Internet Radio: Not dead yet

Apparently passed by the House; it still needs Senate approval and Presidential signature.

BetaNews | Pandora sees relief ahead in net radio fee talks

Pandora's Tim Westergren says he's "more optimistic than ever before" that his webcasting service won't be yanked offstage, as the House passed a bill letting net radio stations extend royalty rate negotiations with labels and artists.

The Webcaster Settlement Act of 2008 would give Congressional blessing for SoundExchange, the music industry's collection service, to work directly with the Digital Media Association, which represents online services such as Pandora, as worked out by an industry agreement last week. The permission to negotiate rates would circumvent rate levels set in 2007 by the Copyright Review Board.