Copyright Groups Knock Heads
Music & MP3
7/6/2000; 10:02:46 AM "On Wednesday, five composer and songwriter organizations -- BMI of the United States, GEMA of Germany, SACEM of France, SGAE of Spain, and SIAE of Italy -- announced an alliance to develop a technology infrastructure to track music use across international borders.

''The BMI alliance hopes to speed international compensation for composers, but there remains a slight complication. Last April, ASCAP (the other United States copyright organization) formed the International Music Joint Venture (IMJV), with Dutch and English licensing agents, with the intention of doing the same job.''