Monday 30 April 2018, 11:36 | By Chris Cooke

Voluntary web-blocks in Japan lead to litigation

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Internet

A Japanese internet service provider last week announced that it would voluntarily block its customers from accessing a number of piracy websites. This came after the country’s government urged such action while it considers how to formally instigate web-blocking as an anti-piracy measure. However, now said ISP is being sued over allegations that those very web-blocks breach Japanese privacy laws.

Web-blocking, of course, has become an anti-piracy tactic of choice for the entertainment industry in many countries, with ISPs being ordered to block access to sites deemed to undertake or facilitate copyright infringement. In some countries specific web-blocking systems have been put in place, whereas in other jurisdictions – like the UK – the courts just started issuing web-block injunctions under existing copyright rules.

Earlier this month the Japanese government said it also favoured web-blocking as an anti-piracy measure. While ministers work out what legal framework might enable such a thing, internet firms were encouraged to act voluntarily against certain piracy sites, in particular platforms that facilitate the illegal sharing of manga and anime.

Responding to that, ISP NTT last week announced “short-term emergency measures until legal systems on site-blocking are implemented”. Those measures have seen sites highlighted by the government blocked.

When the Japanese government announced its web-blocking plans earlier in the month, some questioned whether blockades of that kind might breach privacy and free speech rights contained in the country’s constitution.

Now lawyer Yuichi Nakazawa, also an NTT customer, has gone legal accusing the net firm’s measures of being in breach of privacy law. In legal papers filed with the Tokyo District Court, Nakazawa says that the blockades in essence require the net firm to spy on their customers’ internet activity, which is not allowed under privacy rules.

The lawyer is quoted by Torrentfreak as saying: “NTT’s decision was made arbitrarily… without any legal basis. No matter how legitimate the objective of [stopping] copyright infringement is, it is very dangerous”. He adds that the “freedom” being threatened is “an important value of the internet”, and therefore legal action was appropriate to protect it.

In addition to potentially breaching constitutional rights and the country’s telecommunication laws, Nakazawa reckons the web-blocks may also put the ISP in breach of his contract with the company.

The lawyer goes on: “There is an internet connection agreement between me and NTT. There is no provision in the contract between me and NTT to allow arbitrary interruption of communications”.

It remains to be seen how NTT responds to the litigation, but it will surely put other ISPs off the idea of acting voluntarily on this, while piling pressure onto lawmakers to provide a clear legal framework regarding web-blocking in the country. Though they too will have to find a way of making such measures compliant with the constitution.

LMFAO v Rick Ross lyric dispute back in court

Artist News Business News Legal

LMFAO

A four-year old lawsuit filed by Rick Ross against LMFAO as part of a dispute over a three word lyric was back in court last week putting the spotlight on yet another tedious copyright technicality. Four years on, we’re yet to get to the key question in this case: ie whether or not borrowing two thirds of a three word lyric can possibly constitute copyright infringement.

Ross sued LMFAO over their 2010 hit ‘Party Rock Anthem’ and its line “everyday I’m shuffling”, which he said ripped off the lyric “everyday I’m hustlin” from his 2006 track ‘Hustlin’. Should it ever get properly to court, the judge will have to decide whether LMFAO using the words “everyday I’m” in that context is infringement.

The case was initially kicked out of court on a technicality relating to the registration of ‘Hustlin’ with the US Copyright Office. Unlike most other countries, copyrights are actually registered in the US, and it turned out there were problems with the registration of Ross’s work. The problem not being a lack of registration, but the fact the song had been registered three times by different people.

Given that some of those registrations were by big music publishers, the judge argued, someone involved in the song should have spotted that problems long ago and fixed them. Or, at the very least, Ross’s legal team should have sorted out the registration issues before going legal over the LMFAO lyric. To that end the lyric theft lawsuit was dismissed.

Ross’s team appealed that ruling and last year the appeals court reinstated the case. That means the whole matter must now go back to the district court for the “can two words be infringement?” debate. Meanwhile, Team Ross have asked the court to force LMFAO to pay their legal costs in relation to the appeal.

