VIP-BOOKING.COM
PreMIuM ›› VOl. 124 ›› APrIl 2010
www.VIP-BOOKING.COM
Firstly, I hope that you’re all located where
you wish to be – home, office, the country
you usually live in, and if you can’t make
it back I hope you’re extending your time
on a sunny beach somewhere! Iceland has
not had a good time of it of late, what with
financial meltdown and rising debts; this is
not the sort of new export that they need
– we said ‘cash, not ash!’ you can hear the
creditors cry. But this is a serious situation,
and obviously our business is badly af-
fected, with many acts unable to be in the
right place at the right time to fulfill tour-
ing commitments. Please let us know if
you have had problems, as we’d like to get
a more definite picture of the true situa-
tion. Certainly it has reminded us all in the
UK that we live on an island, and seaborne
and tunnel travel has its limitations. At the
time of writing I’m due to fly to Norway in
ten days time (see Bergenfest story in this
issue) and I’m very aware that what at first
appeared to be a 2 or 3 day inconvenience
now seems to have no accurate estimate
of a return to normal.
If you listen to the talk at events such as
the ILMC, promoters are an increasingly
put-upon sector of commercial society;
ever decreasing profit margins, more and
more health and safety obligations and re-
strictions, lack of support from other sec-
tors of the business – particularly record
companies, and increasing financial and
rider demands from greedy artists. It’s
a hard life and you’d wonder why many
continue with such an arduous profes-
sion, apart from the glamour of it all! But
there is some truth in all of this, so there
is some justifiable satisfaction that Prince
may now be referred to as the Artist Cur-
rently Known As the Bloke that had to pay
the Irish Promoter $3 Million. On March 26,
a Dublin judge ordered the U.S. pop singer
to pay $2.95 million to Irish concert pro-
moters MCD Productions Ltd for canceling
a 2008 concert at the last minute. Justice
Peter Kelly ruled that Prince had commit-
ted to perform in Dublin’s 82,300-seat
Croke Park in June 2008, but withdrew
without explanation just days beforehand,
after 55,000 tickets were sold. Prince (51)
did not testify at the hearing. The artist’s
agency, William Morris, was absolved of li-
ability, agent Marc Geiger testified that he
rarely spoke to Prince directly and found
him one of his toughest clients to under-
stand or nail down – surely not? When told
that MCD owner Denis Desmond was on
the warpath, Prince apparently said, “Tell
the cat to chill. We will work something
out.” Good for Denis! However Prince is
a remarkable performer, so we hope he
makes his only three concerts this summer.
On the 4th of July, he is playing at Roskilde
(DK), on the 9th in Arras (FR), and on the
10th of July he is closing off his short stay
in Europe with a concert at Werchter’s Fes-
tival Park
This will be my last Musings before the UK
General Election on May 6th, so the next
issue may be written from a country with
a totally new Government. The attitudes
and approaches of those in power will be
very relevant to the future of the creative
industries, of which the music industry,
including of course the live industry, is a
1
McGowan’s Musings:
Allan McGowan
The VIP-Booking european live entertainment BookAdvertising in the VIP Book will make you visible to 10.000 business
professionals all over europe. You will find no better place to expose your
company to the whole european live entertainment Industry.
›› reserVe YOur Ad NOw ON www.VIP-BOOKING.COM
VIP- News
2
VIP-BOOKING.COM
Colophon ››
VIP-News is published by: VIP-Booking26 York StreetLondon W1U 6pZ
Managing director: Ronni [email protected]
General Manager: Peter [email protected]
writer and editorial: Allan [email protected]
writer: Manfred Tari [email protected]
For advertising enquiries pls. contact Peter Briggs [email protected] or +44 870 755 0092
lay-out: Pekaye Graphics, Phuket – [email protected]
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
very important sector, from both trade
and cultural points of view. The ‘Poli-
tics of Live’ panel at ILMC 22 in March
focused on the importance of lobby-
ing for the support required to ensure
the future health of our industry. The
upshot of the discussion was that the
live music industry falls behind many
other sectors of the creative industries
in fighting its own corner, for instance,
of all the sectors of the music industry,
live is the only one not represented
within UK Music (see story in this issue) –
a voluntary working party of concerned
professionals has set about examining
ways to improve this situation – both in
the UK and mainland Europe. Without
doubt the live industry was shaped and
built by individual entrepreneurs, mav-
ericks basically, and the resourcefulness
and inventiveness of characters like this
should remain at the core of how things
are done, but we are now a mature in-
dustry and we should learn lessons from
the way film, television, theatre and oth-
er sectors have gone about establishing
their economic and cultural importance.
If you have anything to say about our
relationships with national and regional
government please let us know.
After all, it’s a good time to get active
– travel’s off the agenda for a few days
– weeks, months? Still, hopefully every
cloud – even when composed of ash -
has a silver lining!
Ladies and Gentlemen – the News!
Right, try and make a recognisable
word from the above acronyms! Well,
if you can’t it’s still worth noting that,
The Musician’s Union, Featured Artists
Coalition and Music Managers Forum
have announced close collaboration
on areas of common interest.
Both the MU and MMF are affiliated
with UK Music, as are the BPI (British
Phonographic Industries) and the Mu-
sic Publishers Association, but there
have been, and doubtless will be,
occasional disagreements between
creators and corporates, so collusion
amongst the creatives seems to make
sense.
