At 11am London time, the British House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee released a report recommending that copyright protection for musical works be extended to at least 70 years after the date of release. Currently, musical copyright holders in Britain are due royalties for a term of 50 years, as compared with the lifetime plus 70 year period enjoyed by creators of works such as books and films. In the U.S., the equivalent period was recently extended to 95 years from the former term of 75 years.
The report is a victory for songwriters and composers (or at least for their offspring and beneficiaries, who are more likely to receive those last twenty years of royalties), publishers and the record industry, who all stand to benefit from this report if the British Parliament decides to enact its findings into British law.
[U.K. report backs copyright extension (Variety)]
[Music business awaits copyright ruling (Variety)]