Does Pandora have a future? Just a couple of days after writing about the wonders of Pandora and other internet radio services, I came across a number of news stories concerning a new, seemingly insurmountable challenge to the fledgling internet radio industry. The Copyright Royalty Board, a body set up by the U.S. Congress for determining music royalties, has issued a revised fee schedule for internet radio broadcasts that will likely prove ruinous for most, if not all, internet radio providers. Linux Journal (of all places) has a detailed writeup on the Copyright Royalty Board decision and its implications for the internet radio business.

Its not a good time to be an internet radio broadcaster. Nor a paying subscriber. Nor a music lover. Nor an unsigned musician, for that matter. The music industry is engaged in a fullscale war, with copyright law as the weapon of choice. Given that consumers have been in the crosshairs for so long, it should hardly come as a surprise that broadcasters have been forced into the frey as well. Where this latest development will lead is anyone’s guess, but the broadcasters do have one asset which the individual consumer does not have — a large base of loyal listeners that stands to lose a valued service.