Free the Lyrics

In past years, the music industry has been relatively laissez faire with lyrics sites, but that’s about to change according to BBC News article Song sites face legal crackdown. The article features opinions from the Music Publishers’ Association and the National Music Publishers’ Association.

MPA president Lauren Keiser isn’t mincing words either. He’s quoted as saying, “throw in some jail time I think we’ll be a little more effective.”

You may be wondering what has provoked this stance. According to NMPA president David Israelite, “Unauthorised use of lyrics and tablature deprives the songwriter of the ability to make a living, and is no different than stealing.”

Starting in 2006, there’s going to be a coordinated campaign to shut down sites that are illegally using copyrighted lyrics. Most likely the targets will be large, popular sites.