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Festival Republic planning 10,000 capacity camping festival as part of government's COVID research programme next month
Festival Republic boss Melvin Benn last week revealed plans to stage a mini-festival with camping next month as part of the UK government's ongoing Events Research Programme, which is testing how to safely get higher capacity events back up and running as COVID regulations relax.

The Live Nation division previously staged a big show at Sefton Park in Liverpool as part of that programme, while the Circus nightclub also ran a full capacity club night and last week's BRIT Awards were also part of the research initiative. Benn discussed the planned mini-festival during a series of debates on the revival of the live sector that are being hosted by trade magazine IQ.

According to IQ, he said: "While the Circus club shows and the Sefton Park pilot were effectively events that were designed to ensure the enablement of reopening on 21 Jun, the camping event - because its three or four days - will actually be about testing the protocol of how to deal with anyone that might have COVID at the event".

"It's about testing the protocols around using COVID certification on the NHS app", he went on, "and it's also around testing the protocols of what the SAGE [Scientific Advisory Group For Emergencies] scientists here in the UK want, which is at-home testing for all attendees that don't have the vaccination and that are not immune".

The event will have a capacity of 10,000 people, double the audience of the Sefton Park show. "It's not like Reading or Lollapalooza Chicago or anything like that", he added, "but it's a decent number, and certainly a number that they can adequately take data from and multiply".

Benn also said that he thought the bigger concern for the UK government at the moment as COVID rules relax is possible transmission on public transport, including as people travel to events, rather than in venues where promoters and venue management teams will instigate any measures required to ensure audience safety.

Live events with social distancing can resume in England from today, with 21 Jun currently the target date for getting higher capacity events back up and running.

At last week's Great Escape Conference, a panel of live sector experts expressed cautious optimism that that target will be met, though noted that insurance issues and international travel restrictions meant that it will take longer to get many larger-scale shows and tours back up and running, even in markets - like the UK - where the vaccine roll out is going well.

Nevertheless, it was hoped that we were now in the final phase of the COVID shutdown - especially in the UK and the US - though, of course, everyone will be watching carefully what happens as those regulations lift, especially in the context of the new variant of the virus that has grabbed headlines in recent days.

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Warner Chappell signs Ikaz Boi
Warner Chappell has signed a worldwide publishing deal with French producer Ikaz Boi.

"I'm excited to work with the team at Warner Chappell France", says Boi. "I've got a number of projects in the pipeline, both working with other artists and my solo work, which I think will land well with my fans and hopefully engage new listeners".

Warner Chappell France MD Matthieu Tessier adds: "Ikaz Boi is one of the top producers on the scene in France, and he's also worked with some of the biggest names in global music. We're delighted to welcome him to our roster of writers and keen to support him by setting up more collaborations across borders and genres".

As well as French rappers like Damso and Kiska, Boi has also worked with US artists including Travis Scott and Quavo.

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IMPF and IMPEL announce 'charter of co-operation' - set out ten priorities
The Independent Music Publishers International Forum last week announced a 'charter of co-operation' with IMPEL, the organisation that represents a consortium of indie music publishers in the digital licensing space. The partnership will mainly see the two groups collaborate on research and knowledge exchange, utilising IMPEL's digital licensing expertise and IMPF's lobbying and campaigning skills.

The two organisations have also published a set of ten beliefs and principles. These are mainly requests and demands of the digital music services and the wider music industry regarding the utilisation and valuation of song rights, with a brief accompanying mention of the need for "operational excellence", which may be alluding to role of publishers themselves in tackling the data issues and royalty chain complexities which make the payment of song royalties so inefficient.

That list of requests and demands comes, of course, as the songwriter community increasingly calls for a re-slicing of the digital pie to their advantage - ie a rethink about how much of the monies made by the streaming services each month is allocated to the song rights.

Some songwriters have accused the majors - as both labels and publishers - of skewing the market, because industry conventions mean they get to keep a much bigger share of recording income compared to song income. Some indie publishers are also involved in recordings as well as songs, though many have much more significant song catalogues, and therefore are less likely to favour the status quo.

However, when it comes to the digital pie debate, the IMPF/IMPEL demands don't target the record industry's share of digital income directly, simply stating instead that "streaming services should be contributing more revenue to songwriters and publishers".

Announcing the partnership, IMPEL Chair Simon Platz - also MD of the Bucks Music Group - stated: "This is a moment for the independents to really roll up our sleeves and get to work. We have a lot to offer the digital services but we believe that they have a lot more to offer us. Engagement and proactivity are key here".

Meanwhile, IMPF President Annette Barrett, also MD & Global Strategic Liaison at Reservoir Media, added: "The more likeminded organisations can work together the better we can serve our constituents. Strengthening the collaboration between IMPF and IMPEL is part of the process to bring about better remuneration for the songwriters, composers and music publishers we represent".

If you're interested, here are those ten beliefs and principles...

1. Music is not fungible; it is unique.

2. Independent music publishers are the creative and economic stewards of songs, and developers of songwriters in the earliest stages of their professional careers. They are indispensable to the music ecosystem and, therefore, to streaming services.

3. The value of a publisher's repertoire should be measured by its contribution to a digital platforms' success.

4. What publishers do is not quantifiable by market share alone; in a world of personalised playlists, recommendations and programming strategies, songs hold a higher value as the conduit to the user.

5. Value should be attributed to the way songs resonate with listeners, reduce churn and attract advertisers and brands.

6. Commercial licensing models should suit both the platform and the rightsholders.

7. Digital services should provide publishers with the information needed to achieve a fair bargain.

8. Collaboration with digital services is essential for a common and better understanding of the real and measurable value that songs bring, and to create innovative ways to elevate the song and the art of songwriting on streaming services.

