SoundExchange's lawsuit against Music Choice over unpaid royalties has been referred to the Copyright Royalty Board (CRB) for resolution. The dispute centers on alleged systematic underpayment of statutory royalties for Music Choice's business establishment service (BES) between 2013 and 2016.

According to the original complaint filed in April 2019, Music Choice allegedly:

• Underpaid royalties for their 50+ channels of CD quality music provided to commercial establishments
• Incorrectly allocated fees and payments for their BES operations
• Underreported gross revenues to SoundExchange

Under CRB regulations, SoundExchange is entitled to 12.5% of gross revenues from Music Choice's BES operations during the period in question. The non-profit organization collected nearly $950 million in domestic non-interactive digital radio royalties in 2020.

U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton has:

• Stayed the case pending the CRB's decision
• Scheduled a status teleconference for June 21, 2022
• Required parties to file a joint status report within 30 days of the CRB's decision

The current Copyright Royalty Board consists of:

• Judge David Strickler (term ending soon)
• Judge Steve Ruwe
• Interim Chief Judge Suzanne Barnett

In related news, SoundExchange has also announced plans to audit 2018-2020 royalty payment statements from commercial webcasters Audacy and Midwest Communications regarding their statutory license payments.

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