EU Proposes Easing of Licensing Rules for Online Music Stores

European Union proposes easing of licensing rules that prevent online music stores such as iTunes from selling across their 27 member nations, reports Bloomberg.

Royalty-collection societies could be forced under the draft rules to transfer their revenue-gathering activities to rivals if they lack the technical capacity to license music to Internet services in multiple countries.

Music copyright licenses are granted on a national basis in the EU so consumers can only download music from an iTunes store in their home country. The EU has sought to promote pan-European licensing for years, and the commission issued an antitrust decision in 2008 against national agencies that collect royalties on behalf of artists.


Seven years ago Apple rolled out its iTunes Store to Germany, the U.K., and France. Last year it arrived in Poland, Hungary, and 10 other European countries.

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