This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
Thursday 28 May 2015, 09:46 | By Andy Malt
Approved: Nite School Klik
CMU Approved
A month ago a new track was uploaded to the SoundCloud page of DJ Shadow’s recently launched record label Liquid Amber. By an outfit calling themselves Nite School Klik, ‘Posse’ was an eerie and slightly confusing mash of bass and hip hop styles.
Last week, in an interview with Billboard, it was revealed that the duo is actually DJ Shadow himself and upcoming producer G Jones – who Shadow discovered around the same time as his first Liquid Amber signing, Bleep Bloop.
“We just wanted to hit people out of the blue”, said Shadow of the decision to initially withhold their identities. “We wanted it to be heavy and have a sci-fi angle. We wanted to make the music we were playing, which is definitely not festival trap. It’s a sound that’s hard to put your finger on. It has a bit of Bay Area hyphy-ness to it. It’s based on our own version of the beat scene and all the beatmakers that are out there. That’s the stuff we identify with. That’s the stuff we play. And that’s the stuff we wanted to make. We’re keeping it open-ended and fun. At some point we’ll get back in the lab and make a follow-up”.
Along with the Billboard interview, they put out a second track, ‘Nice Nightmares’, which stretches the strange, sprawling sound of the project even further.
Listen to ‘Posse’ and ‘Nice Nightmares’ here:
READ MORE ABOUT: DJ Shadow | G Jones | Nite School Klik
Wednesday 27 May 2015, 09:53 | By Chris Cooke
SFX board backs move back into private ownership
Business News Deals Live Business Top Stories
Robert FX Sillerman is one step closer to taking his EDM powerhouse SFX back into private ownership, after the special committee of independent directors appointed to consider his proposals backed the plan, albeit at a higher than originally proposed price point.
Sillerman only floated his latest music business venture in 2013, but announced earlier this year that he now wanted to buy back all the shares he doesn’t currently control – nearly 63% of the company – presumably to take the firm out of the public glare that comes with being a publicly listed concern. There was a mixed reception to the proposal on Wall Street, hence the appointment of the special committee.
Sillerman originally offered $4.75 a share, which was above the going rate at the time; shares in SFX were selling for $4.12 on Friday. But the offer has now been increased to $5.25 a share, and it is that bid that the special committee unanimously agreed to back on Monday, leading to the company’s board also recommending the deal to shareholders yesterday.
In a statement, the company said: “The SFX board of directors, acting on the recommendation of the special committee, unanimously approved the merger agreement under which an affiliate of Mr Sillerman will take the company private, subject to a number of conditions, including receiving the affirmative vote of a majority of the unaffiliated stockholders. Mr Sillerman recused himself from the board vote regarding the transaction”.
Existing shareholders will be given the option to take equity in the newly private SFX instead of cash in exchange for their current shareholdings, subject to certain terms and conditions.
Yesterday’s statement also added that the special committee will now consider other offers for the company before Sillerman’s buy-back is fully green-lighted, noting that: “The merger agreement provides for a ‘go-shop’ period, during which the special committee – with the assistance of Moelis & Company LLC – will actively solicit, receive, evaluate and potentially enter into negotiations with parties that offer alternative proposals. The go-shop period is 45 days”.
But, assuming another serious proposal or offer for the bleep-making conglomerate isn’t put forward, Sillerman hopes to have SFX back in his control as a private business by the end of the year.
READ MORE ABOUT: SFX Entertainment
Wednesday 27 May 2015, 09:52 | By Andy Malt
Warner Music buys state-owned Polish record label
Business News Deals Labels & Publishers
Warner Music Poland has announced that it has acquired the country’s oldest record company, Polskie Nagrania. The label was previously owned by the Polish government, but was put up for auction in January.
President of Warner Music Poland, Piotr Kabaj, said in a statement: “This acquisition represents a significant milestone for our business, and it will be an honour to represent such influential artists and revered music. We are committed to using our expertise and resources to ensure that the iconic Polskie Nagrania name continues to thrive, and that these legendary songs win new fans in Poland and beyond”.
Meanwhile Warner Recorded Music’s International President, Stu Bergen, added: “Our investment in the incredible music of Polskie Nagrania will bolster our already strong presence in this growing, culturally vibrant market. This is the latest in a series of moves to develop local repertoire in countries where new technology is connecting artists with massive audiences and unlocking new creative and commercial opportunities”.
Polskie Nagrania’s catalogue spans from the 1950s to the present day, covering many of Poland’s most celebrated contemporary and classical musicians.
READ MORE ABOUT: Polskie Nagrania | Warner Music
Wednesday 27 May 2015, 09:50 | By Andy Malt
Heather Swaine joins Weller Media Agency
Business News Industry People Marketing & PR
Digital creative company the Weller Media Agency has announced Heather Swaine as its new Director Of Digital Publicity. She joins from PR firm Charmfactory, and takes over the role from Jenna Knight.
WMA CEO Seb Weller told CMU: “We’d like to thank Jenna for her continued hard work and support in WMA’s first eighteen months and we’ll be very sad to see her leave the team. We are however moving into a very exciting time for the agency, and as part of this we are pleased to announce the arrival of Heather Swaine, taking over from Jenna as Director of Digital Publicity”.
He added: “Heather brings with her a wealth of major and indie label plus agency experience, and we look forward to her being part of WMAs exciting future”.
WMA clients include Syco, Universal, Sony, Warner, MTV and Ministry Of Sound.
READ MORE ABOUT: Weller Media Agency
Wednesday 27 May 2015, 09:48 | By Chris Cooke
Downsizing in Samsung’s Milk Music division
Business News Digital
Is Samsung about to cut off Milk supplies? Would doing so make it the Margaret Thatcher of digital content? Given this month’s election result, would that make it the digital music platform of choice for Middle England? Though how would that work if there was no milk left? Perhaps they could just provide powdered milk and let the user provide the water? What’s the musical equivalent of powdered milk? Hmm. Pitbull.
Anyway, this is all idle speculation. Idle speculation and nonsense. Could we make that our slogan? Maybe. But the point is, Samsung’s US-based Media Solutions Center has reportedly been busy downsizing its workforce, with maybe as many as 15% of its 250 staffers laid off, according to Variety. And the Media Solutions Center is behind the tech firm’s most recent efforts in digital music, the bizarrely named Milk Music.
All of which has led to some speculation as to the future of Milk Music, though it may be that the newer Milk Video platform is more at risk, given reports that Kevin Swint – who came to Samsung after running video at iTunes, and who led the launch of Milk Video last year – has also departed the company.
Though we should stress that Samsung, which refused to comment on all this “rumour and speculation” told Variety: “What we can tell you is that Samsung remains committed to delivering engaging, connected entertainment experiences through its Milk platform, and we continue to expand our library of music, video and virtual reality”.
