H.R. 9253 — Protect Working Musicians Act of 2026

This section states congressional findings that music supports nearly 2 million American jobs and $150 billion in annual economic activity, that dominant online music platforms distort licensing markets and exploit the Digital Millennium Copyright Act’s notice-and-takedown system, and that independent music creators lack bargaining power to obtain fair rates for their works.

This section provides a safe harbor from liability under the antitrust laws for Individual Music Creator Owners—those earning less than $1 million in licensing revenues or qualifying as small businesses under NAICS codes 512250 or 512230—when they collectively negotiate licensing terms or refuse to license sound recordings or musical works with Dominant Online Music Distribution Platforms (those with over $100 million in annual music distribution revenues) or companies developing or deploying generative artificial intelligence, if the negotiations are nondiscriminatory, not limited to price, and limited to those parties.