Morissette moans: Musicians are being ignored in Napster battle

NEWS Morissette, who was joined by 500 Napster supporters, said until now very few artists had spoken out against the popular website for fear of being maligned. But the female singer also took a swipe at the record companies for overlooking the views of artists. She said: "History has not been kind to artists who have candidly expressed points of view that differ with those of their record company." Morissette was joined in court by Eagles founder Don Henley who echoed her sentiments. Henley, also co-founder of RCA (Recording Artists Coalition), said: "There's a ping-pong game going on over our heads about business models when we don't know how our rights are going to be protected." He added: "Artists, too, want a 'seat at the table' and worry about getting compensation for online performances and making sure that the copyright "fair use" doctrine isn't expanded to let consumers trade music for free." During the hearing Napster asked congress to step in and encourage the development of online song distribution, saying record companies were unwilling to negotiate agreements. Napster interim chief Hank Barry said that compulsory licences would provide consumers with more choice, and insure publishers and artists are compensated for their work. Jack Valenti, a representative of Motion Picture Association of America, said compulsory federal licenses would be a "disaster" for the music industry. Although no legislation itself was discussed at the hearing yesterday, Chairman Orrin Hatch said further court dates would be necessary to determine the path forward for the music industry.