Music and night-time industries criticise UK government's latest COVID support package
The music and night-time industries yesterday dubbed a new package of COVID support announced by the UK government as being "bizarrely detached from reality" and "bordering on the insulting". Meanwhile, others criticised the fact that the sector's many freelancers have so far been left out of the latest support scheme entirely.

Chancellor Of The Exchequer Rishi Sunak had come under intense pressure in recent days to announce specific new financial support for those people and businesses hit hard by the latest COVID-19 surge.

Although the UK government is yet to instigate a full-on lockdown to combat the spread of the omicron variant of the coronavirus, it has basically urged people to stay at home, creating a quasi or pseudo lockdown. As a result live and hospitality businesses are facing a significant slump in custom, coupled with staff shortages as the number of COVID cases spikes once again.

Responding to those calls, Sunak yesterday unveiled a new round of financial support for hospitality and cultural businesses. That mainly involves a one billion pound fund via which eligible businesses can apply for up to £6000 for each of their premises. An additional £30 million is being made available to cultural and heritage organisations via the existing Culture Recovery Fund.

While acknowledging that the government had finally responded to calls for new support in response to the latest COVID surge, representatives for the live and night-time sectors said yesterday that the monies being made available are nowhere near sufficient given the losses businesses are now facing during what is often their most lucrative time of year. Concerns were also expressed about the potential bureaucracy involved in unlocking these new funds.

The basic message was that a much bigger package of support is required, both in terms of the total amount of monies being made available, but also regarding the different kinds of support the government should be offering.

Greg Parmley from live sector trade group LIVE stated: "We welcome the news that the government has started to deliver much-needed financial support, but with the live music sector teetering on the brink, the package falls short of the urgent cash injection businesses need to keep them afloat".

"The amount of money pales in comparison to the mounting losses faced by the sector and the process will add layers of complexity at a time when businesses are already struggling with skeleton staff rotas and huge losses", he added. "We have been down this path earlier in the pandemic, with extensive form filling and application processes, by which point it will likely be too late. What we really need is an urgent boost that can help today by leaving money in businesses, such as an emergency reduction in VAT and deferral of loan repayments".

Meanwhile, Michael Kill from the Night Time Industries Association stated: "Businesses are failing, people are losing their livelihoods and the industry is crippled. Mixed messaging, coupled with additional restrictions, have had a catastrophic impact on our sector over the last two weeks. At this critical point, we need strong leadership and a clear pathway from government with a long term strategy for new COVID variants. The open/close strategy is crucifying businesses. Every pound of help is much needed. But this package is far too little and borders on the insulting".

In its response, the Music Venue Trust noted that where its members were eligible for the £6000 grant, that support "is intended to mitigate losses for an as yet unknown period in which business has not just fallen, it has completely collapsed. The minimum length of that period, regardless of any restrictions or limitations to business yet to be announced, is six weeks - you can't simply turn the live music industry on and off like a desk lamp, and tours and events are already cancelled. Not just today, or tomorrow, but for the next three months".

Regarding the extra £30 million for Culture Recovery Fund, MVT went on: "Our initial response is that this funding seems bizarrely detached from reality. It is certainly completely inadequate to deal with the scale of the problem".

"We note", it added, "that grassroots music venues, singled out by the government for specific restrictions since the very start of the crisis, are not even mentioned in today's statement which once again focuses on 'theatres, orchestras and museums' who will be supported 'through until March 2022'. This is despite the [Department For Digital, Culture, Media & Sport] having all the evidence they need that losses in the grassroots music venue sector alone will run to £22 million by the end of January, let alone the end of March 2022".

"We are constantly being told that the Culture Recovery Fund will save the day", it concluded. "For this to be true, it needs to be adequately funded to match the challenges the government is trying to deal with. Today's statement by The Treasury is not the answer that is needed. The Secretary Of State For Culture must meet with the sector, properly understand the scale of the damage being inflicted, and return to the Treasury with a financial ask that reflects what is required".