This alliance will see support from the
FAC and MMF to the Music Supported
Here campaign led by the MU. This
aims to encourage and enable musi-
cians to engage directly with their
fanbase on copyright issues, assum-
ing that artists may be better placed
to persuade music fans that the legal
process of buying or listening to music
online is the right route to take, than
a perceived authoritarian industry
initiative. Under this same banner is
another supported campaign called
‘Artist As Retailer’, aimed at persuad-
ing record companies to automatically
concede the right to artists to directly
sell their own recordings via their own
websites and social network profiles,
and to be recognised in the same way
as retailers, enjoying the retailer cut
of the download fee in addition to the
royalty they are due under their record
contract. This could apparently see a
five-fold increase in an artist’s income
from a download,
The Musicians’ Union’s Assistant Gen-
eral Secretary Horace Trubridge is re-
ported as saying, “Our three organisa-
tions basically share the same agendas,
in as much as we are about looking after
creators and performers. We want to
Mu, MMF and FAC to CollaborateAllan McGowan [email protected]
3
VIP-BOOKING.COM
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
deal with the big issues that we think are
wrong with the industry. In terms of putting
the artists directly in contact with the fans,
and cutting out all of the people in between,
I don’t have any doubt that Music Support-
ed Here will become a kind of vanguard,
in what will become the industry norm in
years to come”.
FAC’s Membership & Development Direc-
tor Matthew Brown added: “The MMF, the
FAC and the MU represent the interests of
artists right across the board. Each organi-
sation has a lot to bring to the coalition.
All this lays the groundwork for a powerful
collaboration. Coming together in this way
has never happened before and has largely
been brought on by the narrowing of the
gap between artist and fan; a change that
brings lots of opportunity for all those who
support and represent artists”.
MMF CEO Jon Webster added: “The MMF
is delighted to be working more closely with
the FAC and the MU on items of common
interest. Managers have always represent-
ed featured artists, and their interests and
those of musicians of all types need to be
more aligned”.
The music industry contributes enor-
mously to the UK economy and UK Music,
the umbrella group, which represents UK,
labels, artists and managers is making sure
that this UK Government, and whichever
party is in power after the May 6 election,
are kept aware of the fact.
Feargal Sharkey, the former Undertones
frontman and now UK Music chief execu-
tive states that Britain has the chance over-
take America as the world’s biggest music
producer over the next decade, but gov-
ernment help is needed to attain this goal.
UK Music is calling for the government to
form a ‘creative industries cabinet com-
mittee’ to bring the various and numer-
ous departments responsible for Britain’s
creative industries together with entre-
preneurs and executives, to then report
directly to the prime minister.
In UK Music’s recently issued manifesto,
Liberating Creativity, the organisation
lobbies for easier access to finance and ex-
tension of copyright from 50 to 70 years,
amongst other issues.
As far as live music is concerned the call
is for looser venue licensing so pubs and
small clubs can give the next generation
of artists a chance to perform. Liberal
Democrat MP, Don Foster voiced his and
his party’s concerns about the restrictions
of the licensing laws on the development
of new talent in the December issue of VIP-
News, commenting on the Live Music Bill
introduced to parliament by Lib Dem Lord
Tim Clement-Jones, who also took part
in the ‘Politics of Live’ panel at ILMC 22.
Although the Bill received support from
some quarters in parliament, its failure to
get support from the government meant
it was unlikely to ever become law and it
seemed doomed when parliament packed
up for the election. However, the Liberal
Democrats have now included some key
points from the Bill in their election mani-
festo, indicating that they are confirming
that this is an issue they will continue to
lobby on once the next parliament and
government are in place. A Music Week ar-
ticle reports that the Lib Dems manifesto
says: “We will reintroduce the rule allowing
two performers of unamplified music in any
licensed premises without the need for an
entertainment licence, allow licensed venues
for up to 200 people to host live music with-
out the need for an entertainment licence,
and remove the requirement for schools and
hospitals to apply for a licence”. The Labour
Party manifesto refers briefly to amend-
ments and The Conservative’s not at all.
UK Music argues that the success of ven-
ues such as the O2 and Glastonbury –
which contributes an estimated £35m to
the local economy each year – can only be
sustained with a thriving grassroots live
music scene. Feargal Sharkey said, “I think
people still look at music and think it is not
a proper grown-up profession and that has
got to change because ironically what some
people in the world of finance might dismiss
as nothing more than a couple of kids mak-
ing noise in the back of a pub on a Friday
night, when they grow up to be big boys and
girls, the contribution and the impact that
they will have on the rest of society is just –
if not more – significant as some bloke with
a double first from Cambridge working for a
merchant bank in the City of London.”
uK Music Calls for Cabinet Committee forCreative IndustriesAllan McGowan [email protected]
Feargal Sharkey
Jon Webster
4
VIP-BOOKING.COM
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
UNIQUE AND DOUBLY GOOD
Tel. +49 (0) 711/9554-40Fax +49 (0) 711/9554-500
ThE hALL DUO IN NEckArpArk
STUTTGArT cATchmENT ArEA: mOrE ThAN 3 mILLION pEOpLE • hANNS-mArTIN-SchLEYEr-hALLE: Up TO 15,500 SpEcTATOrS
pOrSchE-ArENA: Up TO 7,500 SpEcTATOrS • 2010: ...WhITNEY hOUSTON, DEEp pUrpLE, rONAN kEATING, chrIS rEA...
AZ_in_stutt_VIPbook_RZ.indd 1 23.11.2009 18:17:54 Uhr
The organizers of the long established
French Festival ‘Printemps Le Bourges’
plan to develop the trade event intro-
duced at the 2009 festival. A new MaMA
headquarters was announced at this
month’s edition of the festival, this will
be in Paris, based in Pigale and Moulin
Rouge area, and the first edition of this
major addition to the conference show-
case event calendar will take place on
October 15 & 16, 2010.
