Senators Sam Brownback (R-KS) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) issued a statement last week warning SoundExchange to keep DRM requirements out of their negotiations with webcasters:

“We sponsored the Internet Radio Equality Act because the Copyright Royalty Board's decision to dramatically increase royalties and apply what we see as unfounded minimum rates threatens to devastate the Internet radio industry,” stated the release. “Now we are hearing that the recording industry is attempting to use this aspect of the CRB decision to force webcasters to adopt recording restrictions far in excess of the controls that have governed broadcast content for decades. While we strongly support a negotiated solution, we will not allow the minimum fee issue to be used to force an agreement that mandates DRM technology and fails to respect the established principles of fair use and consumer rights.”

The warning comes as a response to SoundExchange’s intentions to cap small webcasters’ per-channel fees on condition that they provide detailed listening information and, more importantly, implement features to combat streamripping. Presently, the only way to do so seems to be through the forced use of DRM; such a move would force users into walled gardens consisting only of approved players and platforms. Users of noncompliant players would be left out.

DRM requirements also trample on fair use, denying consumers the ability to lawfully record broadcasts for later consumption. This privilege has been enjoyed by consumers and protected by the courts since its incorporation into Copyright Act of 1976.

An unidentified source told Ars Technica that this is not the first time that SoundExchange has expressed interest in net radio wrapped in DRM, but that it is the first time that made the intent has been included as a requirement for negotiations with webcasters.

SoundExchange, a non-profit organization, collects and distributes royalties for certain digital, non-interactive broadcasts, including satellite and internet radio. Originally started in 2000 as an arm of the RIAA, the organization was eventually separated into an independent organization in September 2003. Since January 1, 2003, SoundExchange has been the only entity designated by the U.S. Copyright Office to distribute royalties under sections 112 and 114 of the Copyright Act.