The owner of a Douglas radio station is named as the defendant in a legal action that seeks enforcement of an arbitration award of more than $6,100 to a music performing rights organization that licenses the use of more than 15 million musical works.
Douglas Broadcasting, Inc., which does business as KDAP-FM, has until mid-March to respond to the filing by Broadcast Music Inc. (BMI) which asks Judge Timothy Dickerson of the Cochise County Superior Court to confirm an arbitrator’s June 2018 award to BMI of $6,162.24 plus interest under a 2012 licensing contract with the radio station.
KDAP-FM is operated by Donna Henderson, who took over ownership of Douglas Broadcasting when her husband Howard died in 2015. The station, whose call letters stand for Douglas-Agua Prieta, broadcasts a country music format with coverage of local news and community events. It also has a wide range of advertisers from the Douglas and Agua Prieta area.
According to BMI’s website, copyright laws prohibit the commercial use of music without a license. Companies like BMI have consolidated the licensing process to make it easier for users such as bars, radio and satellite music stations, and movie producers.
BMI’s licenses provide the necessary copyright clearance for use of the music created by more than one million songwriters, composers, and publishers. The license fees are distributed by BMI as royalties.
Court records show Douglas Broadcasting purchased a license in 2012 which contained a mandatory arbitration clause in the event of a dispute between the parties. However, forced collection of a monetary arbitration award cannot be undertaken without a judge’s confirmation, which is what BMI is seeking from Judge Dickerson.
The current legal action is the second time BMI has gone to court in Cochise County for satisfaction of a judgment against Douglas Broadcasting. In 2010, BMI obtained a default judgment against the company. The judgment was later satisfied.
In 2015, BMI initiated legal action against Copper Queen Hotel in order to obtain a garnishment. Court records show the case remained active through 2018.