Which brings us to the new copyright technicality. LMFAO last week stated in court that they can’t be forced to pay Ross’s legal fees, because the wider copyright dispute is as yet unresolved. Ross may have prevailed in the appeal hearing regarding the copyright registrations, but he is not yet the ‘prevailing party’.

According to Law 360, LMFAO said in court that while copyright law “grants a court the discretion to ‘award a reasonable attorney’s fee to the prevailing party'”, it does not “grant this court the discretion to award reasonable attorney’s fees to a party that has prevailed on an intermediate appeal of a copyright infringement case that remands the case to the district court for further proceedings on the merits”.

It remains to be seen what the court reckons regarding the fees. Let alone whether “everyday I’m shuffling” really can be said to be an infringement of “everyday I’m hustlin”.

Sexual assault lawsuit against Russell Simmons is dismissed

Business News Industry People Legal

Russell Simmons

One of the lawsuits filed against Def Jam co-founder Russell Simmons over allegations of sexual assault was dismissed last week at the request of both parties.

A number of women made allegations of sexual assault against Simmons late last year as the #MeToo movement gained momentum. Jennifer Jarosik then went legal in January, accusing the music industry veteran of assaulting her at his home in LA after she met him there to discuss a documentary project.

That lawsuit was dismissed last week at the agreement of lawyers working for both Jarosik and Simmons. It’s not known if a settlement was reached, but the case was dismissed “with prejudice”, meaning no new litigation in relation to the allegations can be filed in the future.

Simmons has denied all the allegations made against him to date. A second lawsuit was filed last month in the LA Country Superior Court in which an unnamed woman also accused Simmons of rape. He has called the claims in that legal filing “a work of pure fiction”, while requesting that the lawsuit be dismissed on the grounds that it exceeds the so called statute of limitations.

Deer Shed offers discounted tickets following collapse of Beverley Folk Festival

Business News Gigs & Festivals Live Business

Deer Shed 9

Promoters of Yorkshire-based festival Deer Shed have offered 60% discounts on tickets for their event to those affected by the cancellation of another of festival that was due to take place in the county this summer, the long-established Beverley Folk Festival.

The folk fest was due to take place from 15-17 Jun this year, but last week organisers announced that “it is with immense sadness and regret that we have to announce this year’s festival cannot go ahead”.

Noting that the festival was run by a not-for-profit organisation, the statement went on: “Unfortunately, we have recently discovered we have lost our primary source of funding, so we simply do not have the money to pay for the infrastructure or the performers”.

The cancellation has resulted in the Beverley Folk Festival company going into administration, with no funds available to pay back those who had bought tickets. Which means those ticket-holders will have to seek refunds from their credit or debit card providers.

Team Deer Shed announced the sizable discount on tickets for their event on Facebook on Friday, writing: “We’re offering heavy discounts on #DeerShed9 adult tickets to those let down by the sad cancellation of Beverley Folk Festival. If you or anyone you know is struggling to get a refund [for that event], send proof of purchase and we will reply with a discount code [for our festival]”.

Abba record new music

Artist News Media

Abba

Abba have recorded two new songs together, the first new music they have worked on as a group since they split in 1983.

The new songs have been recorded as the band prepare to tour in hologram form. One of the songs will be premiered during a TV performance to unveil the musicians’ virtual selves later this year.

“The decision to go ahead with the exciting Abba avatar tour project had an unexpected consequence”, say the group in a statement posted on Instagram. “We all four felt that, after some 35 years, it could be fun to join forces again and go into the recording studio. So we did. And it was like time had stood still and that we only had been away on a short holiday. An extremely joyful experience!”

“It resulted in two new songs”, they continued. “One of them, ‘I Still Have Faith In You’, will be performed by our digital selves in a TV special produced by NBC and the BBC aimed for broadcast in December”. The statement concludes: “We may have come of age, but the song is new. And it feels good”.

There have been many rumours of an Abba reunion over the years, but it was generally thought to be unlikely. Then, in 2016, they performed together (very briefly) for the first time in more than three decades at a party to mark the 50th anniversary of the meeting of songwriters Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson. It was revealed later the same year that they were working on a new virtual reality project with Simon Fuller.