Concerts with a French and international
line-up will be open to both professionals
and punters at La Cigale, La Boule Noire,
Les 3 Baudets, Le Divan du Monde, Le Cen-
tre Musical Fleury Goutte d’Or – Barbara
and La Machine du Moulin Rouge.
Acoustic gigs will also be presented in vari-
ous bars in the 18th arrondissement
Clubbing and private after parties will be
hosted at La Machine du Moulin Rouge, and
the Elysée Montmartre venue will house
the international Pro Village. MaMA will
feature face to face and targeted meetings,
thematic lunches and an online commu-
nity exchange between music industries
professionals, plus seminars, conferences,
talks, workshops, and speed-meetings.
Watch this space for more news.
New Conference & showcase event Planned for ParisAllan McGowan [email protected]
Elysee Montmartre Fernando Ladeiro Marques
5
VIP-BOOKING.COM
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
“Hamburger Kultursommer” is the title for
a concert series, which will be located at
the Trabrennbahn Bahrenfeld, a trotting
horse racing track in Hamburg. The con-
certs will be hosted in a 20.000 sq m area
named ‘Luruper Bogen’, which is separated
from the racing track. While in recent years
shows with Robbie Williams and Peter Fox
took place using the entire race track, this
is no longer possible as since the complex
was modernized it will host nothing other
than horse races. The area is closely locat-
ed to the O2 Arena and is able to accom-
modate between 5.000 to 15.000 visitors.
In a press release Folkert Koopmans, MD
of FKP Scorpio commented: “With the new
location Hamburg will finally have a new
attractive medium sized open air site that
can accommodate up to 15.000 visitors and
is able to compete with locations such as
Wulheide in Berlin or the Tanzbrunnen in
Cologne. This leads to better chances that
Hamburg will now appear more often in
touring schedules of popular acts and art-
ists. The area furthermore benefits from the
fact that punters already know the site due
to former concerts held there.”
For the development of the site FKP Scor-
pio teams up with Winrace, a company
specialized in horse race betting. FKP Scor-
pio now have the exclusive rights to pro-
mote shows and concerts at the Trabren-
nbahn Bahrenfeld. In order to improve the
facilities on the site for open-air events, a
six-digit figure will be invested.
The grand opening for the site and the
newly launched ‘Hamburger Kultursom-
mer’ will be with a show from Blink 182
on August 24, Unheilig on August 27, Clas-
sic Rock Festival with Ten Years After and
Jethro Tull as headliners and Xavier Naidoo
on August 30. Koopmans furthermore an-
nounced: “We would like to offer more
than just the concert experience. From the
beginning onwards this year we will have
an attractive outdoor gastronomy that of-
fers a wide range of quality food. It is one
of our targets that concertgoers should ar-
rive hours before the concert actually takes
place. Therefore we will open the doors as
early as possible so that they can meet with
their friends in the beer garden or sunbathe
on the site. In the long term perspective it
might be possible to have several open air
stages on the site so that during the sum-
mer season different acts will perform at the
same time, like at events such as the Toll-
wut-Festival in Munich or the Zeltfestival in
Freiburg.” Currently the deal is contracted
to last until the summer season 2012.
FKP scorpio operates new Open Air Area for Hamburg & launches New Concert seriesAllan McGowan [email protected]
FKP Scorpio
Support Programme for Netherlands
Pop Music at German festivals during
RUHR.2010 in the Metropole Ruhr:
The list of artists from the Netherlands
prominent in the music business is wide -
from Herman van Veen to Herman Brood
to Within Temptation, from 2 Unlimited to
DJ Tiesto. In almost all genres of pop music
there are music and acts from the Nether-
lands claiming international success.
Also, since the mid of the 1970s, the Neth-
erlands has focused on cultural policy re-
lated aspects regarding the supporting of
pop music. Building on these aspects and
with a view to the occasion of the Europe-
an culture capital year RUHR.2010, the sup-
port programme Dutch Talent Exchange
Program (DTEP), a cutting-edge initiative
to support popular music and the music
business in the Netherlands and Germany
was instigated.
DTEP is an important content of NL-RUHR,
the joint platform for more than 150 Dutch
cultural events during RUHR.2010. The
management of the programme was di-
rected by MusicXport.nl, the joint initiative
of BUMA Cultuur, Muziek Centrum Neder-
land, and EuroSonic Noorderslag.
DTEP also supports the festivals in the
Metropole Ruhr, offering festival organis-
ers from the district financial support as
well as accompanying promotion if they
book DTEP Dutch artists, bands and djs
for their events. So not only the festivals
and Dutch acts benefit from this scheme
but also, indirectly, the German and Dutch
concert agencies, labels and publishers.
The organisers of the programme for the
festivals in the Metropole Ruhr are free to
choose which acts and djs from the Neth-
erlands they want to book for their event.
Throughout the whole summer festival
season promoters of small and big festi-
vals will present Dutch acts from different
music styles in North Rhine-Westphalia.
For example, Armin van Buuren and 7
more Dutch dj-acts will appear in Dort-
mund at the Mayday Festival on April 30,
Dutch hard rock band The Devil’s Blood
will play at the RockHard festival at the
Gelsenkirchen Amphitheater, 21 – 23 May,
and the Ruhrpott Rodeo in Hünxe has con-
firmed the Reggae Ska Punk band YaYa
The Cat for Whitsunday.