While the funds being made available to clubs and venues may be woeful, so far there has been no new support at all for the many freelance musicians and crew members who have been hit just as severely by the recent spike in cancellations caused by latest COVID surge. And, of course, some of those freelancers have received no support at all from government throughout the pandemic, because of the gaps caused by technicalities in previous support schemes for the self-employed.

The Musicians Union yesterday noted that whilst it "welcomes the Treasury's announcement of £1 billion in financial support for businesses in the hospitality and leisure industries, the lack of provision for freelance workers leaves the majority of our members uncertain about their future".

A recent survey of MU members revealed that 86% had had work cancelled as a result of the latest COVID surge, with 41% reporting that they expect to earn under 25% of their usual income in the next two months. And 75% of those surveyed said they anticipated at least a 50% dip in earnings.

MU General Secretary Horace Trubridge said: "This is a particularly busy time for our members and many musicians will have been relying on the festive period and the new year to provide much-needed funds following the devastating effects of lockdown and the well-publicised difficulties. It is absolutely crucial to their survival that the government recognises the economic abyss that our world-class players, performers, writers and teachers are facing. They need support and they need it now".

That call was echoed by the Music Managers Forum and Featured Artists Coalition. They said in a joint statement: "Artists currently find themselves stuck between a rock and a hard place - encouraged by the government to carry on performing, while their audiences are advised to stay at home. With months of uncertainty ahead, this lockdown by stealth is putting their already fragile businesses in real jeopardy. All compounded by the lack of a safety net and insurance schemes that the industry has universally derided as unfit for purpose".

"While the package announced today may help some venues and institutions, it is essential this is also made available to those appearing on the stage or working behind it", they added. "Without that concrete support, such as compensation for COVID-related cancellations and viable insurance solutions, we risk artists and tens of thousands of support workers becoming collateral damage to what feels like an unfurling catastrophe".

Although it now seems unlikely that the UK government will introduce any new formal lockdown restrictions ahead of Christmas Day, many expect such measures to be introduced down the line. And, indeed, in parts the country wider restrictions are already being introduced.

The Scottish government announced a number of new measures yesterday, restricting outdoor events to capacities of 500, while indoor shows will be limited to 200 people seated and 100 people standing. Those restrictions come into force on Boxing Day, so will effect the county's Hogmanay festivities, with the big Hogmanay street party in Edinburgh now cancelled.

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New Zealand Supreme Court denies MegaUpload bosses one more appeal
Kim Dotcom and two of his former MegaUpload colleagues have suffered another setback in the New Zealand courts as the tenth anniversary approaches of the day in 2012 when their former file-sharing business was dramatically shutdown by the US authorities.

American prosecutors have been trying to extradite Dotcom et al to face criminal copyright charges ever since. And in the main, those prosecutors have prevailed in court. However, there have been plenty of legal technicalities for the former MegaUpload team to exploit along the way, and it was on one of those technicalities that the New Zealand Supreme Court ruled yesterday.

If the criminal case against the MegaUpload team ever gets to an American courtroom, a key part of the debate will be the extent to which the former file-transfer site was protected by the good old copyright safe harbour.

During court proceedings in New Zealand, lawyers working for Dotcom et al have argued that the main MegaUpload service was basically like Dropbox, while an accompanying video-sharing platform was just like YouTube. Therefore, they argue, the directors of MegaUpload are no more liable for any copyright infringement that may have occurred on their networks than the directors of those two other digital companies.

Of course, US prosecutors will argue that while there are parallels between the MegaUpload service and Dropbox and YouTube, the team running the former more proactively encouraged and knowingly tolerated copyright infringement among their userbase, and therefore do not qualify for safe harbour protection from liability.

All that said, in the New Zealand courts the actual debate is whether the crimes Dotcom and co are accused of are covered by the country's extradition treaty with the US.

Basic copyright infringement - even criminal copyright infringement - is not. But if - by encouraging and allowing copyright infringement - Dotcom and his colleagues could be legitimately accused of conspiracy to defraud, then that is most likely grounds for extraditing the old MegaUpload chiefs.