Virtual reality milk? Wow. Not even Thatcher could have snatcher-ed that. Well done Samsung, you’ve just achieved the socialist dream in the form of digital content. Unfortunately that means you will spectacularly if disappointingly fail. Still, there’s always money to be made out of idle speculation and nonsense.
READ MORE ABOUT: Milk Music | Samsung
Wednesday 27 May 2015, 09:46 | By Andy Malt
BBC cancels Never Mind The Buzzcocks
Business News Media
The BBC has decided to cancel ‘Never Mind The Buzzcocks’ after eighteen years and 28 series. I’ll give you a moment to shout ‘ABOUT TIME’ or ‘OH GREAT, EVEN FEWER MUSIC-RELATED SHOWS ON BRITISH TV’. Choose wisely.
The long past its sell by date comedy pop quiz has been coasting somewhat in recent years, and a recent attempt to revive it by bringing back a regular host – in the form of Rhod Gilbert – failed to boost ratings. Prior to that, the show had been hosted by a different guest each week, following the departure of second full-time frontman Simon Amstell in 2008.
The show launched in 1996, with Mark Lamarr as host and Phill Jupitus and Sean Hughes as team captains. Jupitus is the only member of the original line-up to appear in all 28 series, Hughes having left in 2002 to be replaced by Bill Bailey and later Noel Fielding.
In a statement, the BBC said: “After 28 series we’ve decided not to bring ‘Never Mind The Buzzcocks’ back to the BBC. We’d like to thank the team at Talkback, Rhod Gilbert, all the brilliant hosts over the years, and of course Noel and Phill for the years of enjoyment they’ve given BBC Two viewers”.
Cool. Now cancel ‘Later With Jools Holland’.
READ MORE ABOUT: BBC | Never Mind The Buzzcocks
Wednesday 27 May 2015, 09:43 | By Andy Malt
David Pickard announced as BBC Proms director
Business News Industry People Live Business Media
General Director at Glyndebourne David Pickard has been announced as the new Director of the BBC Proms. Taking up the role later this year, he will report to the new Controller of BBC Radio 3 Alan Davey. Both roles were previously held by Roger Wright, who left the BBC last year.
Says Davey: “David comes from a background of musical excellence and exploration, and will bring a whole host of fresh ideas to help us ensure the greatest classical music festival in the world continues to provide the place for people to discover and rediscover the best classical music. His achievements at Glyndebourne have included the discovery of exciting new artistic talent and the establishment of a range of new initiatives to bring opera to wider audiences through Glyndebourne’s touring, education and digital activities”.
Pickard added: “I am honoured to be asked to take up the role of Director, BBC Proms, and to follow in the line of such distinguished predecessors. After fourteen wonderful years at Glyndebourne, I count myself extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to lead another of this country’s most exciting arts organisations”.
He went on: “Like so many people, my interest in classical music was inspired by visits to the Proms as a teenager and it has been my privilege to play a role as a contributor for the past 20 years, firstly with the Orchestra Of The Age Of Enlightenment and more recently with the annual Glyndebourne Prom. I look forward now to building on the founding principles of the Proms – to bring world-class classical music to the widest possible audience”.
This year’s Proms season will be overseen by Edward Blakeman, ahead of Pickard’s arrival.
READ MORE ABOUT: BBC Proms | David Pickard | Glyndebourne
Wednesday 27 May 2015, 09:40 | By Chris Cooke
Gigaom to return, Re/code sold
Business News Media
Tech news site Gigaom is returning, having somewhat abruptly shut up shop back in March. And although a brand new post has already appeared on the site, that was just to announce the online publication’s own impending resurrection. Operations should resume proper in August.
As previously reported, the venture-capital backed website ceased operations after the company running it announced that, while the news service was as popular as ever, the firm was now “unable to pay its creditors in full”.
An Austin-based start-up called Knowingly Corp has now bought some of Gigaom’s assets – seemingly including the domain, existing site and archive – with the plan to reboot it all on 15 Aug. Knowingly boss Byron Reese said, knowlingly, I assume, “we are excited to be a chapter of the Gigaom story and look forward to continuing its mission of ‘humanising the impact of technology'”.
Elsewhere in tech site news, Vox Media, owner of American news site Vox and the naughty contract leaking tech news platform The Verge, has bought another tech news service, Re/code because, well, why not?
“With Re/code, we will extend our leadership of comprehensive tech coverage online, with Re/code’s unparalleled expertise in tech business news, to complement the broad consumer appeal of The Verge”, said Vox Media yesterday.
Are any of these free-to-access tech sites making any money, I wonder. Oh well, they could always sell t-shirts.
READ MORE ABOUT: GigaOM | Re/code
Wednesday 27 May 2015, 09:36 | By Andy Malt
The Prodigy announce UK arena tour
Artist News Gigs & Festivals
The Prodigy have announced a UK arena tour to take place at the end of this year, as they continue to promote new album ‘The Day Is My Enemy’. Support on the tour will come from Public Enemy.
Says producer Liam Howlett: “We are hyped to announce we have our old skool heroes Public Enemy joining us on our UK and European tour”.
Here are the dates:
24 Nov: Nottingham Capital Arena
26 Nov: Newcastle Arena
27 Nov: Manchester Central Arena
28 Nov: Sheffield Arena
30 Nov: Dublin, 3 Arena
1 Dec: Belfast, Odyssey Arena
3 Dec: Birmingham, Barclaycard Arena
4 Dec: London, Wembley Arena
READ MORE ABOUT: The Prodigy
Wednesday 27 May 2015, 09:35 | By Andy Malt
Gary Numan to perform classic albums in London
Artist News Gigs & Festivals
Gary Numan will take up residency at The Forum in London in October to perform three of his classic albums in full over three nights. ‘Replicas’, ‘The Pleasure Principle’, and ‘Telekon’ will all be staged live. A retrospective show will then also follow in Manchester.
Announcing the dates, Numan said: “Having spent most of the last two years touring [latest album] ‘Splinter’, and with another hectic touring schedule being planned for the release of the new album next year, 2015 seems an ideal time to revisit the three albums that changed my life”.
He continued: “These three albums are now considered classics and being able to play each one in its entirety, over three nights in London, will be very special for me, and as for the Manchester show, I have some songs planned for that I don’t think I’ve ever played live before. I very rarely look back at past glories but, with these shows, I intend to not only look back, but to celebrate those early days”.
Finally, he said: “Without those songs and experiences I wouldn’t be here today. ‘Splinter’ was widely considered to be one of the best, if not the best album I’ve ever made. With that achievement I’ve finally learned to be proud of my history, and that’s what these shows are all about”.