More bands for festivals including Bochum
Total, Zeltfestival Ruhr, Juicy Beats etc. will
soon be announced.
dTePAllan McGowan [email protected]
6
VIP-BOOKING.COM
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
One of the most important women in the field of media and enter-
tainment, Cristiana Falcone Sorrell, Senior Advisor to the Execu-
tive Chairman at the World Economic Forum in Geneva, is to give a
keynote interview on at the C’n’B – Creative Business Convention
to take place in Cologne on 24/25 June. The C’n’B is taking place
as part of the c/o pop festival for the first time this year and is the
first cross-sector platform in Europe for the creative industry as a
whole.
Sorrell’s talk will open the Convention on Thursday 24 June. On
the two following days (international participants from the vari-
ous sectors of the creative industry will discuss topics such as sus-
tainability, new business models, and how to turn failure into an
opportunity.
Cristiana Falcone Sorrell has led the World Economic Forum’s Me-
dia, Entertainment and Information Community in Geneva and
New York since 2004. At the C’n’B, Falcone Sorrell will report on
the state of the creative industry worldwide. Her address will fo-
cus on both the increasing influence of digitalisation and the ne-
cessity of creating new networks to gain access to new partners
and target groups in different creative sectors.
c/o Pop Adds Creative Business to ConventionAllan McGowan [email protected]
Cristiana Falcone Sorrell
7
VIP-BOOKING.COM
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
Since Bjork’s well documented outburst
against Chinese policies towards Thailand
and the difficulties acts such as Oasis faced,
it has been assumed that the Chinese gov-
ernment has adopted a shall we say, ‘un-
helpful’, approach to Western artists wish-
ing to appear in the country. Recently it
was announced that permission had been
refused for Bob Dylan to play two as part
of a tour - which also included dates in Tai-
wan, South Korea, Hong Kong and Japan.
Chinese officials had so it was said, blocked
plans for the singer songwriter to perform
in Beijing and Shanghai. However there is
some speculation that the tour’s Taiwan-
based promoter had actually axed the tour
because of financial problems rather than
political setbacks.
Now China’s Ministry Of Culture has issued
a statement saying they never received an
application from the Dylan tour promoters
to stage concerts in the country. Some Chi-
nese industry commentators add that it’s
not the first time promoters in the region
have used alleged government interven-
tion as an excuse for cancelling tours that
turn out not to be commercially viable,
which, if true, is of course not at all helpful
to those in the West trying to develop and
improve relationships with authorities,
promoters and audiences.
On the other hand - Iceland’s Ólafur Arnalds
has played a sold out 8-City China tour’.
Earlier this month the neo-classical com-
poser and multi-instrumentalist playing to
packed houses in Beijing, Shanghai, Hong
Kong, Taipei, Qingdao, Wuhan, Tianjin and
Hangzhou. Apparently, (showing that not
all recent exports from Iceland are undesir-
able!) although it was his first time visiting
China, throngs of adoring fans requesting
his autograph after each concert greeted
the 23-year-old Mosfellsbær native.
The tour was organised by China-based
promoter Split Works in association with
The Planetary Group, who have brought
a wide range of artists to China includ-
ing Sonic Youth from the USA and Jose
Gonzalez from Sweden. The Ólafur Arnalds
tour was undertaken as part of Split Works’
annual Jue Festival, the largest arts and
music festival in China, which included 72
events in 2010 alone.
The tour was a groundbreaking partner-
ship between Split Works, Planetary Group
and US-based artist-promoter matchmak-
ing service Sonicbids to arrange an all-
expenses paid, 8-city tour for one artist.
There were no barriers to entry – anyone
from anywhere in the world could apply.
Split Works selected Ólafur Arnald from
the applicants. “Our years of experience
in the China market made it clear to us
that Ólafur had the potential to be a mas-
sive success here,” said Abby Lavin of Split
Works. “His modern take on classical com-
position make him a wonderful fit for con-
temporary China.”
»It’s so exciting to be able tobring new music to [China] and
to see how much the peoplehere appreciate what we do«
- Robert Raths
“It’s so exciting to be able to bring new mu-
sic to [China] and to see how much the peo-
ple here appreciate what we do,” said Rob-
ert Raths of Erased Tapes records. “Our
time in China has been great, and we made
friends wherever we went.”
“This tour was our most ambitious one yet.
After 15 tours of China, we were excited to
add in Hong Kong and Taiwan – and could
not have been more thrilled with the re-
sults”, said Adam Lewis, Co-Founder of
The Planetary Group.
rejection (?) and success in China– dylan off - Ólafur Arnalds OnAllan McGowan [email protected]
Olafur Arnalds
8
VIP-BOOKING.COM
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
The O2 World Universe gets a fifth satellite.
The Anschutz Entertainment Group, a
subsidiary of the Anschutz Corporation
have expanded their partnership with
O2 Germany, re-branding the Color Line
Arena, O2 World Hamburg in a marketing
deal scheduled for 10 years.
The O2 Germany belongs to the Spanish
telco-company Telfonica, which just re-
cently bought the local telco-company
HanseNet and its nationwide brand Alice.
The first show in the new branded arena
will be Lady Gaga on May 10. As part of
the agreement the arena will offer O2 cus-
tomers special features such as a so called
‘blue lane’ for an easy access to concerts
and events, upgraded ‘blue seats’ and
special reservations for sold out shows.
Uwe Frommhold, the managing direc-
tor for O2 World Hamburg was quoted
in a press release as saying: “This part-
nership will strengthen the entertainment
position of Hamburg significantly. The O2
World in Hamburg will expand its position
as a central point for entertainment and
sport in Hamburg as well as in the region.
