HR861 (American Music Fairness Act) is in early legislative stages — referred to committee since January 2025. It would impose a new performance royalty on terrestrial radio (creating costs for iHeartMedia) while creating a new revenue stream for record labels like Warner Music Group. The bill faces strong industry opposition and has 13 cosponsors, indicating low near-term passage probability.
→ iHeartMedia must negotiate or accept CRB-determined royalty rates for playing sound recordings on its ~850 stations, creating a new annual operating cost where none existed before.
HR861