Here are the dates:
21 Oct: London, The Forum – Replicas
22 Oct: London, The Forum – The Pleasure Principle
23 Oct: London, The Forum – Telekon
24 Oct: Manchester, Academy
READ MORE ABOUT: Gary Numan
Wednesday 27 May 2015, 09:33 | By Andy Malt
Canadian Independent Music Association announces 40th anniversary celebrations
Awards Business News
The Canadian Independent Music Association has announced details of celebrations to mark its 40th anniversary with a gala and the organisation’s first awards ceremony at Toronto’s Great Hall on 15 Jun.
CIMA President Stuart Johnson said: “This is an exciting milestone for our organisation, as it gives us the opportunity to look back and truly recognise the efforts of our industry’s forefathers – the trailblazers who, through talent, skill, entrepreneurship and sheer force of will, shaped the industry and CIMA into what it is today.
He added: “Of course, the Gala and our inaugural awards will also give us the opportunity to recognise the success of today’s influential players in the industry. Plus it’s a great excuse to have a fun party filled with great Canadian music too”.
There will be four awards handed out on the night, the Founders Award, the Brian Chater Leadership Award, the Entrepreneur Award and the Unsung Hero Award.
The Founders Award will go to the founding members of the organisation that became CIMA, Bernie Finkelstein, Stan Klees, Terry Brown, Frank Davies, Tommy Graham, Greg Hambleton, Jack Richardson, Allan Macmillan, Ben McPeek, Art Snider and Paul Clinch.
Meanwhile, the awards with a bit more scope for being handed out on an annual basis will be awarded as follows:
The Brian Chater Leadership Award: Pegi Cecconi, SRO-Anthem
The Entrepreneur Award: Jeffrey Remedios, Arts & Crafts Productions
The Unsung Hero Award: Jack Long, Long & McQuade Musical Instruments
READ MORE ABOUT: CIMA
Wednesday 27 May 2015, 09:29 | By Chris Cooke
CMU’s One Liners: Demi Lovato launches label with Nick Jonas, Dave Stewart signs distribution deal with The Orchard, BMG partners with Kartel on Skint re-issues, and more tales of people getting along
Artist News Business News Deals Gigs & Festivals Labels & Publishers Releases
Other notable announcements and developments today…
• Demi Lovato and her manager Phil McIntyre (not to be confused with the UK promoter of the same name) have teamed up with that there Nick Jonas to launch a new imprint label with Universal’s Island Records US, which will co-release Lovato’s next album with her current label Hollywood Records. The new joint venture with Island is called Safehouse Records.
• Dave Stewart has signed a worldwide marketing and distribution deal with German music services firm Membran and its new allies at The Orchard, who will now support new artists working with the musician and producer via his Dave Stewart Entertainment company. Remember when Dave Stewart launched a musical bank? No, me neither.
• BMG has announced an alliance with the Kartel Music Group which will see the latter lead on a series of Skint Records re-releases, BMG having acquired the Skint catalogue last year. Kartel will also work with Pledge Music on a bunch of other Skint-related premium products, presumably not aimed at the skint.
• Thom Yorke has written an eighteen day long piece of music to soundtrack a new exhibition of work by Radiohead collaborator Stanley Donwood in Australia.
• Grimes has told fans on Twitter that her new album will be out in October and will be a surprise release so that the stupid media doesn’t get to hear it first.
• Beach House will release their fifth album, ‘Depression Cherry’, on 28 Aug through Bella Union. They’ll also be touring in October, finishing their UK and Ireland run at the Shempire on 30 Oct.
• CMU Approved punk trio Death Crush have released a compilation of their singles to date, which you should listen to.
• GFOTY and Spinee will host another of their Dog Food nights at the Red Gallery in Shoreditch on 13 Jun. Details here.
READ MORE ABOUT: Beach House | BMG | Dave Stewart | Demi Lovato | GFOTY | Grimes | Kartel Music Group | Membran Entertainment Group | Nick Jonas | Phil McIntyre | Skint Records | Spinee | The Orchard | Thom Yorke | Universal Music
Wednesday 27 May 2015, 09:24 | By Andy Malt
Snoop doesn’t regret sexist lyrics, but now recognises that women are people
And Finally Artist News
Snoop Dogg has decided, in his maturing years, that referring to women as “bitches” and “whores” in his lyrics is not something he should be doing. Though he doesn’t regret doing so earlier in his career.
Speaking to Sky News, the rapper said that people shouldn’t read too much into anything he says as Snoop Dogg, adding that he had a whole different identify for delivering a more responsible message: “Snoop Lion was more about a reggae experience, to be politically correct, to put a message out, to make music with substance, and that had awareness. Snoop Dogg was going back to being fun, making records that make people party, [that] takes you on a journey of… music. No message intended”.
But things have changed in the world of Snoop Dogg too since his 1993 debut album, and that’s influenced his lyrics: “What’s changed for me is I have a family, I have different perspectives and views on life, I have more concern with life. 20 years ago I had no responsibilities, I was young, I was an ex-gang member that was still affiliated with gangs. I was hard headed, I didn’t listen. I had nothing to live for but me”.
“I have no regrets”, he added, asked about the content of his early lyrics. “I love the makings of Snoop Dogg. I fucking love every minute of it, it’s the best shit ever”.
But he wouldn’t write those lyrics now: “Definitely my attitude has changed towards women. I’m more sensitive and I’m more vulnerable, as far as writing-wise and accepting a woman for being a beautiful person as opposed to me saying she’s a ‘bitch’ or a ‘whore'”.
“That’s how I was trained as I first started”, he continued. “And as I grew and fell in love with my wife and started to love my mother and my grandmother and my daughter, I understood what a woman was and I started to write that and express that. So, I have not regrets because I didn’t have that in my life, but when I got that in my life, as to better myself, I began to write that and I began to live a better life”.
“I’m not disappointed [in the younger Snoop] at all, because he who doesn’t know, it’s his job to learn to better himself”, he concluded. “Once I figured out that there was room to grow and learn and to be a better person, then I incorporated that into everything that I’m doing, and I don’t feel like you can be ashamed or mad about not knowing. Like, if you didn’t know, you didn’t know”.
And now he does know, maybe he should write a children’s book. Anyway, here’s an example of the sort of thing Snoop used to say about women in his youth, on ‘I Don’t Need No Bitch’ way back when in 2011…
READ MORE ABOUT: Snoop Dogg
Wednesday 27 May 2015, 08:39 | By Andy Malt
Approved: Georgia
CMU Approved
Domino’s latest signing Georgia supported CMU favourite Kelela last night, a show that coincided with the release of her debut single ‘Move Systems’.