I am delighted about our new partner as
together we are able to generate signifi-
cant added values for our visitors and for
promoters.”
www.o2world-hamburg.de
Color line Arena Becomes O2 world HamburgManfred Tari [email protected]
(from left) Uwe Frommhold, René Schuster and Detlef Kornett
This year’s 19th – 22nd May edition of Liv-
erpool Sound City 2010 extends its 2010
agenda beyond music; the festival will also
play host to premiere movie screenings,
photography exhibitions and a full music
conference.
Ian McCulloch of Echo & the Bunnymen
fame will play a rare intimate gig in the
grand setting of St George’s Concert Room.
He will also be joining the legendary Sey-
mour Stein in conversation for a Keynote
address at the Liverpool Sound City Music
Business Conference at The Hilton Hotel
on Wed 19th and Thu 20th May.
In 1966 Stein founded Sire Productions
which led to the formation of Sire Records
the label under which he signed pioneer
artists such as The Ramones, Talking
Heads,The Pretenders, Madonna, Depeche
Mode, The Smiths and Echo & The Bunney-
men.
Also appearing at this year’s conference
are Brandon Young and Tim Riley - Ac-
tiVision Games USA, the major player in
the gaming industry responsible for the
hugely successful title Guitar Hero, Ber-
nard Resnick, one of the business brains
behind Lady GaGa, Patrik Larsson - Head-
lock Management one of Scandinavia’s
top management companies, Mark Jones
from record label Wall of Sound, Geoff
Meall - The Agency Group who looks after
acts including Muse, Doves, Paramore etc.
Julian Wall, Director Independent Mem-
ber Services and International Events
for British Recorded Music Industry (BPI)
UK, Brent Grulke, creative director, South
by South West USA, Alicen Schneider –
NBC Universal USA, and others to be an-
nounced.
New additions to the music line up pre-
sented over 35 Liverpool stages include
Jim Jones Revue on Wednesday 19 May at
the Zanzibar and The Phenomenal Hand-
clap Band at Masque Theatre on 20th May.
The Liverpool Sound City line-up also in-
cludes Gil Scott-Heron, Paloma Faith, Del-
phic, The Maccabees, Afrika Bambaataa,
The Fall, Speech Debelle, Wild Beasts,
Field Music, Los Campesinos, The Black-
out, Wave Machines, The Sunshine Un-
derground, Hot Club de Paris, Ian McNabb
and Chilly Gonzalez.
liverpool sound City Adds eventsAllan McGowan [email protected]
Liverpool Sound City
9
VIP-BOOKING.COM
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
We would like to thank everybody for attending the 2010 edition, we do look forward to welcome you at the 2011 one!
Registration and artists submission is open from may 1st 2010 onwards on www.euroSonic-noorderslag.nl, Deadline for artist submission is September 1st, 2010
13
14
15THE EUROPEAN MUSIC CONFERENCE AND SHOWCASE FESTIVALWWW.EUROSONIC-NOORDERSLAG.NL
thur
sday
EURO
SON
ICdow
ntow
n G
roni
ngen
the
Net
herl
and
s
frid
ayEU
RO
SON
ICdow
ntow
n G
roni
ngen
the
Net
herl
and
s
sat
urda
yN
OO
RD
ERSL
AG
De
Oos
terp
oort
Gro
ning
en
JANUARY
2011
13
14
15THE EUROPEAN MUSIC CONFERENCE AND SHOWCASE FESTIVALWWW.EUROSONIC-NOORDERSLAG.NL
thur
sday
EURO
SON
ICdow
ntow
n G
roni
ngen
the
Net
herl
and
s
frid
ayEU
RO
SON
ICdow
ntow
n G
roni
ngen
the
Net
herl
and
s
sat
urda
yN
OO
RD
ERSL
AG
De
Oos
terp
oort
Gro
ning
en
JANUARY
2011
EuroSonic noordErSlag
FACTSHEET 2010 2009 2008 2007 Total number of visits 18.000 18.000 15.500 15.050 Nationalities present 34 34 35 29 Professional participants 2.800 2.650 2.487 2.200 Artists performing 259 265 237 221 Radio stations present 24 22 23 24 international festivals present 237 123 76 69 ETEP participant festivals 59 59 59 54 Number of stages @ EuroSonic 31 32 29 25 Number of stages @ Noorderslag 10 9 9 8 Number of European journalists present 193 140 138 65
13
14
15THE EUROPEAN MUSIC CONFERENCE AND SHOWCASE FESTIVALWWW.EUROSONIC-NOORDERSLAG.NL
thur
sday
EURO
SON
ICdow
ntow
n G
roni
ngen
the
Net
herl
and
s
frid
ayEU
RO
SON
ICdow
ntow
n G
roni
ngen
the
Net
herl
and
s
sat
urda
yN
OO
RD
ERSL
AG
De
Oos
terp
oort
Gro
ning
en
JANUARY
2011
13
14
15THE EUROPEAN MUSIC CONFERENCE AND SHOWCASE FESTIVALWWW.EUROSONIC-NOORDERSLAG.NL
thur
sday
EURO
SON
ICdow
ntow
n G
roni
ngen
the
Net
herl
and
s
frid
ayEU
RO
SON
ICdow
ntow
n G
roni
ngen
the
Net
herl
and
s
sat
urda
yN
OO
RD
ERSL
AG
De
Oos
terp
oort
Gro
ning
en
JANUARY
2011
13
14
15THE EUROPEAN MUSIC CONFERENCE AND SHOWCASE FESTIVALWWW.EUROSONIC-NOORDERSLAG.NL
thur
sday
EURO
SON
ICdow
ntow
n G
roni
ngen
the
Net
herl
and
s
frid
ayEU
RO
SON
ICdow
ntow
n G
roni
ngen
the
Net
herl
and
s
sat
urda
yN
OO
RD
ERSL
AG
De
Oos
terp
oort
Gro
ning
en
JANUARY
2011
10
VIP-BOOKING.COM
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
Well, it was only a matter of time really;
Live Nation has announced the launch of
its concert promotion business in Austral-
ia, the world’s 7th largest music market.