Having agreed to hear an appeal from the MegaUpload defendants in 2018, the NZ Supreme Court ruled late last year that the allegations made by American prosecutors were sufficient to allow extradition. However, there was also a technicality in that ruling.

Earlier in the appeals process, the Dotcom side sought a judicial review of the original district court ruling - all the way back in 2015 - which first approved extradition, based on the argument that procedural and substantive errors were made during that initial hearing.

Lower courts declined to allow that judicial review to take place on the basis such a thing would be an "abuse of process". However, the Supreme Court said in November last year that the lower courts were wrong to deny the judicial review. And therefore that particular element of the case was sent back to the country's Court Of Appeal for new consideration.

However, the Court Of Appeal then dismissed the judicial review proceedings. Which prompted the MegaUpload team to return to the Supreme Court arguing that the lower court had not done what it was told to do by the higher court.

They argued the Court Of Appeal had made various errors in reaching its most recent decision that "gave rise to questions of general or public importance", and which required another Supreme Court intervention "to prevent a miscarriage of justice".

However, the Supreme Court announced yesterday that it did not concur. In a statement accompanying its judgement, the Supreme Court said that it "did not see the case as giving rise to questions of general or public importance about the Court Of Appeal's approach". And it "was satisfied there was no appearance of a miscarriage of justice in the Court Of Appeal's factual assessment that the issues were not outstanding".

The court then added that the key issues "had in fact been dealt with in an expansive and detailed way", and that "the arguments the applicants wished to raise about various other aspects of the Court Of Appeal's decision had insufficient prospects of success to justify an appeal to this court. For these reasons, the applications for leave to appeal were dismissed".

So there you go. There are still some extra steps that Dotcom et al will take in a final bid to fight their extradition. Following yesterday's judgement, on Twitter, Dotcom himself simply said "unfazed", and then plugged some livestreams he's got planned for next month. "2022 will be fun", he added.

Of course, with the tenth anniversary approaching of the day the American government - encouraged and backed by the American music industry - took MegaUpload offline, that means the tenth anniversary has just passed of the day some of the biggest stars of the American music industry joined a sing song about how great MegaUpload was. The platform may be long gone, but the sing song lives on. You know, despite Universal Music's best efforts.

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Movie industry gets some new web-blocks in place in UK and Australia
How about we end the year with some good old fashioned web-blocking? You know, just like the baby Jesus would have wanted. Well, good news Jesus, courts in both the UK and Australia have issued some new web-blocking orders.

Web-blocking, of course, has become a preferred anti-piracy tactic of the music and movie industries in those countries where such injunctions are available. Copyright owners go to court and get themselves an injunction ordering internet service providers to block their customers from accessing pesky piracy sites.

The latest web-blocks are the result of proceedings pursued by the film industry in both the UK and Australia, with the big traditional movie studios taking the initiative - although, interestingly, these days Netflix Studios LLC also comes along for the ride.

Fifteen domains are targeted by the latest UK web-blocking order, including 0123movies.net, flixhq.ru, gototub.com and tvshows88.com. The Australian injunction blocks no less than 101 domains, including emovies.io, gogomovies.to, cinema.net and various flixtor domains.

Critics question just how effective web-blocking really is, given the blockades can usually be circumvented by using a VPN or alternative DNS resolver, or by simply finding a proxy through a good old Google search.

However, while web-blocks are no panacea, copyright owners argue that any barriers you can put in front of piracy platforms make people more likely to find themselves a legit music or movie service.

So, bring on the web-blocks I guess. And merry Christmas everyone.

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BMG and KKR acquire ZZ Top music rights
BMG and KKR have clubbed all their Christmas money together and bought themselves every single music right ZZ Top had knocking about.

The music company and investment firm have a long history together, and in March this year formally announced a new alliance to get in on the latest music rights acquisition fad.

Through that alliance they've now acquired ZZ Top's publishing catalogue, as well as the band's royalty rights on the recordings side, for a reported $50 million. BMG was previously co-publisher and administrator of the band's songs.

