Re:Non-profit spending accounts ? (Score 1)

The great thing about this "administrative fee" fiasco is that it really gives no place to stand to the Congressional supporters of the RIAA/SoundExchange. They're stuck with it. Representatives Berman and Coble, both unabashed industry apologists have already "written" to SoundExchange asking them to make accomodations for small commercial and non-commercial webcasters. (I say "written" because it is pretty obvious all they did was sign a letter SoundExchange drafted which was intended to give them political cover from the IREA campaign.) Even those guys have to be wary about trusting SoundExchange again. Either Berman and Coble have to admit they didn't appreciate the full impact of the CRB decision by not addressing the administrative fees (which is pretty silly, given their committee leadership positions), or admit they intentionally didn't mention them, which would be an admission that they're fools. Even better than all that embarrassment, however, is the pure simplicity of the administrative fee issue. There's no way to avoid the result - $1 billion in fees to collect $20 million in revenue. Even some of the potted plants who serve in the House can understand the difference. They don't have to figure out the fraction-of-a-penny pay-per-play rates, they've got a number with all those zeros to focus on. This might be the factor that puts IREA over the top. I can't see someone from SoundExchange actually testifying that they need a billion dollars to run their operation. Someone is sure to ask if the real purpose of the $500 per channel fee is to run off as many large webcasters as possible, and they aren't going to be able to give an honest answer. The committee may not notice, or care, but the public will hear it.