Having previously worked as a drummer for the likes of Kwes and Kate Tempest, her move out from behind the drum kit is a bold one. On ‘Move Systems’ she showcases a confident, MIA-esque sound, channelling a mish-mash of grime, post-punk and pop into something both aggressive and melodic.
Details of Georgia’s debut album are expected shortly. In the meantime, here’s the video for ‘Move Systems’:
READ MORE ABOUT: Georgia
Tuesday 26 May 2015, 09:57 | By Chris Cooke
International Artist Organisation responds to Sony/Spotify contract leak
Business News Digital Labels & Publishers Management & Funding Top Stories
Following the previously reported open letter from the International Music Managers Forum responding to last week’s Sony/Spotify contract leak, the recently formed International Artist Organisation – which brings together groups like the UK’s Featured Artist Coalition – has also published a letter in response to what we learned about Sony Music’s deal with the market-leading streaming service.
As with the IMMF letter, the IAO’s correspondence is aimed at policymakers, and specifically European Union officials with responsibility for copyright and competition law. The letter, from IAO President (and also FAC CEO) Paul Pacifico, says that the Sony/Spotify contract leak “is a turning point for artists that cannot be underestimated” and that “the content of this contract suggests why non-disclosure clauses have been defended so fiercely”.
Artists and their managers have, of course, long criticised the secrecy that surrounds the deals done between record companies and streaming platforms, arguing that it makes it all but impossible for creators, performers and their representatives to assess whether they – as beneficiaries of the copyrights the labels control and the DSPs exploit – are receiving a fair share of the booming streaming revenue stream.
With multi-million dollar advances a key part of the contract leaked last week, raising the question of what happens if advances exceed the Spotify monies the label is actually due in any one time period, the letter says: “Sony have apparently stated that they have a policy of sharing [unallocated] advances [with artists] voluntarily, which we would of course applaud and we know that Warner have made this claim in the past. If we could see the basis on which any such calculations were made and compare these with results that would be a good start, but we can’t as until this moment, none of this information has been available to artists”.
As with the IMMF last week, the IAO uses the contract leak as an opportunity to make a number of requests of European policy makers. These are as follows…
1. The IAO is part of the Fair Internet Coalition which represents some 500,000 performers from across both audio and audio-visual sectors in Europe. We have been calling for EU legislators to enact a change to the ‘making available right’ which would give artists a fairer share of revenue derived from streaming with some paid direct via their collective management organisation. This would also give performers some transparency and insight into the cashflow around their work.
2. The IAO calls on the labels to come to the table to develop a code of practise, with strict penalties for transgressors, that should govern all contracts between artists and record labels and which should provide a framework to better align their interests and foster relationships of partnership. For example the market would work far better with long licenses of copyrights replacing assignment, as is already the case in Germany.
3. The IAO would like to propose that the Commission instate us as an official witness to any anti-trust investigations into the digital market and relationships between producers and platforms to provide evidence of practices that abuse the dominant position of the major labels and distort the market against the interests of both consumers and artists.
Artist and management groups are already shouting loud as the European Union reviews its copyright framework. Whether last week’s contract leak really impacts on that review is debatable – most of what was in the agreement we already kind of knew was happening – but it certainly provides a useful jumping-off point for the performers and creators who are seeking greater representation in this copyright review than ever before.
You can read the IAO letter in full here.
READ MORE ABOUT: International Artist Organisation (IAO) | Sony Music | Spotify
Tuesday 26 May 2015, 09:56 | By Chris Cooke
Pirate Bay co-founder appeals domain ruling
Business News Digital Legal
Pirate Bay co-founder Fredrik Neij is to appeal the previously reported ruling in the Swedish courts that said the controversial file-sharing site’s flagship .se domains should be handed over to the authorities.
The ruling is the latest attempt by prosecutors and rights owners to take away the domains of prolific piracy sites, though the Swedish domain registry put up more of a fight than most, meaning attempts to take thepiratebay.se offline have taken quite a long time. And the appeal means there will now be a further delay.
When deciding that the Pirate Bay domains should indeed be handed over to the Swedish authorities, the Stockholm court noted that the TPB website has been previously deemed liable for copyright infringement in court, and that the domains are registered to Neij, who has personally been found guilty of criminal copyright infringement for his involvement in running the file-sharing operation.
It’s the latter point that Neij is appealing, probably because he was previously banned by the Swedish courts from having any involvement in the future running of The Pirate Bay and, while the domain still being registered in his name doesn’t mean he has actively broken that ban, he possibly worries that him being key to the new ruling in the domain case could set a dangerous precedent.
A legal rep for Neij told Torrentfreak: “The district court makes an erroneous assessment of how to look at a domain name. We believe it is an address assignment, not an estate. The prosecution has alleged two things. One is that crimes have been committed via The Pirate Bay. Fredrik Neij really has no views on this. The second is that he is involved in The Pirate Bay operation”.
Neij seemingly wants his link to the Pirate Bay’s Swedish domain to be removed from the court’s ruling, so to ensure there can’t be any further personal repercussions for him legally speaking. So it’s not actually an effort to stop the domains from being seized by the authorities, but will likely mean any seizure will now be delayed.
Though, of course, The Pirate Bay already has a stack of other domains lined up to replace the .se address if and when it goes offline.
READ MORE ABOUT: Fredrik Neij | The Pirate Bay
Tuesday 26 May 2015, 09:55 | By Andy Malt
Universal publisher extends deals with Axwell and Ingrosso
Business News Deals Labels & Publishers
Universal Music Publishing last week announced it had extended its global agreements with Axwell and Sebastian Ingrosso. The deals cover both producers’ Swedish House Mafia dib dabs as well as any future musical magnificence they may or may not create, individually or via their irritatingly written Axwell/\Ingrosso project.
The renewed deals are with Universal Music Publishing Scandinavia, and were confirmed by the publishing major’s President for Sweden and SVP for the Nordic Region, Martin Ingestrom. Though Jonas Wikstrom, Senior Creative Director of UMP Scandinavia, was also name checked for bringing the duo to the publisher in the first place way back in 2003, long before the Mafia’s first hit.
READ MORE ABOUT: Axwell | Axwell /\ Ingrosso | Sebastian Ingrosso | Universal Music | Universal Music Publishing
Tuesday 26 May 2015, 09:54 | By Chris Cooke
Sony/ATV deals with Krept and Konan and Lenka
Business News Deals Labels & Publishers
In one of two new deals confirmed last week, Sony/ATV announced it had signed still buzzing urban duo Krept and Konan, who continue to resist using an ampersand (despite surely realising that their current moniker would result in a confusing headline on this story). The worldwide publishing deal comes ahead of the release of the duo’s debut album, due out via Universal’s Virgin Records on 6 Jul with cameos and guest spots from Ed Sheeran, Wiz Khalifa, Emeli Sande, Rick Ross and Jeremih.
