Billboard.biz has a bit of an opinion piece from Jeremy Thorpe, a partner at PriceWaterhouseCoopers and the leader of its Australian economics team. Titled "Rates Should Reflect Music's True Value," it is a timely article. The value of music has been highlighted by recent news events concerning Pandora and Warner Music Group, as well as the decision next year about U.S. terrestrial radio performance royalties. Print subscribers can read the entire piece. Here's a blurb from online that discusses performance royalties and how the Australia's Copyright Tribunal decided to set new rates for nightclubs that use recorded music.

Presented with hard evidence of the value nightclub customers placed on music, the tribunal promptly increased the royalty rate-by a cool 1,400%.

That's one clear indicator of how the value of music to commercial third parties is underrated. And new research by PricewaterhouseCoopers indicates that, with more effective collection methods and establishment of fairer rates worldwide, the recording industry could more than double its current annual performance rights income of $1 billion.

Businesses from broadcasters to restaurants play recorded music to attract customers, improve productivity and drive commercial growth. In most countries they obtain a license to do so from collecting societies, acting on behalf of artists and record companies-but the price for the rights the societies license are generally set by government agencies, courts or tribunals.