9. Together, we need to focus on a vision of operational excellence.

10. Ultimately, streaming services should be contributing more revenue to songwriters and publishers.

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Bauer's purchase of the Communicorp radio business in Ireland gets regulator approval
Bauer Media's acquisition of Irish radio group Communicorp was given the all-clear last week by the Minister For Media in Ireland, Catherine Martin, who concluded that the purchase was not contrary to the public interest in terms of protecting the plurality of media.

It means that national Irish stations Today FM and Newstalk, as well as local outlets Spin 1038 and 98FM in Dublin and Spin Southwest in Limerick, plus digital sport station Off The Ball, will now all become part of Bauer's ever-expanding radio empire.

Bauer's deal to buy Communicorp's main Irish media business was first announced in February. That deal previously received approval from the Broadcasting Authority Of Ireland and the country's Competition And Consumer Protection Commission.

Martin's backing of the deal means Bauer has now completed all phases of the regulatory approval process. It's now anticipated that the transaction will be fully completed by the end of the month.

Commenting on all that, Bauer's President Of Audio, Paul Keenan, said on Friday: "We are excited to be one step closer to entering Ireland".

Bringing the Communicorp stations into the group, he added, was "a fantastic addition to Bauer Media Audio". Plus, he went on, he "sees great opportunities to further develop the business" in Ireland, while also "continuing to play an important cultural role" in the country "with trusted news and talented presenters offered within well-known brands".

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The song economy and direct-to-fan relationship put in the spotlight at The Great Escape
The first ever online edition of The Great Escape took place last week, with two days of insightful and thought-provoking discussions and debates, and numerous online showcases featuring great new artists and bands from all over the world, who showcased their music to a global audience of industry delegates and music fans.

Within the conference the legendary Bjorn Ulvaeus discussed the challenges facing songwriters in the digital age - both in terms of how streaming has impacted on songwriter revenues and the label-led industrialisation of the songwriting process - all of which inspired him to write his own report - 'Rebalancing The Song Economy - which makes a series of proposals for industry reform.

Merck Mercuriadis also discussed how his belief that song rights were being undervalued in the music industry - mainly because of the commercial interests of the majors - inspired him to launch his headline-grabbing Hipgnosis Songs Fund. Having also convinced investors of the advantages of investing in song rights, he talked about how he is building a significant new player in the songs business that can push for songwriters to get a bigger cut of streaming income.

The challenges facing artists and songwriters in the digital age were also discussed in the session 'Has The Digital Revolution Liberated Or Locked Out Music-Makers?' Artist manager and digital expert Sammy Andrews said she was confident that momentum was now building that would see the digital pie both grow - with prices rises at the streaming services - and be more fairly sliced to the artist and songwriter's benefit. Though fellow manager Ellie Giles pointed out that getting songwriters properly paid also required addressing the many inefficiencies in the way royalties are processed.

And Andrews, Giles and entrepreneurial artist Emma McGann all also agreed that - beyond addressing the economics of streaming - for frontline artists the really big opportunities in the digital world lie in the direct-to-fan relationship. And, therefore, a key focus for each artist is figuring out how to enhance those fan relationships, and sell more products and services directly to the fanbase.

Elsewhere, there were discussions on how getting rights data right is key to getting artists paid, and how fan data plays a crucial role in that direct-to-fan connection. The Future Music Talent strand looked at how the industry and music educators can better support early-career music-makers and music industry practitioners, and Future Music World put the spotlight on some inspirational initiatives helping bring about a healthier and more diverse music community.

Look out for more round-ups of this year's TGE discussions in future editions of the CMU Daily. Meanwhile, anyone who had a delegate pass can also access all and any of the sessions on-demand via the conference platform from later today through to 30 May.

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New movie starring Björk gets release date
A new movie starring Björk is set for release in April next year. Set in Iceland, 'The Northman' is Robert Eggers' follow-up to 2019 film 'The Lighthouse'.

The musician is set to play the character of The Slav Witch, and will appear alongside Nicole Kidman, Alexander Skarsgård, Willem Dafoe and Ethan Hawke in a story of a Viking prince seeking revenge for his father's death. Björk's daughter Ísadóra Bjarkardóttir Barney is also set to appear in the film.

Speaking to Indie Wire last year, Eggers said of the movie: "The scale is so huge and there are so many more locations and things that I couldn't do everything or know every prop myself. That's been a challenge with the new movie. We're designing all these worlds, building these villages, we're making thousands of costumes and props, training the horses the things they'll need to do, designing the shots of the films".

This will be Björk's first major movie role since she starred in Lars Von Trier's 'Dancer In The Dark' more than 20 years ago. In 2017, she said that she was sexually harassed by the director throughout that production.

'The Northman' is set to premiere on 8 Apr 2022.

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Arsenal rejects Daniel Ek's takeover bid
Spotify CEO Daniel Ek has confirmed that his bid to take ownership of Arsenal Football Club has failed. In a statement, he said that he made an offer to current owner Kroenke Sports & Entertainment to buy the club last week, but was knocked back.

"This week an offer was made to both Josh Kroenke and their bankers that included fan ownership, representation at board and a golden share for the supporters", he said in a tweet on Friday. "They replied that they don't need the money. I respect their decision but remain interested and available should that situation ever change".

Ek first announced his interest in buying Arsenal last month, reportedly putting together an offer of £1.8 billion. "As a kid growing up, I've cheered for Arsenal as long as I can remember", he said at the time. "If KSE would like to sell Arsenal I'd be happy to throw my hat in the ring".

Although Ek stressed that he was "very serious" about the bid, the Kroene family said that they were "100% committed to Arsenal and are not selling any stake in the club" and would therefore "not entertain any offer" to buy it. So, it's not a massive surprise that they've knocked back Ek's formal bid.

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