Confirming the deal, Sony/ATV’s Janice Brock told reporters: “We are really happy Krept and Konan wanted to join our roster. They are immensely talented songwriters, really versatile and they work day and night to please their fans. The advance response to their album has been amazing and reflects how committed their fanbase are to them”.
Elsewhere at Sony/ATV HQ, the publisher announced it was extending its partnership with singer-songwriter Lenka, so that it will not only publish her upcoming fourth studio album ‘The Bright Side’, but it will also co-release it. The new deal means the Sony publisher will also manage the sound recording rights in the new record, though the label services division of sister company Sony Music – ie RED Distribution – will actually get the new long player to market (officially it is being released by Lenka’s label Skipalong Records and Sony/ATV’s Hickory Records).
Sony/ATV keeping control of both publishing and recording rights is seemingly a result of the high interest in Lenka’s output within the sync market, where combined rights deals are always popular with licensees. Indeed, BMG and some indies commonly advocate combined rights deals with artists mainly because of the benefits in the sync space. Whether this is an approach Sony/ATV will seek to take with other highly synced singer songwriters remains to be seen.
Confirming the Lenka deal, Sony/ATV Co-President for the US Danny Strick said: “Sony/ATV is excited to be taking this innovative approach with Lenka whose music has long been hugely popular with brands, TV shows and filmmakers. The new partnership perfectly illustrates how the company’s A&R and sync teams can effectively combine to create new opportunities for our songwriters”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Krept & Konan | Lenka | Sony Music Publishing
Tuesday 26 May 2015, 09:53 | By Chris Cooke
Line launches streaming music service in Thailand
Business News Digital
Having last year announced an alliance with music majors Sony and Avex with the intent of launching a streaming music platform in its home country, Japanese messaging app Line launched a new music service in its second biggest market of Thailand last week.
The Thai version of Line Music will provide the messaging app’s 33 million users in the country with the option to stream and share music for 60 baht per month, which is less then two dollars. In terms of catalogue, a number of key local labels are seemingly on board, though the service doesn’t seem to include the repertoire of GMM Grammy, which Billboard points out is said to control over 70% of the local music industry.
Commenting on the new service in Thailand, Line’s Head Of Music Lim Suk-jun told reporters: “As Thailand is Line’s biggest market outside Japan, we are pushing hard to bring diverse content and services that fit the lifestyles of Line users here. We hope our music streaming service can provide another channel to stimulate Thailand’s music industry”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Line | Line Music
Tuesday 26 May 2015, 09:52 | By Chris Cooke
Boiler Room launches channel on Twitch
Business News Deals Digital Live Business
Boiler Room yesterday announced an alliance with the now Amazon-owned streaming video platform Twitch, which will see the former run a 24/7 channel on the latter, pumping out a combination of both archive content and the live music streams it is best known for. The partnership is the latest move by Twitch – best known for streaming gaming-related content – into the music space.
Confirming the alliance, Boiler Room’s Mazdak Sanii told reporters: “We’re really excited to launch our Boiler Room channel for music lovers within the Twitch community. The convergence between consumption of different forms of entertainment is a trend that creates great opportunities for partnerships like this one, between leaders in their respective scenes”.
Twitch’s Head Of Music Colin Carrier added: “Boiler Room has set a high standard for both the quality of its productions and the artists they spotlight. Since there’s a lot of enthusiasm within our audience for Boiler Room, their decision to bring some of the best underground music to Twitch is a significant moment for both our platform and the broader music industry”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Boiler Room | Twitch
Tuesday 26 May 2015, 09:51 | By CMU Editorial
Collective licensing, safe harbours, digital business models and freemium under the spotlight with CMU Insights
Business News Education & Events
Bookings are now open for two upcoming CMU Insights evening seminars, both focused on the music rights side of the industry.
‘How Music Licensing Works’ explores how artists, songwriters, labels and publishers make money from their music rights, and looks at how licensing deals are structured. It then jumps into the world of collective licensing, explaining when and why the music industry licenses collectively, and the pros and cons of this approach. Finally, vetoes and exceptions are covered, plus we explain why safe harbours are such a big talking point at the moment.
This two hour seminar takes place on Monday 1 Jun at 6.30pm in Shoreditch, and places are just £49.99, click here for info.
‘The Music Rights Sector’ looks at how music rights are making money in 2015, reviewing the shift from physical to digital, and from downloads to streaming. It runs through the different kinds of digital music services, and reveals which services are gaining the most traction. We then explore the digital music spectrum and the current debate around freemium, before quickly reviewing the physical, sync and public performance markets.
This two hour seminar takes place on Monday 8 Jun at 6.30pm in Shoreditch, and places are just £49.99, click here for info.
CMU Insights can also run these seminars in-house for your team at your premises for just £399 for up to fifteen people. For more details on this option email insights@unlimitedmedia.co.uk
READ MORE ABOUT: CMU Insights
Tuesday 26 May 2015, 09:50 | By Andy Malt
BB King daughters accuse business associates of murder
Artist News Legal
Two of BB King’s daughters, Karen Williams and Patty King, have accused the musician’s business manager, LaVerne Toney, and his personal assistant, Myron Johnson, of murdering the blues legend. As previously reported, King died earlier this month, aged 89.
The women claim that family members were barred from visiting King in the hospice where he was receiving treatment towards the end of his life, and accuse Toney and Johnson of poisoning him by “administered foreign substances”, according to affidavits released to the Associated Press by their lawyer Larissa Drohobyczer.
Toney worked for King for almost 40 years, and had power of attorney over the musician’s affairs towards the end of his life. She is named in his will as the executor of his estate. Commenting on the accusations, she reportedly: “They’ve been making allegations all along. What’s new?”
One of the lawyers representing King’s estate, Brent Bryson, added to the AP: “I hope they have a factual basis that they can demonstrate for their defamatory and libellous allegations. This is extremely disrespectful to BB King. He did not want invasive medical procedures. He made the decision to return home for hospice care instead of staying in a hospital. These unfounded allegations have caused Mr King to undergo an autopsy, which is exactly what he didn’t want”.
Las Vegas police confirmed that they are now investigating the claims, but said there is no active homicide investigation currently. It will be decided if further action needs to be taken based on results of a post-mortem, which are expected to be returned in eight weeks.
READ MORE ABOUT: BB King | Karen Williams | LaVerne Toney | Myron Johnson | Patty King
Tuesday 26 May 2015, 09:49 | By Andy Malt
Pianist Christophe Chassol discusses working with Frank Ocean
Artist News
French pianist Christophe Chassol has spoken about working with Frank Ocean at Abbey Road Studios recently.