Luke Hede, currently the Vice President of
International Booking for Live Nation Asia,
based in Hong Kong, has been named Vice
President of Promotions – Pacific Rim. In
addition, Live Nation has appointed Roger
Field, formerly of Michael Coppel Presents,
as Vice President of Promotions – Australia
and New Zealand. Roger and Luke will
work with Live Nation’s Global and Inter-
national Touring teams to bring Live Na-
tion tours to Australia, New Zealand and
the rest of the Pacific Rim, as well as book-
ing local dates across the region.
Alan Ridgeway, CEO of Live Nation Interna-
tional, commented, “Over the last decade,
Live Nation has been involved with some of
the most successful tours throughout Aus-
tralia and New Zealand, including: U2, The
Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Prince, Nick-
elback, The Police, and many others. We
now feel that the time is right to establish
our own presence and further monetise our
global tours in this particularly strong and
growing live music market. After working
closely with two of Australia’s most highly
regarded promoters in Paul Dainty and
Michael Coppel respectively, both Luke and
Roger have vast experience and knowledge
in the local market and we are thrilled to
have them leading our Australian launch.”
Live Nation’s presence in the Pacific Rim
already includes offices in Hong Kong,
Singapore and Shanghai. Luke Hede will
continue to book international concerts
for these offices with Mr. Hung Tik, based
in Hong Kong, remaining Senior Vice Presi-
dent responsible for booking local artists.
Live Nation also has a joint venture in Bei-
jing with Gehua Group, which is run by Mr.
Wei Ming, who has recently been appoint-
ed General Manager of the joint venture
which promotes international and local
artist shows booked by Luke, Hung Tik and
Wei Ming.
Live Nation Australia will be based in Mel-
bourne and it is expected that further staff-
ing announcements will follow shortly. Live
Nation already has an existing presence in
Australia and New Zealand through Tick-
etmaster, which has been operating suc-
cessfully in these markets for more than 20
years.
live Nation launches Concert Business in AustraliaAllan McGowan [email protected]
VIP-BOOKING.COM THE VIP-BOOK VIP-NEWS
Having the right tools for the job is often the key to success. Through our ongoing communication with key Live
Entertainment Industry Professionals, we have developed a range of services to meet the demands of agents, pro-
moters, talent buyers, venue bookers etc. It’s no coincidence that we are now considered to be the No. 1 information
provider for this thriving industry.
The VIP-BookThe ultimate print directory for the Eu-ropean Entertainment Industry, packedwith contacts and easy to use. An es-sential reference book for every offi ceproviding basic contact informationand a solid overview.
VIP-Booking.com VIP-NewsWritten by our highly merited journalists, Al-lan McGowan and Manfred Tari, with over 50years of experience between them in the En-tertainment Industry, VIP-News brings the lat-est news and views directly to your computerkeeping you up to date at all times.
???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
????????
???????
????
??? ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
????????? ›› ?????????›› ?????????
???????????????????
?????????
?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
??????????????????????????????????????????????
??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????? ???? ????????? ???? ???? ???? ??????????????? ????????? ????????????? ??????? ????? ???? ????????????? ???? ??????????? ???? ??????? ?????????? ???????????????? ????? ??????? ?????? ????????? ??? ?????????? ???????? ??????? ??????? ????? ??????? ??? ?????? ?????? ????????? ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ???? ??? ????? ???? ????????????? ???????? ???????? ????? ??????? ???????? ???????? ???????? ??????? ???? ??????? ???????????????????????????????????????? ????????? ????? ???????? ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
??????????????
?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
???? ??????? ??? ???? ??????????? ??? ?????????? ???? ???????????? ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????? ?????? ????? ??? ??????????????? ???????????????????? ??????? ???????? ????? ?? ???????? ??????? ?? ????? ??? ??? ???? ?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
?????????? ??????? ?????? ???? ???? ??????? ?????????? ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ??? ????? ???? ????????? ????? ????? ??????? ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
?
VIP-Booking.com is now the most widely used online information service for the European Live Entertainment Industry with subscribers in over 25 countries. Using the latest technology and state of the art tools, the service provides in-depth information streamlining the day-to-day operations of industry professionals, saving both time and money.
Paul Dainty
11
VIP-BOOKING.COM
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
Germanys Live Entertainment Award (LEA)
celebrated its 5th anniversary on 15th
of April in the new O2 World Hamburg
(former Color Line Arena). Following an al-
liance with the world’s largest event tech-
nology supplier PRG (Production Resource
Group), LEA recently changed its name to
PRG LEA.
The German live entertainment industry
celebrated itself in a three and a half-hour
gala which was attended by show busi-
ness celebrities and artists, such as for Pe-
ter Maffay, The Scorpions, Scooter, Chris-
tina Stürmer, Roger Cicero, soul singer Joy
Denalane, the musicians of Silbermondas
well as other VIPs from culture, sports and
media.
The jury of PRG LEA, consisting of music
journalists, radio programme executives
and cultural managers, evaluated more
than 500 concerts and shows in 2009. The
15 categories of the Award include; the
tour promoter, the concert, the manager,
the agent and the location of the year.
German Initiative Music, the funding
agency set up by the German federal gov-
ernment to promote the music industry
in Germany, awarded € 20.000,00 to Ber-
lin’s ‘O 36’ the LEA winner in the ‘music
club of the year’ category. The other two
nominees received a further €2.500 each.