"This deal is a testament to the success, staying power and continuing musical relevance of ZZ Top, but also to the power of our partnership with KKR", says BMG CEO Hartwig Masuch. "This agreement furthers our vision of providing artists and songwriters not just a financial exit, but also a vehicle committed to respecting and treasuring their artistry".

Jenny Box, Partner at KKR, adds: "We are excited to invest in ZZ Top's iconic music and we look forward to collaborating with BMG and ZZ Top to further amplify the reach of their catalogue".

Also commenting on the deal is ZZ Top manager Carl Stubner of Shelter Music Group, the management company with which BMG has a wide-ranging partnership. He says: "We are proud to continue working with and expand our long-standing relationship with BMG. This new deal ensures ZZ Top's remarkable legacy will endure for generations to come".

The deal, of course, follows the death in July this year of ZZ Top bassist Dusty Hill.

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Merlin expands Boomplay deal
African music streaming service Boomplay has expanded its existing deal with indie label digital licensing agency Merlin. Initially covering eleven African nations when it was signed in 2019, the agreement now covers a majority of the markets across Africa.

"As our userbase and service grows rapidly across the continent, it's important that we have the right partners to continue on this journey with us, and to grow and support the local music industry", says Boomplay's Director Of Content & Strategy, Phil Choi.

"As the world leader in independent music rights, we're delighted that Merlin shares the same vision as us", he adds, "and together with Boomplay's advantages in the digital music sector and Merlin's top-quality catalogue of songs, we can look forward to a striving music ecosystem for many years to come".

Merlin's COO Charlie Lexton adds: "Through this expanded partnership, Boomplay users from the newly opened territories can now access Merlin members' extensive catalogue of homegrown and international music across all types of genres and an array of languages. We are excited to see Boomplay grow their reach and offer their service to new users across Africa".

In March this year, Boomplay expanded its licensing deal with Universal Music to cover 47 African countries in total.

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Diddy takes back control of Sean John clothing brand
Sean 'Diddy' Combs has taken back control of his Sean John clothing company, having bought it out of bankruptcy from brand management firm Global Brands Group.

Combs announced earlier this month that he had made an offer of $3.3 million to buy back the fashion firm. He wasn't the only person who wanted it though, so had to see off some other bidders. He has now confirmed that he has secured the company for himself for a total of $7.5 million.

So, more than he wanted to spend, but still a pretty good deal, given that he sold a majority stake in the company to GBG for $70 million back in 2016.

"I launched Sean John in 1998 with the goal of building a premium brand that shattered tradition and introduced hip hop to high-fashion on a global scale", he says in a statement to TMZ.

"Seeing how streetwear has evolved to rewrite the rules of fashion and impact culture across categories, I'm ready to reclaim ownership of the brand, build a team of visionary designers and global partners to write the next chapter of Sean John's legacy", he adds.

Earlier this year, Combs sued Global Brands Group twice in the space of a month, both for trademark infringement and for overstating his current involvement with the Sean John brand. So presumably that's all off now.

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DEALS

Tempo Music has acquired a "significant perrcentage" of the music rights of producer/songwriter trio Stefan Forrest, Morten Ristorp and Morten Pilegaard.

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ARTIST NEWS

If you like seeing Björk in trailers for things, then Merry flippin Christmas, because you can see her in the trailer for upcoming movie 'The Northman'. If you like seeing her in actual films, you'll have to wait until April. Happy Easter.

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RELEASES

The Weeknd has marked the tenth anniversary of the release of his third mixtape, 'Echoes Of Silence', by releasing a new video for its title track.

The Weeknd, yeah? Well, he features on new FKA Twigs single 'Tears In The Club'. How about that, huh? "I'm always pushing to level up to MY best self, and I've pushed so hard to find my capri sun", says Twigs. "I'm so proud of this music".

Mary J Blige has released new single 'Amazing', featuring DJ Khaled. Her new album, 'Good Morning Gorgeous', is set for release on 11 Feb.

Saint Jhn has released new single 'The Best Part Of Life'. He'll be over here in the UK and Ireland for tour dates early next year. Maybe. All tour dates having an air of uncertainty about them again.