Janelle Monáe releases Dirty Computer film

Artist News Releases

Janelle Monáe

With her new album ‘Dirty Computer’ now out, Janelle Monáe has also unveiled the promised “emotion picture” to go with it. The 45 minute film has been likened to an episode of ‘Black Mirror’.

Although the album deviates from the sci-fi themes of her earlier work, the film sticks with them wholeheartedly. Monáe plays Jane 57821, a young woman living in a totalitarian near-future society where citizens are referred to as “computers”. Actor Tessa Thompson co-stars, and the film was directed by Andrew Donoho and Chuck Lightning.

As well as the film itself, you can also watch an accompanying Q&A on YouTube now:

Suede announce album number eight

Artist News Releases

Suede

Suede have announced that they will release their eighth studio album, ‘The Blue Hour’, in September. The record is the follow-up to their 2016 LP, ‘Night Thoughts’, and their third since reforming in 2010.

The band say in a statement: “The ‘blue hour’ is the time of day when the light is fading and night is closing in. The songs hint at a narrative but never quite reveal it and never quite explain. But as with any Suede album, it’s always about the songwriting. The band, the passion and the noise: ‘The Blue Hour'”.

Orchestral backing on the album comes from the City Of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, with string arrangements by the band’s Neil Codling and composer Craig Armstrong.

‘The Blue Hour’ is set for release on 21 Sep. Pre-ordering from the band’s website will give pre-sale access to upcoming tour dates.

Poop! Poop! Kanye West releases new music

And Finally Artist News Releases

Kanye West

So, this whole thing between Kanye West and Hot 97.1 presenter Ebro Darden is still rumbling on. West has now released a new track trolling his new nemesis.

Last week, Darden said on his show that he’d had a conversation with West, who’d told him that he still loves Donald Trump. West then called in to the show the next day to respond, though simply said “I love you” in response to every question.

Then on Friday evening, the rapper tweeted: “I’m going to drop a song with a verse that will bring Ebro the closure he’s been seeking”. A new track, ‘Lift Yourself’, then emerged on his website.

Largely instrumental, West eventually announces, “What they don’t really realise, though, this next verse, this next verse, though, these bars…”

He then raps: “Whoopedy-scoop, scoopdiddy-whoop, whoopdy-scoopdy-poop, poopdy-scoopdy scoopdy-whoop, whoopiddy-scoop poop poop, whoopdiddy-whoop-scoop. Poop! Poop! Scoopdiddy whoop, whoopdiddy scoop, whoopdiddy scoop poop”.

What could it mean? I don’t know, but I played it to a baby and he thought it was hilarious. Ebro tweeted that it was “all fun and games”. I don’t know if he played it to any babies though.

Later, West released another new song, ‘Ye V The People’. The track features more coherent lyrics, with TI countering opinions put forward by West.

Both tracks may or may not appear on a new West album, which may or may not be called ‘Love Everyone’. Its cover art may or may not also be a photograph of Jan Adams, the plastic surgeon who operated on the rapper’s mother the day before she died.

Tweeting a screengrab of an iMessage conversation with collaborator Wes Lang, West says that he wants to use the image in order to “forgive and stop hating”.

Asked for comment by The Blast, Adams reportedly said “it’s a MacGuffin”, referring to the movie term for an item that is inconsequential in itself but is used as a device to further the plot.

Approved: Oh Maddie

CMU Approved

Oh Maddie

Following on from their debut single ‘Youth’, which was released in February, Oh Maddie return with the song from which they take their name. More of a blues-heavy stomper than their debut, it confirms that the duo are off to a very strong start.

Lyrically, vocalist Ben Rowntree draws on his experiences as an orphan adopted from Romania following the collapse of the Soviet Union. ‘Oh Maddie’ continues a tendency towards pessimism about the modern world. Rowntree explains that that song is about “doubting yourself and everything that’s good; doubting whether anything is even worth fighting, striving or bleeding for”.

It’s the first song taken from the duo’s debut EP, which is set for release on 25 May. You can also catch them live at St Pancras Old Church in London on 10 May.

Watch the video for ‘Oh Maddie’ here:

Stay up to date with all of the artists featured in the CMU Approved column by subscribing to our Spotify playlist.

