ASCAP President & Chairman Marilyn Bergman Applauds Unanimous MGM Studios vs. Grokster Decision.

NEW YORK -- In response to today's unanimous U.S. Supreme Court decision regarding MGM Studios vs. Grokster, Marilyn Bergman, President and Chairman of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), has issued the following statement:

"I applaud the unanimous Supreme Court decision in MGM Studios vs. Grokster. It sends a clear message that P2P enterprises like Grokster and Kazaa cannot use the intellectual property of songwriters, composers and other copyright owners as start-up capital for their businesses. The P2P business model relies on the use of our music, as well as movies and other creative works, without permission or payment to the creators and copyright owners, and therefore is outright theft. On behalf of the over 210,000 songwriter, composer and music publisher members of ASCAP, I hope that the decision will strengthen the public understanding and respect for the rights of America's creators to make a living from their work, which so enriches our nation and the world."

About Marilyn Bergman

Marilyn Bergman is the first woman to be elected to ASCAP's Board of Directors, and is the Society's first female President and Chairman. As a songwriter, she brings the unique experience of the creator to the leadership of ASCAP.

Among her many awards and honors, she has received three Academy Awards, four Emmy Awards, and two Grammy Awards. In collaboration with her husband, Alan, Marilyn won Oscars in 1968, 1973 and 1984 for the songs "The Windmills of Your Mind," "The Way We Were," and for the score for Yentl. They have received 16 Academy Award nominations for such songs as "It Might Be You" from Tootsie, "How Do You Keep The Music Playing?" from Best Friends, "Papa Can You Hear Me" and "The Way He Makes Me Feel" from Yentl and "What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life?" from The Happy Ending.

In 1996 they were nominated for both a Golden Globe award and an Academy Award for their song "Moonlight" from the film, Sabrina. "The Windmills of Your Mind" and "The Way We Were" also received Golden Globe awards and "The Way We Were" earned two Grammys. The four Emmys are for "Sybil," "Queen of the Stardust Ballroom," "Ordinary Miracles" and "A Ticket to Dream." Among their principal collaborators are Michel Legrand, Marvin Hamlisch, Dave Grusin, Cy Coleman, Henry Mancini, Johnny Mandel, John Williams, Quincy Jones and James Newton Howard.

Marilyn was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1980, and was a recipient of the Crystal Award from Women in Film in 1986. In 1995 she received the National Academy of Songwriters Lifetime Achievement Award. In 1996 Marilyn received the first Fiorello Lifetime Achievement Award from New York's LaGuardia High School of Music and Art and Performing Arts (her alma mater). In 1997 the Songwriters Hall of Fame honored Marilyn and Alan with their Johnny Mercer Award.

Marilyn is a member of the Executive Committee of the Music Branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the National Academy of Songwriters and the Nashville Songwriters Association. She was the only creator to serve on the Advisory Council to the National Information Infrastructure (NII). She served two terms (1994-1998) as President of CISAC, the International Confederation of Performing Right Societies and currently sits on its Administrative Council. In 1996 she received France's highest cultural honor, Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters medal. In 1998 she received a cultural Medal of Honor from SGAE, the Spanish performing rights organization.

She, and her husband and co-lyricist, Alan are currently at work on a new musical, In the Pocket, with music by the late Cy Coleman, set to open in 2006 on Broadway. Ms. Bergman was a music major at New York's High School of Music and Art, going on to study Psychology and English at New York University. She has received Honorary Doctorate Degrees from Berklee College of Music in Boston and Trinity College in Hartford, Conn.

About ASCAP

Established in 1914, ASCAP is the first and leading Performing Rights Organization in the U.S., representing the world's largest repertory which totals over 8 million copyrighted musical works of every style and genre from more than 210,000 composer, lyricist and music publisher members. Additionally, ASCAP represents the works in the repertories of 70 affiliated foreign performing rights organizations created by many thousand affiliated international members. ASCAP is committed to protecting the rights of its members by licensing and collecting royalties for the public performance of their copyrighted works, and then distributing these fees to the Society's members based on performances. Unlike the other American Performing Rights Organizations, ASCAP's Board of Directors is made up solely of writers and publishers, elected by the membership every two years.

www.ascap.com