Some of the music industry's well known artists including Billy Joel, Rihanna and Missy Elliot have signed an open letter to Pandora Media Inc. demanding the online music company to change how artists are compensated.

The letter states: "Why is the company asking Congress once again to step in and gut the royalties that thousands of musicians rely upon?

"That's not fair and that's not how partners work together."

Pandora is currently seeking lawmakers in U.S. Congress to pass the "Internet Radio Fairness Act." This act could change the regulation of how royalties are paid to artists, according to Reuters.

The letter will be published this weekend in the influential music industry magazine, Billboard.

A team of 125 musicians who say they are big supporters of Pandora argue that the bill will cut the amount of money an artist receives when his or her songs are played over the internet by 85 percent.

Pandora, supported by other music services such as Clear Channel Communications, is backing up the bill on grounds that different providers, such as satellite and cable, pay different rates.

Pandora said on its website, "The current law penalizes new media and is astonishingly unfair to Internet radio."

"We are asking for our listeners' support to help end the discrimination against internet radio. It's time for Congress to stop picking winners, levels the playing field and establish a technology-neutral standard."

The issue surrounding how musicians are paid for internet streaming of their songs has been an ongoing one for Pandora, an online music company mostly supported by advertisements which streams music through the internet. It was established more than a decade ago.

Shares of Pandora went down 3.4 percent at $7.40 on Wednesday afternoon on the New York Stock Exchange, according to Reuters.

Tags: billy joel Rihanna pandora