Speaking to Gilles Peterson on 6 Music, reports the NME, Chassol said: “Ocean invited me to Abbey Road to record on his album. I asked him when I came how he heard about me. He told me his friend Diplo was listening a lot to [Chassol’s 2013 album] ‘Indiamore’, and they started to listen to it, and they were wondering how I was doing the speech harmonisation, so he called me. He asked me to do some speech harmonisation on a song with him. After a while, it was cool and he was like, ‘Yeah, but we have to find another way because you already did it'”.
I Googled ‘speech harmonisation’ so that I could give you a definition, but I just got this speech from some guy at Deutsche Bundesbank and I don’t think that’s what they were going for.
Who knows though, it could have been one of the many things Ocean apparently printed out in the studio. Chassol continued: “The guy is smart. He’s really smart. The way he works in the studio is really cool. He has a printer, he has a lot of pictures of architecture, contemporary art, a lot of pictures of different kinds of things. So we start to work on a track and he says, this track is this – that car that you can see. He makes me work on a song, and I’m like, ‘Oh this sounds like Pino Donaggio’s score for ‘Blow Out’, by Brian Depalma’. I start to work on a song and five minutes later on the Pro Tools screen you have the movie, the score, stretched to fit the song – just to try. I’ve never worked with that much money in music. It’s good sometimes to have money, because you can try things”.
As previously reported, Ocean is expected to release a new album in July.
READ MORE ABOUT: Christophe Chassol | Frank Ocean
Tuesday 26 May 2015, 09:48 | By Chris Cooke
Sweden wins Eurovision
Artist News Awards
So, just three years after its last win, Sweden took home the glory (there is glory, right?) and the trophy (there is a trophy, right?) from this year’s Eurovision bash, with Swedish pop singer (and one time ‘Idol’ loser) Måns Zelmerlöw scoring 365 points for his performance of ‘Heroes’ by Anton Malmberg Hård af Segerstad, Joy Deb and Linnea Deb. Sweden came in 62 points ahead of second-placed Russia.
Commenting after this weekend’s Contest, Zelmerlöw told reporters: “I am thrilled to have won for Sweden. It’s been a lifelong dream of mine to sing at Eurovision and winning has surpassed my wildest expectations. I’ve had an amazing experience in Vienna and I am very thankful to everyone who believed in the song and voted for my performance. I would also like to thank Jonas and the team at Warner Music Sweden who have supported my journey and I’m very excited about us working together in the future on my new music”.
The Jonas of which he speaks, in case you were wondering, is Jonas Siljemark, President of Warner Music Nordics, to which Zelmerlöw is signed. He also had something to say about the Eurovision win, which conveniently comes just two weeks ahead of the release of Zelmerlöw’s new album. The Warner exec added: “Måns is a truly exceptional talent and his performance was undoubtedly the highlight of the evening. We are very pleased to congratulate him on another impressive win for Sweden”.
The UK scored an equally impressive five points at the contest, which might have put us 24th out of the 27 countries competing in the Eurovision final, but it was still pretty impressive; given just how shit a song we put forward this year. And indeed every year.
Perhaps in 2016 we could just enter a song made up of all the customary “why do we never put a decent song up for Eurovision given we’re actually quite good at pop songwriting?” chatter that follows the big Song Contest every May. Either that, or just send that Mike Read over and have him sing in one of his hilarious foreign accents. If we’re never going to win, let’s at least cause a scandal.
READ MORE ABOUT: Eurovision Song Contest | Måns Zelmerlöw
Tuesday 26 May 2015, 09:47 | By Andy Malt
Paul Simon is a short monster, says Art Garfunkel
And Finally Artist News
Art Garfunkel has called Paul Simon a “jerk” with a Napoleon complex, but added that he’d still go out on another reunion tour with his former musical partner if the opportunity arose. The duo originally split in 1971 at the height of their fame, but have occasionally reunited since, though not always on friendly terms.
In an interview with the Telegraph, Garfunkel voiced part of his frustration, saying: “George [Harrison] came up to me at a party once and said, ‘My Paul is to me what your Paul is to you’. He meant that psychologically they had the same effect on us. The Pauls sidelined us. I think George felt suppressed by Paul and I think that’s what he saw with me and my Paul. Here’s the truth: McCartney was a hell of a music man who gave the band its energy, but he also ran away with a lot of the glory”.
Back on his own Paul, he then accused Simon of being “ungenerous” in feeling slight annoyance that many people think Garfunkel wrote the duo’s biggest hit ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’, when actually Simon was the sole writer. The confusion seemingly comes from the fact Garfunkel sings the track solo with Simon accompanying him on the piano.
Speaking about the duo’s split, he added that he still felt it was a mistake: “It was very strange. Nothing I would have done. I want to open up about this. I don’t want to say any anti Paul Simon things, but it seems very perverse to not enjoy the glory and walk away from it instead. Crazy. What I would have done is take a rest from Paul, because he was getting on my nerves. The jokes had run dry … But I’ve been in that same place for decades. This is where I was in 1971: ‘How can you walk away from this lucky place on top of the world, Paul? What’s going on with you, you idiot? How could you let that go, jerk?'”
He added that the real problem was that he’d been too nice to Simon at the outset, claiming to have taken pity on him due to his short stature. Asked if he felt Simon had a ‘Napoleon complex’, Garfunkel replied: “I would say so, yes”, adding that his “compensation gesture” when they first met “created a monster”.
Despite all of this, he said that a reunion tour was “quite do-able”, adding: “When we get together, with his guitar, it’s a delight to both of our ears. A little bubble comes over us and it seems effortless. We blend”.
READ MORE ABOUT: Art Garfunkel | Paul Simon | Simon & Garfunkel
Tuesday 26 May 2015, 09:35 | By Andy Malt
Approved: My Baby
CMU Approved
Formed in 2012, Amsterdam-based trio My Baby have developed a unique take on the traditional blues sound, blending in more modern stylings without leaving it feeling contrived or awkwardly juxtaposed.
Vocalist Cato Van Dyck lays her vocals over music built around the riffs of guitarist Daniel Johnston (not that one). The band now have two albums to their name, 2013’s ‘My Baby Loves Voodoo’, and ‘Shamanaid’, which is released in the UK this week.
The band have a number of shows coming up around the UK next month before they begin hitting festivals around Europe, including Glastonbury.
Watch the video for recent single ‘Uprising’ here:
READ MORE ABOUT: My Baby
Tuesday 26 May 2015, 08:59 | By CMU Editorial
The IAO’s open letter on record label and music publisher deals in the digital market
Business News Digital Labels & Publishers Legal
Following the leak of Sony Music’s 2011 Spotify contract last week, the recently formed International Artist Association has followed the lead of the IMMF and published an open letter to European policy makers. Read the letter in full below.
