After three years of courtroom battles, BMI and the Radio Music License Committee have reached a settlement covering the fees nearly 9,000 radio stations pay to license music, closing out a rate dispute that had been working its way through the federal courts. Under the new deal, station payments climb from the previous rate of 1.78 percent of revenue to 2.14 percent, stepping up further to 2.20 percent before the term ends, with the terms applying retroactively back to January 2022 and continuing through January 2029.
Broadcasters Face A Revised Fee Schedule
A total of 8,895 radio stations fall under the new agreement, a group that includes outlets negotiated directly by the RMLC as well as others that opted to be covered by its blanket licensing terms. Court filings laid out the new terms, closing the book on an extended fight over how much radio broadcasters owe for publicly performing songs in BMI’s catalog. BMI characterized the deal as the biggest rate hike it has ever secured from the radio sector.
While the mechanics of the new pricing are simple, the jump itself is substantial. Stations will owe 2.14 percent of gross revenue for both 2022 and 2023, and that percentage climbs in stages across the length of the contract before topping out at 2.20 percent from 2026 through 2029. That compares with the 1.78 percent rate that had applied under the agreement covering 2017 to 2021.
Years Of Rate-Court Litigation Come To A Close
The legal fight traces back to June 2022, when the RMLC sued BMI and asked a federal court in New York to set the rates its member stations would pay. Along the way, the case took an unusual path: the RMLC tried to bring a single rate-setting proceeding against both BMI and ASCAP simultaneously, the industry’s two biggest performing rights organizations. That strategy relied on provisions introduced by the Music Modernization Act, which would have pushed the two groups to fight over market share within one combined proceeding.
That combined effort didn’t hold up in court. A federal judge threw out the joint approach in 2023, directing the RMLC to bring separate suits against BMI and ASCAP instead. From there, litigation against both organizations continued until the BMI settlement was submitted to the court on Tuesday.
BMI’s president and chief executive, Mike O’Neill, described the deal as a landmark increase that will improve compensation for songwriters whose work airs on radio. According to O’Neill, BMI pushed for a rate that matched its position as the leading source of music played by radio stations nationwide, and he said the result was the largest rate increase the organization has ever won from the radio industry.
Broadcasters Gain Years Of Rate Predictability
The agreement also spares the RMLC the expense and unpredictability of dragging the litigation out further. RMLC Chairman Ed Atsinger said he was glad the group and BMI had reached an amicable resolution, adding that the deal underscores how much value the radio industry places on its relationships with songwriters. He also noted that the agreement lets broadcasters plan ahead for years to come, sidestepping heavy litigation expenses and the unpredictability that comes with rate-court proceedings.
Financially, the deal reaches back to cover January 2022 and extends forward through January 2029. That gives radio stations a set framework running through the rest of the decade, following years of legal wrangling between the two sides.
The ASCAP Dispute Follows A Different Path
Even as the BMI deal came together, the RMLC took a distinct action in its parallel case against ASCAP. Just days ahead of the BMI settlement’s Tuesday filing, the RMLC submitted a motion on Friday indicating it intended to permanently and voluntarily withdraw the ASCAP lawsuit. The filing made no reference to any settlement, and representatives for neither party immediately responded to inquiries about where the ASCAP matter now stands.
That leaves the BMI accord as the one finalized outcome detailed in public court records, locking in rates for close to 8,900 stations and requiring retroactive payments dating back to the beginning of 2022.
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