Setlist: Viagogo, IFPI, royal vinyl

Artist News Business News Digital Labels & Publishers Legal Live Business Marketing & PR Releases Setlist

Viagogo

CMU’s Andy Malt and Chris Cooke review key events in music and the music business from the last seven days, including indication that the UK Competition & Markets Authority intends to take Viagogo to court, yet more exciting and/or depressing growth for the record industry, and the royal twelve-inch. Setlist is sponsored by 7digital.

Subscribe to Setlist

Listen to Setlist and sign up to receive new episodes for free automatically each week through any of these services…

Stories discussed this week:

• CMA indicates court action against Viagogo planned
• Recorded music revenues grew 8.1% last year, despite the value gap
• Royal Wedding recording proves the vinyl revival has gone too far

In brief:

• House Of Representatives passes the Music Modernization Act
• EC launches wider investigation into Apple’s Shazam acquisition
• Beef Of The Week #401: Arctic Monkeys v Marketing

Also mentioned:

• CMU Insights at The Great Escape 2018
• Buy Chris’s new book on how streaming music services are licensed and where the money goes right here on Amazon

The new Arctic Monkeys album sounds like a murderous robot from 1984. Probably.

CMU Opinion

Arctic Monkeys

Shh. Stop. Do you hear that sound? It’s the sound of a new Arctic Monkeys album emerging out of the darkness. What does it sound like? It sounds like nothing. It sounds like something that doesn’t want you to know it’s coming. But you do know it’s coming.

Alex Turner once sang that in order to look good on the dancefloor, one should dance akin to a robot circa 1984. Well, you know what the most famous robot from 1984 is? That’s right, The Terminator. I remember the club scene from that film. And while the titular robot may have moved silently up to the point he entered the venue, things sure got loud once he was in there.

Basically, what I’m trying to tell you is that this clip – that club scene – tells you everything you need to know about the new Arctic Monkeys album.

Does this analogy work on every level? Does it work on any level at all? It’s very hard to say, but it’s the best I’ve got because there’s nothing else for me to share with you about this new Arctic Monkeys record. I’ve been left floundering without the usual tools of album promotion that are always provided to us journalists by the modern music industry.

With two weeks to go until ‘Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino’ is released we should be swimming in a sea of music by now. There should have been a non-single release three months ago. Followed by the first single in audio-only form. Then a lyric video. An official video. Maybe even a ‘visualiser’, although I still haven’t quite worked out what that is.

We should have repeated that process at least two more times with additional preview tracks – maybe classified as ‘singles’, maybe not – and in between all that previewing you’d expect a slew of live sessions to dig into as well. Right now we should be preparing ourselves for the full album stream on NPR.

All-in-all, we should be pretty familiar with where the Arctic Monkeys have headed – musically speaking – on their first album for five years. But we’re not. We know basically nothing about it. Because the Arctic Monkeys feel they’re above the public and media’s need for an endless stream of disposable information.

Instead, I’m sitting here googling ‘1984 robot’ because Turner and co think life would be better if their whole album – and every song, lyric, drum beat and chord progression on it all arrives at the same time, in one moment, on its allotted release date, and not a second before. “Why can’t people wait for things anymore?” the band collectively wondered. “We’ll instil a little bit of patience back into the music buying public”, they added.

Actually, it’s not the whole band who wondered that. For his part, Alex Turner seems as confused as the rest of us as to why there haven’t been any preview-tastic single releases preceding his band’s big new album. “Jamie [Cook, guitarist] was really keen on that idea, and I guess people at Domino”, he tells the new issue of Mojo of the pre-release silence. “But it didn’t come from me”.

Does he approve of this sneaky no-marketing marketing strategy though? “I understand it”, he says, before qualifying that answer with an “I think”. He thinks he understands it. He thinks! An entire marketing campaign based on silence and he only thinks he understands it.

Personally I’d like a bit more confidence in this dramatic anti-marketing marketing concept. And possibly a longer quote about it too. Something about the planning and the outcomes and the expectations. Anything really, so that I don’t end up having to fill column inches with a load of nonsense comparing a record I haven’t heard to an old film about a murderous robot. What a film though. And what an album. Maybe. Who knows?

