SiriusXM Faces Suit Over $150 Million Music Collective Royalties

Broadcasting company Sirius XM Radio Inc. was hit with a lawsuit in Virginia federal court alleging it failed to pay more than $150 million in music royalties to the recording industry’s collective rights organization SoundExchange Inc.

SoundExchange, which is designated by Congress to collect and distribute royalties for sound recordings, alleged that Sirius XM “engineered a windfall for itself and deprived artists” of compensation by paying lower royalty rates for its satellite radio broadcasting service.

Sirius XM has improperly attributed revenue generated from its satellite radio service—which has a higher statutory license fee—as revenue generated by its music webcasting service ...