Senior Vice President Kent Mikkelsen testifies on behalf of BMI in music performing rights royalty trial.

In a recent decision, the U.S. District Court in New York City agreed with the analysis of Kent Mikkelsen, EI Senior Vice President, on the suitability of a benchmark for the rate Music Choice should pay BMI for a performing rights license. BMI, a leading performing rights organization, provides licenses to music users to perform works within its repertory. Under terms of a 1994 consent decree with the Department of Justice, royalty disputes between BMI and music users can be brought to U.S. District Court in New York. Music Choice had asked the Court to determine a “reasonable” royalty rate for the performance of music by cable and satellite operators that transmit Music Choice programming to residential subscribers. An earlier decision in this case was remanded to the District Court by the Second Circuit.