I mean, forcing me into this corner has meant I’ve also had to build a conceit into this article. Well, more of a barefaced lie really. That being my previous insistence that the Arctic Monkeys haven’t released any audio, or any video, at all, related to this new record. Because do you know what? They actually have. Despite shunning nearly all those zany modern tactics of music marketing, Arctic Monkeys have actually embraced one. And it’s the very worst of those zany modern tactics of music marketing: the album trailer.

That’s right, there’s a 40 second trailer for the album. A brief clip that contains a snippet of new music that cuts off before it reaches anything close to a satisfying point.

Look, I understand that, in the age of YouTube, the way to keep eyeballs on you, among a sea of musicians all shouting into the void, is to share as much content as possible. I understand that this is why there are now so many different forms of YouTube video basically sharing the same content over and over again. But whoever came up with the idea of trailers for albums deserves to be hunted down by a robot from the future.

And this Arctic Monkey’s trailer is particular unsatisfactory. Trailers are supposed to be things that inform and excite you about an upcoming entertainment product. In what world is it acceptable to expect me to actively press play on a 40 second clip featuring abstract images and a little bit of music that goes nowhere?

I want to be tantalised. I want to be on the edge of my seat. Though not like the trailers they have for movies these days – by the way – where they just show you a heavily edited version of the entire film in sequence and in doing so ruin the finished product. I mean trailers like this one from 1984 (from nineteen eighty fo-werr):

Holy shit! I want to see that film right now. That looks great. Buy me two tickets and a gallon of popcorn at the nearest cineplex immediately. I’ve got me some movie to watch. But no trailer for any album has ever had this effect, because it’s just a daft concept. Music simply doesn’t lend itself to the format.

So, to conclude, no previews, no singles, no videos, just one unsatisfactory pointless trailer. Though maybe waiting is a good thing. Maybe patience is a virtue. Maybe this no-marketing anti-marketing marketing campaign is marketing genius, making us anticipate the new record even more. Maybe. Hell, let’s assume that it is.

Well done, The Arctic Monkeys. I’m now anticipating your new album like Sarah Connor lying next to a hydraulic press in a factory. This metaphor still isn’t working, is it?

New family statement suggests that Avicii took his own life

Artist News Top Stories

Avicii

The family of Avicii – real name Tim Bergling – have issued a new statement suggesting that he took his own life.

Bergling was found dead in his hotel room at the Muscat Hills Resort in Oman, where he had been holidaying with friends, last week. Although his family do not specifically state how he died, they say that “he could not go on any longer” and that “he wanted to find peace”.

“Our beloved Tim was a seeker, a fragile artistic soul searching for answers to existential questions”, they say. “An over-achieving perfectionist who travelled and worked hard at a pace that led to extreme stress. When he stopped touring, he wanted to find a balance in life to be happy and be able to do what he loved most – music”.

“He really struggled with thoughts about meaning, life, happiness”, they continue. “He could not go on any longer. He wanted to find peace. Tim was not made for the business machine he found himself in; he was a sensitive guy who loved his fans but shunned the spotlight”.

Beginning his career as a teenager, Bergling quickly became one of the highest paid live performers in EDM. At his busiest he was playing up to 250 shows a year around the world. He retired from live performance in 2016 due to health concerns, in part caused by excessive drinking.

At the time of his death, aged just 28, he was working on a new album.

If you or someone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts, Mind offers information and support on this and other topics relating to mental wellbeing. You can also contact the Samaritans on 116 123 or music industry-specific helpline Music Support on 0800 030 6789.

IMPALA welcomes EC proposals close the online ‘power gap’

Business News Labels & Publishers Legal

IMPALA

Bored of the ‘value gap’? Well, let’s talk about the ‘power gap’ instead. Indie label repping IMPALA has welcomed proposed new rules from the European Commission that seek to “create a fair, transparent and predictable business environment for smaller businesses and traders when using online platforms”.

Explaining the rationale for the new rules, the EC’s VP for the Digital Single Market, Andrus Ansip, said yesterday: “Millions of mostly small traders in the EU now depend on online platforms to reach their customers across the ‘digital single market’. These new online marketplaces drive growth and innovation in the EU, but we need a set of clear and basic rules to ensure a sustainable and predictable business environment”.

