The senior manageement of ECAD, a Brazilian collecting society, faces a criminal charge after an investigation of the Senate. ECAD managers stand accused of embezzlement, fraud and price-fixing. The Senate called ECAD's collecting system a "black box", for it's not clear how revenues are collected and distributed. The proposed charge will be passed on to a federal prosecutor, who is likely to follow the Senate's recommendations. 

The Senate also recommends new legislation to revise the copyright licensing system in Brazil. Critics of  ECAD state that the current system is not transparent enough and the scheme for calculating compensation rates for Brazilian artists is outdated. In the calculation, radio airplay counts for 90 percent, even though other distribution channels provide a significant part of the income. The new legislation proposal is designed to overcome these problems. It still has to be approved by both houses of the Brazilian legislature.

According to Ars Technica, the controversy in Brazil is a useful reminder that copyright issues aren't always black and white. Not only filesharing sites like Megaupload and The Pirate Bay take money from artists. Also organizations that represent the interests of artists are not always operating flawlessly.

Read more about collecting societies on FutureOfCopyright.com: 

• German collecting society GEMA faces fraud charges
• Employees of Spanish collecting society SGAE face fraud charges
• China's new draft copyright law controversial among songwriters

Source: Ars Technica

By: Marjolein van der Heide