Andrus Ansip, Vice-President, Digital Single Market
Günther Oettinger, Commissioner for Digital Economy and Society
Margrethe Vestager, Commissioner for Competition
Dear Policymakers
The International Artist Association welcomes this morning’s open letter from the International Music Managers’ Forum, which highlighted a number of significant questions raised by the leaked Sony-Spotify contract from 2011, which was published on www.theverge.com on Tuesday of this week, but which has since been removed.
The leaking of that document is a turning point for Artists that cannot be underestimated.
The recorded music industry, as any other content industry, lives on the creativity of individuals and it is of the utmost importance – if we want to see a sustainable and healthy content industry continue in Europe – to make sure that a fair share of the value created finds its way back to those individuals.
Artists and their representatives have been fighting now for years to try to get information on the deals done between platforms and phonographic producers (labels) so that they in turn can negotiate for a ‘fair share’ of the value their work generates.
The recorded music industry is not buy-sell like supermarkets who buy products from suppliers and sell them in turn to customers, keeping the margin. Instead, Creators generally receive a royalty which is supposed to reflect a share of the value generated from the commercial exploitation of their work.
In most cases that royalty, along with an advance, is accepted in exchange for an exclusive assignment of copyright which leaves the Artist wholly dependent on the label to act in their best interests.
However, whereas Managers, for example, have a fiduciary duty of care to their artists, labels do not.
Labels are only required to fulfil the duty to the Artist laid out in the contract that they sign and that contract is subject to negotiation between two parties with vastly mismatched bargaining power.
In many examples of a new artist, a young adult or even teenager will be negotiating with a multinational corporation worth billions of Euro.
The lack of a substantive duty of care by labels for artists whose work is assigned to them for the duration of copyright has apparently given the labels the freedom to construct complex and creative deals with Users, such as digital platforms that offer opportunity not to reflect the full value of those deals under the contractual terms between label and artist.
Non-recoupable advances, minimum guarantees, technology fees and all of the other cash payments, when coupled with the benefits in kind, such as free advertising in the one contract between major label and platform that we have now seen reveal facts where up until now there had only been suspicions. The content of this contract suggests why non-disclosure clauses have been defended so fiercely.
Because of the Most Favoured Nation (‘MFN’) clauses in that contract, we can legitimately extrapolate the terms across all the three major labels and presume that similar terms must have been extracted from similar Users i.e the other streaming platforms.
This one contract appears to show advances of some USD40m+ plus advertising in kind of some USD9m from one label to one platform in North America only on one 2-year license with a 1-year option. To extrapolate that for all three across the landscapes of platforms and for the duration of the streaming market so far is to start to calculate some very large numbers indeed.
Sony have apparently stated that they have a policy of sharing advances voluntarily, which we would of course applaud and we know that Warner have made this claim in the past. If we could see the basis on which any such calculations were made and compare these with results that would be a good start, but we can’t as until this moment, none of this information has been available to artists.
The IAO respectfully proposes the following three practical steps forward in the context of this leaked contract and the ongoing copyright review and anti-trust investigations currently underway:
1. The IAO is part of the Fair Internet Coalition which represents some 500,000 performers from across both audio and audio-visual sectors in Europe. We have been calling for EU legislators to enact a change to the Making Available Right which would give artists a fairer share of revenue derived from streaming with some paid direct via their CMO. This would also give performers some transparency and insight into the cashflow around their work – please see www.fair-internet.eu for details
2. The IAO calls on the labels to come to the table to develop a code of practise with strict penalties for transgressors that should govern all contracts between artists and record labels and which should provide a framework to better align their interests and foster relationships of partnership. For example the market would work far better with long licenses of copyrights replacing assignment, as is already the case in Germany
3. The IAO would like to propose that the Commission instate us as an official witness to any anti-trust investigations into the digital market and relationships between Producers and Platforms to provide evidence of practices that abuse the dominant position of the Major Labels and distort the market against the interests of both consumers and artists
Up until the leaking of this contract, artists and their representatives have been fishing in the dark for evidence of what we have now seen. We are repeatedly told by the labels that we are not allowed sight of the deals because of the strenuous NDAs imposed on them, however in the leaked contract we see in the confidentiality clause 1. (a) (i) the provision to reveal information about the deals to “others as may be reasonably necessary in the operation of its respective business”.
Surely artists, who are reliant on these deals to earn a living have a reasonable right to understand what the basis of their royalty calculation would be. A large percentage can look reasonable, but the key question must always be ‘a large percentage of what?’.
The IAO provides a real and direct voice for Artists in Europe for the first time and we would very much like to work with you to ensure that our perspective informs the forthcoming reviews of the legislative and competitive frameworks that govern how and whether we have a chance to make a living as artists in the Digital Age.
We sincerely hope that you will consider our proposals and would welcome any opportunity to discuss them with you.
Yours faithfully
Paul Pacifico
President
International Artist Association
www.iaomusic.org
READ MORE ABOUT: International Artist Organisation (IAO) | Sony Music | Spotify
Friday 22 May 2015, 10:39 | By Chris Cooke
Songs industry joins record business in shouting about safe harbours
Business News Digital Labels & Publishers
Just in case you thought the music industry had gone a whole week without shouting about safe harbours, don’t worry, we had a PRS AGM and the Ivors, both prime opportunities for music business representatives to have a grand old moan about tech giants exploiting the intricacies of copyright law to their commercial advantage.
As previously reported, the so called safe harbours of American and European copyright law have quickly risen to the top of the music industry’s piracy gripe list this year, usurping Google as enemy number one, except that moaning about ‘safe harbours’ is really just code for moaning about Google, it being the by far the biggest beneficiary of the ‘mere conduit’ get outs, certainly in Europe and North America.
If you’re secretly confused as to what exactly these safe harbours are that we’re all meant to be getting so angry about, may I suggest you get yourself a copy of the recent CMU Trends Report that explained it all, or just come along to our upcoming CMU Insights seminar on all things music licensing, during which everything will become super clear.
But if you insist on a TL;DR, well, safe harbours allow Google to circumvent liability for copyright infringement when it hosts or links to infringing content providing [a] the hosting/linking is the result of user or automated actions and [b] it has a content/link takedown system in place. It’s how Google can run YouTube as a streaming service where rights owners have to opt out rather than opt in.
And confirming that it’s not just the record industry that is getting tetchy about the safe harbours in 2015, Robert Ashcroft, boss of the UK publishing sector’s collecting society PRS, used a big chunk of his speech at the organisation’s AGM earlier this week to hone in on the issue.
