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The Plot Against the PROs: How Many Is Too Many?

Licensees are asking the government to make changes to the PRO business in the U.S. But is the issue transparency, the number of PROs — or money?

Any business that good attracts competition, and two new PROs have emerged over the last five years: AllTrack, founded by former SESAC board member Hayden Bower; and the Florida-based PRO Music Rights. The Copyright Office administers and consults on intellectual property law, and licensees presumably see the NOI as an opening move in a push for legislation that could constrain PROs — or even empower a government body to set royalty rates, as one does for mechanical rights. It seems to focus on serving smaller songwriters in the so-called long tail, and it says it controls rights to more than 2 million works, including songs performed by A$AP Rocky, Wiz Khalifa and others.

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