Tour Promoter of the year was - as in the
years before, Marek Lieberberg of MLK.
The award for the lifetime achievement
was granted to Germanys media-giant
Hans R. Beierlein, developer of many fa-
mous artists such as Udo Jürgens, creator
of formats for music TV programmes and
founder of Germanys business magazine
Musikmarkt.
The German Chancellor Dr. Andrea Mer-
kel honoured this fifth anniversary with a
written greeting, read by LEA inventor and
producer Jens Michow, President of the
Federal German association for the enter-
tainment industry.
Germany’s live entertainment Awards (leA)Allan McGowan [email protected]
Here are the results and the winners of PRG LEA:
Arena-Tournee of the YearPink (Funhouse Tour) – Peter Rieger Konzertagentur, Köln Show of the YearApassionata – EquiArte, Berlin Festival of the Year (presented by PRG)Melt! – Melt! GmbH & Co. KG Club-Tournee of the Year (presented by Ströer Deutsche Städte Medien GmbH)Bonaparte – Melt! Booking Concert of the Year„Heimspiel“ 20 Jahre Fantastische Vier auf dem Cannstatter Wasen in Stuttgart –Musikwirtschaft.de Artistmanagement of the Year Markus Bruns (Brunetti Management Berlin) – Peter Fox Artist Agent of the YearDEAG Classics, Berlin – David Garrett Tour-Promoter of the YearMarek Lieberberg Konzertagentur, Frankfurt/M. Local-Promoter of the YearSemmel Concerts, Bayreuth/Berlin/Chemnitz Location of the YearDresdner Elbufer – PAN Veranstaltungslogistik und Kulturgastronomie, Dres-den Club of the Year – The „Club-Award“ of Initiative MusikSO36 Berlin – Sub Opus 36 Award of the JuryFKP Scorpio – Festivals ‘Rolling Stone Weekender’ and ‘Plage Noir’ Young Talent Support of the Year (presented by Veltins-Arena)
Support-Team of Philipp Poisel: Ralf Schröter (Management), Konzertagentur Peter Rieger, Grönland-Label, Ferryhouse Productions, Musicmonster (Produk-tion), Musikpromotion Eberhard Pacak. New Style Event of the YearBoese & Friends – Die Atzen Tour 2009 Lifetime AchievementHans R. Beierlein
Scooter
12
VIP-BOOKING.COM
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
we:lIVe to Curate live Conference dayat The Great escape 2010Allan McGowan [email protected]
we:LIVE, the association for independent
venue owners and promoters, which was
launched last year will present a day at The
Great Escape in Brighton (my home town
as you may be aware – Ed.). The plan is
for this day to bring together indie venue
owners and gig promoters we:LIVE aims
to “promote and facilitate the sharing of
knowledge and expertise through direct
resources as well as implementing best
business practices and promoting the
standing and interests of [indie players] in
the music industry at large”.
we:LIVE’s chair and founder Dominique
Czopor told CMU: “we:LIVE is excited to be
curating the Live day at TGE this year. As
well as the benefits of sharing knowledge
and expertise, working with TGE offers in-
dependent promoters and venue owners
the opportunity to put names to faces, and
to also discuss new business opportunities
with colleagues. As well as being a social
event, we:LIVE recognises the need for dis-
cussion and debate on the current issues
facing our industry today”.
we:LIVE will also be presenting training
modules from the Award for Music Pro-
moters (Level 2) (see below) and hope that
as many promoters and venue owners
will take up the opportunity to test their
knowledge, and hopefully learn some-
thing new about their industry.
The Live Day on Saturday May 15 will also
include two panels dealing with new meth-
ods of promoting, - ‘The Next Stage’, and
money raising, ‘Where’s the Fun in Fund-
ing?’, chaired by a certain VIP-News Editor.
Elsewhere in The Great Escape’s confer-
ence programme, once again the music
business fest will be teaming up with the
Brighton Festival - the programmed arts
festival that takes place in the seaside city
throughout May. Those joint events will
include some chatter with and from mu-
sic writers Nick Kent, John Niven and John
Harris, led by The Observer’s Garry Mulhol-
land.
Dominique Czopor
13
VIP-BOOKING.COM
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
New uK Music Promoter Qualification (AMP)devised by BIIABAllan McGowan [email protected]
The BIIAB (the awarding body of the Brit-
ish Institute of Innkeeping) Award for
Music Promoters (AMP) is said to be the
first qualification of its kind to be devised,
written and developed specifically for
music promoters. The aptly nicknamed
‘AMP’ qualification purports to give any-
one wishing to put on a music event an
excellent grounding in all the aspects
they will need to consider any music
genre.
Domnique Czopor, Founder of inde-
pendent venue and promoter network
WE:Live, who has been involved with
development of the AMP, said: “This is ex-
actly what the industry needs and I’ve been
really impressed with the way the steering
committee have taken a rounded approach
to the role of a music event organiser. No
stone has been left unturned and the course
will ensure the music promoters of tomor-
row are savvy, well-informed and aware of
their legal responsibilities.”
The creators of the qualification say that it
is aimed at improving the standard, qual-
ity and legacy of promoters and events,
which in, in turn, will increase custom-
ers’ confidence and have a positive im-
pact of stimulating the entertainments
and leisure economy. The BIIAB AMP,
has received widespread support from
candidates involved in the pilot, includ-
ing names such as BBC Radio 1 Xtra, Inc
Group and Global Radio.
Aspects addressed within the course are:
* Importance of early engagement with
stakeholders.
