If a new report is to be believed, Apple’s plans to introduce longer song samples in the iTunes Store last week was waylaid by music publishers, who at the last moment opposed the move to extend music samples from 30 to 60 seconds.
AppleInsider is reporting that, despite Apple’s best efforts, the music publishers have foiled plans to double the length of current song samples in the iTunes Store from 30 seconds to 60 seconds. According to Cnet, the move appears to have been blocked at the eleventh hour by the National Music Publishers Association.
As rumored only a week or two ago, Apple had been negotiating with the music labels to extend the song samples in order to make an announcement at the September 1 media event where iTunes 10 was introduced. Agreements with the four major record labels apparently wasn’t enough to make it happen.
"We believe that a license is necessary, and conversations must occur before song samples are extended," National Music Publishers Association general counsel Jay Rosenthal told CNET last week.
It should come as no surprise that a number of music publishers feel like they’re not getting a big enough slice of the iTunes pie, with many believing that Apple should be paying performance rights for song samples -- despite the fact that such samples actually help sell the music in the first place. Apple originally got the music publishers to relent on 30-second samples for promotional purposes, but the move to extend the samples has now amplified the debate again.
A spokeswoman for BMI, one of the major music publishers who collects royalties for songwriters and publishers, claimed that the organization is in “active negotiations” with Apple on the subject of longer song samples. Music industry insiders claim that Cupertino “tried to rush a deal through” in advance of last week’s media event without securing agreements from all relevant parties.
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