Noting the music industry’s moderate successes in curtailing the growth of file-sharing, Ashcroft mused: “[But] who needs to pirate music when it can be accessed for free from sites that claim that they can operate without a licence, or others that hide behind the legislation to set their own rules as to what token payment they will, or will not, make? How can it be that user-generated content services can use safe harbour legislation to avoid the need to pay a licence and insist that they are mere conduits of content when their business models are predicated on monetising the creative works they carry?”
Telling his audience that he’d prefer it if Spotify cut back the content available on its freemium level in a bid to provide a greater incentive for consumers to sign up to premium, Ashcroft conceded that “they have to compete with user-generated content platforms, which have all the content anyway. Even when Beyonce made her new single ‘Die With You’ available exclusively on Tidal it was available on YouTube within minutes”.
He went on: “Taylor Swift is still absent from Spotify, but available on YouTube. And for those consumers who have little awareness of copyright, YouTube will helpfully point them to apps that will enable them to download streams from the service and strip ads from them, effectively offering a music experience equivalent to Spotify Premium – for free”.
“Meanwhile, Spotify can’t feed its subscription layer without bringing consumers into the ad-funded layer, and they can’t get them into the ad-funded layer unless they have all the content that is available on UGC platforms. If they don’t carry Taylor Swift or Beyonce they’re not only at a pricing disadvantage, but also at a content disadvantage. This is unfair competition”.
Continuing on that theme, the chairman of songwriter group BASCA, Simon Darlow, used his speech at yesterday’s Ivor festivities to likewise lay into tech firms relying on safe harbours to build content businesses.
He said: “We are all well aware that streaming is becoming the dominant means of listening to music, as ownership dwindles. But streaming has not yet proven that it can provide viable income for future generations of songwriters and composers. This is largely because some companies exploit safe harbour legislation to avoid paying a fair value for music and thereby compete unfairly with those that do”.
Addressing the smattering of tech firms in the room, he continued: “For those of you here today whose search engines provide links to software that enable people to steal songs from a service that is only licensed to stream, you are undermining the value of our music”.
“For any of you whose company maintains that it only has to pay if it monetises our works, you too are undermining the value of our music. For any others out there who remain unlicensed, and rely on notice and takedown, you are accessories to the theft of our music. All of you are making it virtually impossible for licensed businesses to thrive and grow. All of you are helping to kill songwriting and composition. If you value your future, please help us have a future by respecting the value of our work”.
So take note “those of you”. But mainly Google. And possibly SoundCloud. And Daily Motion if you’re French. And expect plenty more safe harbour shouting as the European Union’s review of copyright rules continues to go through the motions this summer.
READ MORE ABOUT: British Academy of Songwriters Composers & Authors (BASCA) | Google | Ivor Novello Awards | PRS For Music | Spotify | YouTube
Friday 22 May 2015, 10:37 | By Chris Cooke
Aussie dance agencies merge
Business News Deals Live Business
Two dance music focused booking agencies in Australia have announced they are merging, creating a significant player in the market representing a large roster of DJ and producer talent. Sydney-based Soapbox Artists, which grew out of the Australian wing of Ministry Of Sound, is allying with the Melbourne-based 360 Agency.
Confirming the deal, Soapbox Artists GM Trent Grimes told reporters: “This is a big step forward for Soapbox Artists and we are so excited to be joining forces with 360 Agency. The combination of our artist rosters and team of expert agents is going to make Soapbox the go-to agency in Australia. We will now be able to deliver an even broader selection of acts to the promoters and venues we work with around Australia and internationally”.
360 MD Pete Sofo added: “Over the years Ministry have proven themselves to be a creative, forward thinking company and this new alliance will open doors for our artists both locally and internationally”.
READ MORE ABOUT: 360 Agency | Ministry Of Sound | Soapbox Artists
Friday 22 May 2015, 10:36 | By Andy Malt
IMMF follows Sony/Spotify contract leak with open letter to European policy makers
Business News Digital Labels & Publishers Management & Funding
The International Music Managers Forum has used the leak earlier this week of Sony Music’s 2011 Spotify contract as a springboard to discuss the European Commission’s Digital Single Market plans, which, as previously reported, are currently being developed in Brussels. In an open letter, the organisation used this week’s revelations to put the spotlight back on some of the issues it has been vocal about before, in particular transparency.
“Instead of mystery deals hidden from the artists whose copyrighted creations the deals exploit there should be an obligation for transparency”, the IMMF wrote. “Digital promises greater transparency than the old physical markets. We don’t just want artists to be paid fairly, we also want them to get the relevant usage data. It is impossible to prove fair remuneration is occurring without transparency”.
On the always contentious issue of non-disclosure agreements, the confidentiality commitments that have kept deals like the Sony/Spotify one leaked this week so secret to date, the IMMF continues: “We are not against commercially relevant NDAs. We (artists and their representatives) just want the basic information relating to usage (of the music and the artist’s name and likeness) to be shared with us by our commercial ‘partners’, the labels and publishers. The information relating to ad-revenue services, subscription services, equity stakes, technical payments, marketing payments etc, is as relevant to an artist and their representatives as the information artists expect to receive relating to vinyl records or CDs. Digital should bring transparency and granularity”.
Of course, if every artist and manager was brought within a label’s digital service NDAs, it would arguably be impossible to enforce the confidentiality clauses, because so many people would know the terms, information would surely leak and it would be impossible to know from where. Though a possible compromise is that the accountants artists hire to audit their royalties could be given access to the crucial information NDAed by labels, publishers and the DSPs.
Either way, more transparency might encourage more efficiency too. Which is another issue raised by the IMMF in its open letter. “There is a blockage”, it notes. “How music is delivered to consumers has been transformed by the opportunity of digital, however creators are left with a back office infrastructure which has not yet been transformed by the power of digital innovations (and therefore ultimately consumers are also disadvantaged). A lot of the issues in the music industry arise from the failure to fully seize the digital opportunity to restructure business practices, and deal terms to reflect the changed environment”.
“The technology exists to remove the blockage”, it continues. “Only two positions in the music value pipeline are essential: i) creators and ii) consumers: Fan to artist, artist to fan. The purpose of copyright is to foster creativity. The purpose of a digital market is to benefit creators and consumers”.
So, lots to digest. Though perhaps the biggest message in the letter to those leading on the Digital Single Market initiative is that artists and songwriters must be part of any debates that occur this year. The management group writes: “In copyright debates it is important that creators, and their representatives, are heard from; labels and publishers are our ‘partners’ but we don’t always have the same interests”.
Read the IMMF’s open letter in full here.
READ MORE ABOUT: Digital Single Market | European Commission | International Music Managers Forum (IMMF) | Sony Music | Spotify
