# 2024-31779: Ruling on Regulatory Interpretation for Business Establishment Services

2024-31779, Ruling on Regulatory Interpretation for Business Establishment Services, is a Federal Register rule from an unnamed agency published 2025-01-10, effective 2025-01-10 (as of 2026-06-11).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2024-31779
- As of: 2026-06-11
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Document number: 2024-31779
- Title: Ruling on Regulatory Interpretation for Business Establishment Services
- Type: Rule
- Agencies: unknown
- Citation: unknown
- Published: 2025-01-10
- Effective: 2025-01-10
- Comments close: not stated
- Significant: no
- Touches household money: no
- Regulation identifier numbers: none
- Last updated: 2026-06-11

## Summary

The Copyright Royalty Board just clarified how to calculate "Gross Proceeds" for royalty payments that businesses owe when streaming music. This affects businesses using digital sound transmissions and SoundExchange, the group that collects royalties for artists. The new ruling, effective January 10, 2025, ensures everyone pays the right amount, so no surprise bills or missed payments!

## Abstract

The Copyright Royalty Judges publish their ruling on regulatory interpretation in a matter that was referred to them by the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. The regulation at issue is the definition of "Gross Proceeds" in the rates and terms set forth through settlements in the BES I and BES II proceedings in 37 CFR 384.3(a), which is used when calculating royalty payments paid to SoundExchange, a collective for copyright owners, in relation to digital transmissions of sound recordings pursuant to the statutory license in 17 U.S.C. 112.

## Effects PRIA read

- How Businesses Must Count Gross Proceeds: cost, medium. If you run a business that provides background or streamed music to establishments, the Judges ruled that “Gross Proceeds” means all fees and payments from any source that are derived from use of copyrighted sound recordings during the license period. In-kind payments are included only if they were…
- Collectors and Rights Holders Favor Broader Base: benefit, medium. The ruling adopts the interpretation advanced by SoundExchange that all fees and payments (including certain in-kind payments offered for the sole purpose of facilitating a BES transmission) count as Gross Proceeds. This interpretation supports SoundExchange’s ability to collect royalties under 17…

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## Sources
- [2024-31779 on federalregister.gov](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/01/10/2024-31779/ruling-on-regulatory-interpretation-for-business-establishment-services)
- [2024-31779 as published (PDF)](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2025-01-10/pdf/2024-31779.pdf)

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Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2024-31779 (as of 2026-06-11).