Warner Music Settles NY Payola Suit

Warner Music has become the latest major label to settle with New York attorney general Eliot Spitzer over payola charges. Warner will pay $5 million to charities and $50,000 in state legal fees. The label also agreed to discontinue questionable radio promotion practices many of which had already been .

Another payola era is over, but Indy labels all claim that it’s as hard as ever to get corporate and consolidated radio execs to play their music.  Satellite radio and the internet continue to provide the only real outlets for many fans to hear Indy, innovative and niche music.

"Warner Music has illegally provided radio stations with financial benefits to obtain airplay and boost the chart position of its songs," the complaint reads. "Contrary to listener expectations that songs are selected for airplay based on their popularity and merit," the settlement reads, "Warner Music has obtained airplay for its songs through such deceptive and illegal practices as (a) bribing radio stations employees…to play its songs; (b) providing a stream of financial benefits to radio stations…on the condition that its records receive airplay; (c) using independent promoters as conduits for illegal payments to radio stations to obtain airplay; (d) purchasing spin programs and using syndicated programs to manipulate chart positions of its music, and (e) engaging in fraudulent call-in campaigns to increase airplay of its songs."