Reader answer checklist
This guide is structured to answer the practical questions a reader should resolve before relying on the topic.
- Direct answer
- Traditional U.S. AM/FM radio generally does not pay a public performance royalty for the sound recording, although composition performance royalties may still apply.
- Who this is for
- Recording artists, labels, songwriters, managers, and researchers comparing master and composition performance rights.
- Practical example
- The same song played on terrestrial radio can produce a composition-side PRO payment while the featured artist and label do not receive the equivalent U.S. master-performance payment.
- Limits and exceptions
- Digital transmissions, television, international territories, agreements, and statutory exceptions follow different rules; this is not a universal radio rule.
- What to do next
- Classify the broadcast or stream, separate master from composition rights, and verify collection options for the relevant territory and service.
Evidence records
verified- United States Code, Title 17 — Copyrights — U.S. Copyright Office · Title 17, Chapter 1
Source records identify the evidence to review; they do not replace a claim-by-claim legal review. See the source index for the audit trail.
Editorial record
verified- Last edited
- 2026-07-18
- Reviewed
- 2026-08-07
- Reviewer
- Michael Ruiz
Reviewed by Michael Ruiz on 2026-08-07. Recheck date-sensitive rules and contract terms for a specific matter. See the editorial policy for the review process.
The US Terrestrial Broadcast Performance Exemption
Unlike almost every other developed nation in the world, the United States does not recognize a full public performance right for sound recordings on terrestrial broadcast radio (AM/FM). This legal discrepancy represents one of the most significant structural 'blind spots' in global music copyright.
1. The Legal Loophole (17 U.S.C. § 114)
The U.S. Copyright Act grants an exclusive public performance right to musical compositions, but historically denied it to sound recordings. While the Digital Performance Right in Sound Recordings Act of 1995 created a performance right for *digital* transmissions (satellite, internet streaming, webcast), it explicitly left traditional AM/FM terrestrial radio stations exempt. * Composition Side (ASCAP/BMI/SESAC/GMR): Broadcasters pay public performance royalties to songwriters and publishers. * Sound Recording Side (Artists/Labels): Broadcasters pay zero public performance royalties to performing artists or record labels.
2. Global Neighboring Rights and Reciprocity Loss
Outside the United States, collective management organizations (CMOs) like PPL (UK) or GVL (Germany) collect Neighboring Rights royalties for both compositions and sound recordings played on AM/FM radio, television, and public venues. Because neighboring rights are distributed based on reciprocity between countries: * Since the US does not collect royalties for foreign sound recordings played on US AM/FM radio, foreign CMOs are not legally required to distribute radio performance royalties to American artists. * As a result, American recording artists and session musicians lose out on hundreds of millions of dollars in global broadcast royalties.
3. Strategic Workarounds
Independent and major U.S. artists can bypass this lack of federal reciprocity by registering directly with international CMOs (like PPL or GVL) or working with specialist neighboring rights administrators who can claim royalties in foreign territories where local rules allow direct collection.