This basically means ensuring that the big online platforms – which might include online marketplaces, social networks and search engines – don’t abuse their market dominance to the detriment of the smaller businesses who now rely on these platforms to reach their customers.

“Today’s proposal brings more transparency to the online economy, gives businesses the predictability they need, and will ultimately benefit European consumers”, Ansip added.

Announcing the proposed new rules, the EC cited a Eurobarometer survey that reckoned 42% of small and medium sized companies now use online marketplaces to sell their products and services. Meanwhile, another study reported that nearly 50% of European businesses operating on platforms of this kind say they have experienced problems.

The EC’s statement added that that second study “also shows that 38% of problems regarding contractual relations remain unsolved, and 26% are solved but with difficulties”. It concluded: “It is estimated that €1.27-2.35 billion is lost directly in sales as a result”.

Although these new rules are not specific to the cultural or copyright industries, IMPALA says that they would benefit smaller independent music companies operating in Europe, which are also frequently dependent on big online platforms to reach consumers.

The trade group said yesterday: “In the music sector, independents account for 80% of music released today. They are often presented with ‘take it or leave it’ terms which do not meet acceptable standards. Censorship-style negotiating tactics, such as threats to remove content or block access are also common, as they are in other sectors”.

It went on: “Some of IMPALA’s smaller members have even experienced unilateral termination of access to essential tools such as partner programmes which allow monetisation of content on user-upload platforms”.

Commenting on the EC’s new proposals to close what IMPALA calls the ‘power gap’, the trade group’s boss Helen Smith said yesterday: “This is a welcome move, underlining how the EU is taking the lead in making sure online services behave reasonably”.

She went on: “To be fully effective, the legislation should also clarify that there is a general obligation upon services to behave in a fair, reasonable, objective and non-discriminatory manner, as well as to provide better access to data”.

Distributor ABC Digital launches office in India

Business News Labels & Publishers

ABC Digital

ABC Digital – a London-based music distributor that focuses on artists and labels from South Asia and Asian communities in the UK and North America – has launched an office in India, in order to work as “a digital gateway for content owners to and from India”.

The company currently distributes music from India, Pakistan, UK, USA and Canada to global digital music services, as well as streaming platforms based in India like Saavn and Gaana.

With its new office, a spokesperson says, “ABC Digital can co-ordinate efforts in India on behalf of numerous content owners and also pass on benefits from economies of scale. The same situation occurs for Indian content owners and co-ordination in the West”.

The company’s founder and CEO Gautam Puri adds: “ABC Digital’s content library boasts over 50,000 songs, which over the past ten years have consistently featured in the top ten world genre charts on platforms like iTunes, Spotify and Saavn. We are also consistently increasing our content portfolio and expanding our services to include publishing and marketing initiatives as well as expanding distribution reach to all leading digital services”.

Artists distributed by the company include Diljit Dosanjh, Panjabi MC, Imran Khan, Bilal Saeed, Jaz Dhami and Garry Sandhu.

Sonos plotting IPO for early summer

Business News Digital

Sonos

Sonos has an IPO planned for the summer, everybody! Which is good news. I mean, Spotify arriving on the New York Stock Exchange all seems like a very long time ago now, doesn’t it? That single share we bought has increased in value by $1.43, by the way. Yes, $1.43!

But you’re bored of meticulously monitoring the Spotify share price every day, aren’t you? What you want is another music-related stock market listing to obsess about, and you’re too impatient to wait for Tencent Music’s IPO later this year, right?

So, hurrah for wireless speaker maker Sonos. It’s now confidentially filed for its initial public offering, according to Bloomberg and the Wall Street Journal. Sonos itself hasn’t commented on any of this, but Bloomberg reckons the California-based company hopes to go public in June or July with a target market cap value of between $2.5 billion and $3 billion.

Sonos was an early player in what is now a booming market, of course, with Apple, Amazon and Google now also having their own wireless speaker products. That means the early player now has some big competition to deal with.

Sonos still differentiates itself by boasting better sound quality than most of its competitors. Though that’s a USP Apple has also played with since launching its HomePod. However, the tech giant’s move into the smart speaker space has, to date, been somewhat lacklustre, which is good news for the Sonos business.

