PRS Deal Brings Music Videos Back to YouTube in U.K.

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on September 3, 2009 - 7:27am.

London - U.K. royalty collection society PRS for Music announced on Thursday that it has reached a new licensing agreement with Google's (NASD: GOOG) YouTube, which will return music videos to the site in the U.K. Videos had largely been absent on YouTube in the U.K. since March, when PRS pulled them after unsuccessful licensing renegotiations.

The group had been seeking a licensing rate "many, many times" higher than what YouTube had previously been paying, the company said back in March.

In May, PRS announced that it would cut its streaming royalty rate by more than half.

The new three-year agreement with YouTube, which is retroactive to January 2009, includes a lump sum paid to PRS, according to Reuters.

"It is important that those who are creating music - the writers and composers we represent -- be rewarded when their works are used," said Andrew Shaw, managing director of broadcast and online at PRS for Music.

"YouTube is a popular online video destination, and this new license continues to support musical talent."

Related Links:
http://snipurl.com/rkslo

http://snipurl.com/rkt4j (Reuters)

http://snipurl.com/rkt9m (DMW previous coverage)