II 
115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5447 
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 
APRIL 26, 2018 
Received 
AN ACT 
To modernize copyright law, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Music Modernization Act’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Rescission Of Unobligated Balances In The Department Of Justice As-
sets Forfeiture Fund. 
TITLE I—MUSIC LICENSING MODERNIZATION 
Sec. 101. Short title. 
Sec. 102. Blanket license for digital uses and mechanical licensing collective. 
Sec. 103. Amendments to section 114. 
Sec. 104. Random assignment of rate court proceedings. 
TITLE II—COMPENSATING LEGACY ARTISTS FOR THEIR SONGS, 
SERVICE, AND IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTIONS TO SOCIETY 
Sec. 201. Short title. 
Sec. 202. Unauthorized digital performance of pre-1972 sound recordings. 
Sec. 203. Effective date. 
TITLE III—ALLOCATION FOR MUSIC PRODUCERS 
Sec. 301. Short title. 
Sec. 302. Payment of statutory performance royalties. 
Sec. 303. Effective date. 
SEC. 2. RESCISSION OF UNOBLIGATED BALANCES IN THE 
DEPARTMENT 
OF 
JUSTICE 
ASSETS 
FOR-
FEITURE FUND. 
Of the unobligated balances available under the De-
partment of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund, $47,000,000 
is hereby permanently rescinded. 
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TITLE I—MUSIC LICENSING 
MODERNIZATION 
SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE. 
This title may be cited as the ‘‘Musical Works Mod-
ernization Act’’. 
SEC. 102. BLANKET LICENSE FOR DIGITAL USES AND ME-
CHANICAL LICENSING COLLECTIVE. 
(a) AMENDMENT.—Section 115 of title 17, United 
States Code, is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)— 
(A) by inserting ‘‘IN
GENERAL’’ after 
‘‘AVAILABILITY
AND SCOPE
OF COMPULSORY 
LICENSE’’; 
(B) by striking paragraph (1) and insert-
ing the following new paragraph: 
‘‘(1) 
ELIGIBILITY
FOR
COMPULSORY
LI-
CENSE.— 
‘‘(A) CONDITIONS
FOR
COMPULSORY
LI-
CENSE.—A person may by complying with the 
provisions of this section obtain a compulsory li-
cense to make and distribute phonorecords of a 
nondramatic musical work, including by means 
of digital phonorecord delivery. A person may 
obtain a compulsory license only if the primary 
purpose in making phonorecords of the musical 
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work is to distribute them to the public for pri-
vate use, including by means of digital phono-
record delivery, and— 
‘‘(i) phonorecords of such musical 
work have previously been distributed to 
the public in the United States under the 
authority of the copyright owner of the 
work, including by means of digital phono-
record delivery; or 
‘‘(ii) in the case of a digital music 
provider seeking to make and distribute 
digital phonorecord deliveries of a sound 
recording embodying a musical work under 
a compulsory license for which clause (i) 
does not apply— 
‘‘(I) the first fixation of such 
sound recording was made under the 
authority of the musical work copy-
right owner, and sound recording 
copyright owner has the authority of 
the musical work copyright owner to 
make and distribute digital phono-
record deliveries embodying such work 
to the public in the United States; 
and 
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‘‘(II) the sound recording copy-
right owner or its authorized dis-
tributor has authorized the digital 
music provider to make and distribute 
digital phonorecord deliveries of the 
sound recording to the public in the 
United States. 
‘‘(B) DUPLICATION
OF
SOUND
RECORD-
ING.—A person may not obtain a compulsory li-
cense for the use of the work in the making of 
phonorecords duplicating a sound recording 
fixed by another, including by means of digital 
phonorecord delivery, unless— 
‘‘(i) such sound recording was fixed 
lawfully; and 
‘‘(ii) the making of the phonorecords 
was authorized by the owner of the copy-
right in the sound recording or, if the 
sound recording was fixed before February 
15, 1972, by any person who fixed the 
sound recording pursuant to an express li-
cense from the owner of the copyright in 
the musical work or pursuant to a valid 
compulsory license for use of such work in 
a sound recording.’’; and 
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(C) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘A com-
pulsory license’’ and inserting ‘‘MUSICAL AR-
RANGEMENT.—A compulsory license’’; 
(2) by striking subsection (b) and inserting the 
following: 
‘‘(b) PROCEDURES TO OBTAIN A COMPULSORY LI-
CENSE.— 
‘‘(1) PHONORECORDS
OTHER
THAN
DIGITAL 
PHONORECORD DELIVERIES.—A person who seeks to 
obtain a compulsory license under subsection (a) to 
make and distribute phonorecords of a musical work 
other than by means of digital phonorecord delivery 
shall, before or within 30 calendar days after mak-
ing, and before distributing, any phonorecord of the 
work, serve notice of intention to do so on the copy-
right owner. If the registration or other public 
records of the Copyright Office do not identify the 
copyright owner and include an address at which no-
tice can be served, it shall be sufficient to file the 
notice of intention with the Copyright Office. The 
notice shall comply, in form, content, and manner of 
service, with requirements that the Register of Copy-
rights shall prescribe by regulation. 
‘‘(2) DIGITAL PHONORECORD DELIVERIES.—A 
person who seeks to obtain a compulsory license 
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