It remains to be seen whether that translates into investor confidence when the company lists this summer.

Spotify to test price increase in Norway

Business News Digital

Spotify

How will streaming services ever make money? Pushing down the royalties it pays to the music industry is one thing Spotify is already pursuing. But how about a price increase for subscribers too? The market leader is about to test out that idea as well.

According to Bloomberg, Spotify will implement a 10% price increase for new subscribers in Norway next month, before extending the price rise to existing customers in July. The increase will apply to the company’s family plan and discounted student offer, as well as its standard subscription package.

“In order to meet market demands and conditions, while continuing to offer a great personalised service, Spotify will be increasing the price of our premium subscription in Norway”, the company said in a statement.

The streaming business model is as yet unproven, with all the key players, including Spotify, still currently loss-making. Spotify’s ultimate aim is to keep at least 30% of its revenues, handing over up to 70% to rightsholders. Currently it hands over more like 85% because of minimum guarantee commitments. This, coupled with high overheads and aggressive growth, results in significant losses.

Under their more recent licensing deals, the record labels did agree to slightly lower the royalties they receive, if certain growth targets are reached. However, with music publishers concurrently pushing their royalties up and many premium users on heavily discounted packages or introductory offers, the company arguably needs to pursue other tactics to assure long-term profitability. A slight price increase is one such tactic.

It will now be interesting to see if the price increase affects new sign up numbers in Norway next month. And even more interesting will be the subsequent testing of the loyalty of existing customers, as Spotify’s prices rise above those of its competitors.

Norway has reportedly been selected for the test because the majority of users there pay for their subscription.

CMU@TGE Top Questions: How can you capitalise on the imminent “explosive growth” of live music in China?

Business News Education & Events Insights Blog Labels & Publishers The Great Escape 2018

Chinese flag

With The Great Escape getting closer, we have been busy considering ten questions that will be answered during the three CMU Insights conferences that are set to take place there this year: The Education Conference (16 May), The AI Conference (17 May) and The China Conference (18 May). Today the final question: how can you capitalise on the imminent “explosive growth” of live music in China?

Although many of the global headlines regarding the Chinese music market have focused on recorded music – in particular the deals between the Western record companies and Tencent, NetEase and Alibaba – the country’s live music industry is also growing at an incredible rate.

In its Global Entertainment And Media Outlook report last year, PWC reckoned that the Chinese live music industry was worth $217 million in 2016. Which is still relatively modest given the size of the market, but the report also predicted that the recent rapid growth of the sector will only continue, so that it will be worth $301 million in 2021.

The report noted that the Chinese live entertainment market has “until now” been tagged as “a sleeping giant”. It went on: “Australia, with a population of just 24 million, currently has a greater music market in terms of total revenue on account of its superior live industry. Not for long: China’s music market is sprinting”.

Speaking to IQ magazine last year, the founder of one of the many festival franchises that has emerged in China in recent years, Storm festival’s Eric Zho, concurred with the stat-compilers over at PWC. Reckoning the Chinese live music market was still “nascent” but maturing by the day as consumers become “more refined” in their musical tastes, he declared: “We’re on the cusp of explosive growth”.

That explosive growth creates huge opportunities for artists and music entrepreneurs in China, and also for the global music community. China’s own live industry is still evolving, though a number key players have already emerged – of which Modern Sky probably has the highest profile outside the country. Though the aforementioned Alibaba has also moved into live as well as recorded music, and the web giant is also now active in ticketing.

For international artists and music companies, capitalising on the live opportunities in China requires understanding quite how live entertainment works in this market, and finding the right partners based in the country. Back in that IQ interview, Zho remarked: “When foreign companies come here they don’t know what to do – China is a unique market, and unless you figure out how to localise, to work with local partners, you’re never going to win”.

The China Conference at The Great Escape is all about getting some insider insight into this unique market, with reps from various businesses based in the country joining the debate across the day, including Outdustry, Fake Music Media, Kanjian Music and the aforementioned Modern Sky. If winning means educating yourself about music in China, let the education begin!