Speaking on tenth anniversaries - as we were - a short while ago, M83 has released a new video for 'My Tears Are Becoming A Sea' from his 'Hurry Up, We're Dreaming' album, which came out ten years ago. There's a new vinyl edition coming out in April, by the way.

LVRA has released a new Effy remix of her track 'In Your Blood'. "LVRA's voice is unreal so remixing this was so much fun", says Effy. "I wanted to give her vocals breathing room, so just added a 4/4 and simple stabby bass to give it that techno edge. I've been playing this at shows and it goes off".

Check out our weekly Spotify playlist of new music featured in the CMU Daily - updated every Friday.

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LadBaby top the Official Trending Chart as the race to Christmas number one continues
With only a couple more days to go before the UK's Christmas number one is announced, the Official Charts Company has published its weekly Trending Chart. It shows which songs are rising up the charts the fastest. And what does it tell us? Well, to be honest, not a lot beyond what we said on Monday. But that doesn't mean there aren't opportunities to contrive DRAMA!

Atop the Official Trending Chart are LadBaby, Elton John and Ed Sheeran with 'Sausage Rolls For Everyone'. In the midweeks, that track was ahead of the song it is parodying - 'Merry Christmas Everyone' by Elton John and Ed Sheeran. Does this latest stat revelation mean that it is still on course to be number one in the Official Singles Chart on Friday? Almost certainly yes.

Number two in the Trending Chart is 'Boris Johnson Is Still A Fucking Cunt' by The Kunts. Number two! What an achievement. But does that mean that it's going to be the Christmas number two? No, it does not. For starters, assuming LadBaby knocks it off the top spot, John and Sheeran's 'Merry Christmas Everyone' will likely end up in second place.

Meanwhile, in the last full singles chart update, 'Last Christmas' by Wham! was at number three and Mariah Carey's 'All I Want For Christmas Is You' was sitting at number four. Neither appear in the Trending Chart, which means they aren't moving up the list, but they could be standing still.

That doesn't mean it's assured they'll be ahead of The Kunts when the final Christmas chart is published on Friday. Though, they did both chart higher than the band's effort last year - 'Boris Johnson Is A Fucking Cunt' - with Carey at number two, Wham! at number three and The Kunts at number five on the 2020 Christmas chart.

Also ahead of The Kunts last year was Jess Glynne, at number four, with 'This Christmas'. That song isn't even in the top 40 this year. But is there another contemporary act challenging The Kunts for a place in the top five this year?

Why, yes there is. Little George Ezra is at number three on the Trending Chart with 'Coming Home For Christmas', which was at number fifteen last week. This does mean that The Kunts are still outselling him though. But can they keep it up?

None of the other trenders are looking like contenders for the top five. The closest rival is Olivia Dean with 'The Christmas Song'. She's looking set to jump a whopping 20 places on this Friday's chart, but that will only get her number eighteen.

Asked if he's feeling confident about getting his fourth Christmas number one in a row - raising money for foodbank charity The Trussell Trust in the process - LadBaby's Mark Hoyle tells the Official Charts Company: "I never feel positive about it until it's over - I just can't start to believe because the pain of believing and then having it taken away is almost worse".

"This week we'll keep going until the last moment and assume it might not happen", he adds, noting that it's not just his mates John and Sheeran who are serious competitors.

"You never know with impending restrictions potentially coming into play from the government, and the constant discontent with Boris Johnson", he goes on. "There's definitely a third song in the running should the guidelines change".

Well, it is now looking like we'll get to celebrate Christmas with loved ones this year, preventing any last minute lockdown-based surge for The Kunts, which possibly bodes well for LadBaby.

"Another thing that makes me laugh is how far [our track] drops the following the week, which may well have broken a record at some point as well", he adds. "I think it's brilliant - it's great that people back it for one week for Christmas, and then it's gone, Christmas is over, and then real music takes over again. I love that it's silly, but also helps keep the foodbanks open - this is what it's all about".

Anyway, isn't this exciting? We'll find out what this year's Christmas number one single is on Friday at 4pm when it's announced on BBC Radio 1.

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