this the case of the small guy (versus other small guys). But no in that it's not obvious what ASCAP's doing is right. Intellectual property is tricky terrain. It's not like real property (and if you think it is, try to sell your house a million times and see how far you get). So there are a lot of court cases, some from the days before radio and recordings as we understand them existed, trying to figure out when composers should get paid. Is it obvious that any public place that plays music should pay? A restaurant where the owner's kid comes out on Friday nights and plays his guitar for half an hour? A taco stand where the employees turn on the radio occasionally and customers can hear?

Indeed, it's not that hard to imagine a regime where anyone can play music any time they please for free. I can play music in my home for free--why must bar and restaurant owners have to pay? When a new medium like radio or MTV starts, should they have to pay, or should composers enjoy it as free advertising? All I'm saying is the answers aren't obvious. Meanwhile, ASCAP is well known for its ferocity in fighting for composers' rights. Songwriters probably have better representatives than any other group in the entertainment industry. Bruce Springsteen should be glad, but should we be glad as a society?

Sheffner links to a Springsteen performance on YouTube. I wonder if anyone's paying for that?