REVOLUTION RADIO ONLINE BECOMES UK ONLY AND ENDS PLAYBACK
Revolution Radio Online yesterday (9th June 2020) renewed its PRS & PPL licences for the right to continue to broadcast its online rock radio service. Whilst we celebrate the fact that this is in fact the first time the licence is in the name of Revolution Radio Online (we changed our name mid-way through the 2019/2020 licences), we were also saddened by the increasingly restrictive nature of global licensing and have had to adapt to the new rules accordingly.
Here in the UK, both PRS and PPL have continued to merge licensing programmes, but also bring their own schemes more into line with the powerful EU and USA licensing bodies. Ironically, these alignments now mean that the UK has no explicit licence for internet only radio streaming services, and instead falls under the "always on webcaster" banner.
It also means that with immediate effect:
RRO must make it explicit to all our listeners that we are a UK only radio service and as such listeners in other countries should not attempt to listen to our shows. This is because under the new global arrangements, we would have to pay a local broadcast licence in every country we are listened in. Whilst it is impossible for UK stations to stop listeners from outside the UK listening to our stream, countries such has the USA are putting in place internet border controls anyway to block externally broadcast streams from being picked up.
We must also stop our popular PLAYBACK service this week. This is because our Playbacks are now re-classed as "music on demand" and we would have to pay for 2 additional licenses to add to the 2 we already have paid for. We just don't make anywhere near the money we need to afford to do this.
Thankfully, none of these changes, as yet, stop our wider blue-sky thinking work from commencing next year, and we are gratified that, unlike many so-called UK internet stations out there, we are fully licensed and legal. We also continue to broadcast at full CD quality sound, something almost unmatched even by large national and international players (who shall remain nameless!).
In the meantime, the station is looking at a new exciting programme of shows to replace the current Xtra Power season that we created in response to the Covid-19 emergency and we will be unveiling our Blue Skies Projects next year. Thank you to all our listeners for your support and for allowing us to continue our hobby, which is, as we are sure you are aware by now, the most fun you can have with your clothes on :)
Stay safe everyone, join the revolution and continue to tune in to rock music by fans of rock music.
