Protecting the Rights of Musicians Act

To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to deny the right to grant retransmission consent to a television broadcast station if an AM or FM radio broadcast station licensed to the same licensee transmits a sound recording without providing compensation for programming and to prohibit the Federal Communications Commission from imposing radio tuner mandates for mobile devices. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Protecting the Rights of Musicians Act 2. Effect of certain radio transmissions on right to grant television retransmission consent Section 325(b)(2) of the Communications Act of 1934 ( 47 U.S.C. 325(b)(2) (1) in subparagraph (D), by striking or (2) in subparagraph (E), by striking the period at the end and inserting ; or (3) by inserting after subparagraph (E) the following: (F) to retransmission of the signal of a television broadcast station if the licensee of such station is also the licensee of an AM or FM radio broadcast station and, during the term of the license for such television broadcast station in which such retransmission occurs, such licensee has transmitted a sound recording over such radio station without providing compensation for all programming carried over the signal. . 3. Prohibition on radio tuner mandates for mobile devices Part I of title III of the Communications Act of 1934 ( 47 U.S.C. 301 et seq. 343. Prohibition on radio tuner mandates for mobile devices (a) In general The Commission may not require a mobile device to be equipped with a tuner for receiving the signals of AM or FM radio broadcast stations. (b) Mobile device defined In this section, the term mobile device (1) a device that— (A) is designed to be carried on the person of the user or to be reasonably portable; (B) provides computing and communications functionality; and (C) is capable of providing access to commercial mobile service (as defined in section 332) or commercial mobile data service (as defined in section 6001 of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 ( 47 U.S.C. 1401 (2) a device that is comparable to a device described in paragraph (1), except for lacking the capability described in subparagraph (C) of such paragraph. .

Summary: Protecting the Rights of Musicians Act Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to deny a television broadcast station the right to consent to retransmissions of the station's signal by cable systems or other multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) if the licensee of such station is also the licensee of an AM or FM radio broadcast station that has transmitted a sound recording over such radio station without providing compensation for all programming carried over the signal. (Under current law, retransmission consent requirements prohibit cable systems or other MVPDs from retransmitting the signal of a television broadcasting station without the station's consent, which is generally obtained through a retransmission consent agreement under which the cable system or MVPD provides a negotiated payment or other consideration to the station in exchange for retransmission authority.) Prohibits the Federal Communications Commission from requiring mobile devices (with computing and communications functionality) to be equipped with a tuner for receiving the signals of AM or FM radio broadcast stations.