Internet Radio Company Enlists Lobbyists to Address Music Royalty Rates

An Internet radio company has enlisted Constantine Cannon for lobbying help in Washington.

Constantine is advocating for Pandora Media Inc. of Oakland, Calif., on "[r]oyalty ratesetting for Internet radio," according to lobbying registration paperwork the law firm filed with Congress on Monday. Constantine partner Seth Greenstein is handling the account.

Greenstein, who focuses on intellectual property litigation and licensing issues, couldn't immediately be reached for comment. A Pandora representative didn't immediately return messages seeking comment.

On Friday, Tim Westergren, Pandora founder and chief strategy officer, released a written statement that praised Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Representatives Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) and Jared Polis (D-Colo.) for introducing the Internet Radio Fairness Act of 2012. For the purposes of setting music royalty rates for online radio, the legislation would group Internet radio services with their cable and satellite counterparts. The move would remove Pandora from a system that has the company paying royalty rates that are "far higher than any other form of radio," Westergren said.

"Last year, Pandora paid roughly 50 percent of its total revenue in royalties, more than six times the percentage paid by SiriusXM," Westergren said. "The Internet Radio Fairness Act of 2012 addresses this discriminatory practice of favoring one form of digital radio over another by extending the common standard to include internet radio."

Pandora spent $90,000 on federal lobbying during the first half of this year, according to congressional records. Of the $90,000, $60,000 went to TwinLogic Strategies for its work on music licensing matters. The remainder went to Wheat Government Relations, which ended its lobbying relationship with Pandora in January.