In the United States, copyright in fixed works of authorship is governed exclusively by federal law. Accordingly, the scope of protection for all works of authorship, including musical works and sound recordings, is established by the 1976 Copyright Act. The Act explicitly preempts and renders void any state law that provides equivalent rights in copyrightable subject matter, 17 U.S.C. § 301. In addition, any state law that conflicts with federal law is preempted by virtue of the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution, U.S. Const., art. VI, cl.2. Hines v. Davidowitz, 312 U.S. 52, 67 (1941).
The state laws referred to in this question relate to the conduct of the business of collective performing rights societies. To the extent that any of them also affects the scope of copyright protection, or hinders the operation of federal copyright law, it is preempted. See ASCAP v. Pataki, 38 U.S.P.Q.2d 1485 (S.D.N.Y. 1996) (holding that similar New York State legislation was preempted).