The China Conference takes place on Friday 18 May – more info here. See more questions we’ll answer at The Great Escape here.

Halsey signs deal to make movie based on her life

Artist News Deals Media

Halsey

Sony Pictures has bought the rights to develop a movie based on the life of Halsey. According to Deadline, the aim is to make something akin to Eminem’s ‘8 Mile’, in which Halsey would star.

Exactly how good Halsey would be at playing herself – or a character based on herself – is something you’ll be able to judge later this year. The singer appears in a small role, as herself, in the new remake of ‘A Star Is Born’, starring Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga.

Speaking of that film, which is due for release in October, the first trailer was screened for an audience at CinemaCon in Las Vegas earlier this week.

People said it looks good. The studio behind it, Warner Bros, seems confident too. The release date has reportedly been shifted back from May because the company reckons it’s a contender for awards.

Linkin Park’s Mike Shinoda releases new solo track

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Mike Shinoda

Linkin Park’s Mike Shinoda has released a new solo track, ‘About You’, taken from his upcoming debut solo album, ‘Post Traumatic’.

Speaking to Zane Lowe on Beats 1, Shinoda explained how the song related to the death of bandmate Chester Bennington, and his attempts to write new songs that moved away from that topic.

“A lot of the early stuff on this album was about what had happened and Chester and all that, and then I started trying to write some songs that weren’t about Chester and weren’t about that whole thing,” he said. “I realised people would still hear them as if they were about him. It was like, ‘Man, even when I try to make a song that’s not about him, it still feels like it’s about him'”.

Watch the video for ‘About You’ here:

One Liners: Universal, Elton John, Muse, more

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Universal Music

Other notable announcements and developments today…

• You can now get a daily CMU news summary via our Messenger bot. Click here to get started.

• Universal Music has appointed Dave Rocco to the newly created position on EVP Creative. Until recently he was Spotify’s Global Head Of Artist And Label Marketing. Uncle Luci Grainge is “THRILLED”. Rocco himself is only “excited”.

• ITV will air an American TV tribute to Elton John on Monday night. ‘Elton John: I’m Still Standing – A Grammy Salute’ is basically a thing designed to promote John’s new ‘Revamp’ compilation and features performances by artists including Lady Gaga, Miley Cyrus, Chris Martin and Elton himself. That’s ITV1 at 10.45pm on Monday. Past my bedtime, and yours too I’m sure.

• Muse will screen a filmed version of their ‘Drones’ tour in cinemas on 12 Jul. “It’s a good thing or a bad thing”, says Matt Bellamy.

• Rae Sremmurd have released the video for ‘Close’, taken from their still to be released new album, ‘Sr3mm’.

• Kali Uchis has released the video for ‘Get Up’, taken from her debut album ‘Isolation’.

• The Internet are back with a new single, ‘Roll (Burbank Funk)’, and it’s pretty great.

• Thundercat has released new track ‘Final Fight’, as part of Adult Swim’s singles club.

• I’ll tell you right now, Jon Hopkins’ new album is absolutely fantastic. Here’s a new track from it, ‘Everything’s Connected’.

• Billie Eilish has released the video for new single ‘Lovely’, featuring Khalid.

• Junglepussy has announced her third album, ‘Trader Joe’. It will be released on 11 May. Here’s the title track.

• Dreams can come true, Gabrielle is back. She’ll release a new album, ‘Under My Skin’, on 11 Aug. Here’s the first single, ‘Show Me’.

• Cellist Oliver Coates has released new single ‘Charlev’. He’ll be supporting Thom Yorke on tour later this year. He’s really flipping good live.

• Sabiyha has released new single ‘Letter’.

• Seinabo Sey has released new track ‘Breathe’.

• Keir has released new track ‘Sadboy’. The song, he says, is a call to “be loving and talk to each other, [and] never be embarrassed for the way you feel”.

• Florence And The Machine have announced shows in London, Halifax and Scunthorpe this May. Here’s the video for recent single ‘Sky Full Of Song’.

• J-pop group Maison Book Girl have announced shows in Birmingham and London around appearances at The Great Escape next month. Here’s the video for new single ‘Bath Room’.

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

Beef Of The Week #401: Arctic Monkeys v Marketing

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