• Projectmanagementtoolsandtech-
niques.
• Financialmanagement
• Marketing/PromotionalMix.
• RiskAssessment
• Environmentalimpacts/wasteman-
agement
• Managementofnoise.
• Transportmanagement
• LicensingAct2003.
• Doorpolicy.
• Evaluationofapromotion.
The qualification is supported by a work-
book, which acts as a “how to” guide for
future use by candidates. The course will
be delivered throughout the country by
a network of approved training centres.
To date, just under twenty centres have
signed up and been given the thumbs up
to deliver it. For more information or to
find a training centre, visit:
www.biiab.org
VIP-News is not aware, although we have
asked around, of promoters who have
advised on the content of these cours-
es, and is not sure who will be teaching
them. Generally promoters in the UK have
been sceptical about ‘recognised qualifi-
cations’, and worry that local authorities,
police etc, may begin to insist, particular-
ly in pubs and clubs which are members
of The British Institute of Innkeepers, on
promoters holding one of these qualifica-
tions as some sort of guarantee of expe-
rience and quality, in the same way that
they would expect the licensee to hold
the sort of qualifications that BIIAB cur-
rently oversee, even though the live in-
dustry in general has not fully backed the
scheme. Still, this is aimed at grass-roots
and small venue promoters and attempts
to improve the industry should not be
dismissed, We remain open minded and
will watch developments, we will also be
attending the AMP launch at London club
Cargo on May 27 and will report back!
14
VIP-BOOKING.COM
14
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
As long as the northern skies are volcanic
ash free on April 30th, I will be flying to
Norway for the 18th Bergenfest. The Fes-
tival takes place in 10 venues around the
City, ranging from small clubs to theatres
and concert halls, and this edition features
Lou Reed, The Proclaimers, The New York
Dolls, Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, Thomas
Dybdahl, Femi Kuti and many others.
One of my main reasons for attending
is that this will be the first of the newly
‘twinned’ festivals. On the 1st March 2010,
The Association of Independent Festivals, a
not for profit body set up in 2008 to repre-
sent independent music festivals in the UK
and Ireland launched a new initiative, AIF
Twin Festivals: A Cultural Exchange, which
partners the UK’s leading independent
festivals with their counterparts abroad.
This is the second year that The Associa-
tion of Independent Festivals has looked
to build links with non-UK festivalgoers
and follows 2009’s successful partnership
with VisitBritain. (See end of article).
Based on the twin towns concept, festi-
vals will be paired with likeminded and
similarly structured festivals from coun-
tries from around the world. Participating
festivals will help promote their twin’s
festival locally, and be encouraged to
take part in artist exchanges and talent
discussions to help co-ordinate bookings
of international artists and stimulate con-
versations with local music authorities for
investment.
As part of the initiative all festivals involved
will be obliged to include links on their
website to their twin’s site, and include the
twinned names on flyers, marketing ma-
terials and in their PR campaigns to local
media, and help market their international
twin through their media channels once
(although maybe this may have to wait un-
til their own event has sold out?)
In addition to this each festival will ‘ex-
change’ a minimum of 10 pairs of tickets
with their twin to be given away via com-
petitions and promotions.
Festivals that have already been part-
nered under the scheme include:
• Bestival,IsleOfWight&Melt Ferropolis, Germany
• BigSessionFestival Leicester & Tønder Festival, Denmark
• FieldDay London & Øya Festival, Norway
• GladeFestival Winchester & Symbiosis Gathering,
California, USA
• SummerSundaeWeekender Leicester & Bergenfest, Norway
• StandonCalling Hertfordshire & Calvi On The Rocks,
Corsica, France
• NozstockFestival Herefordshire & Italia Wave Love Festival,
Livorno, Italy
• EdenSessions Cornwall & Airwaves, Reykjavík, Iceland
The idea is certainly novel and the pros-
pects are quite intriguing, VIP-News spoke
to agent and festival organiser Rob Chal-
lice, the originator of the concept and
Frank Nes, who have twinned their events,
Summer Sundae Weekender, Leicester &
Bergenfest, Norway.
VIP-News: How did this idea come aboutinthefirstplace,andwhen?Alsowastheconcept immediately welcomed and un-derstood on your first approaches to thefestivals?
Rob Challice: I can’t remember where
I was driving, but the idea came to me
when I passed one of those ‘twin-town’
signs and thought it would be great to
set up a similar ‘twin-festival’ concept.
Twin Town relationships are traditionally
formed to promote cultural and commer-
cial ties between towns and regions. It felt
like the idea could easily be applied to like-
minded independent festivals.
When I pitched it to Rob Da bank and Ben
Turner (fellow AIF board members) they
embraced it straight away, the idea really
communicates itself immediately. Once
the AIF board started discussing the idea
it was obvious that there was huge poten-
tial developing various initiatives between
twinned festivals. We subsequently devel-
oped a series of logos that have a visual
impact; these incorporate the respective
twinned festivals.
Frank Nes: My colleagues and I had loosely
discussed setting up a new open air festi-
val in Bergen at the time of Summer Sun-
dae-ish, ie in August, and looked at setting
up a partnership with a UK or Scandina-
vian festival. When Rob contacted me re
the twin festival idea it was quite funny as I
was about to call him to discuss a partner-
ship of some kind with Summer Sundae.
So, yes, I was immediately keen, to put it
mildly. The concept was indeed welcomed
by my colleagues and myself. It is such a
great idea.
VIP-News:Didcertaintwinningsseemob-vious,orwasitamatterofputtingtogeth-er the first events to respond? I see thereisoneUStwinning,howwasthatdecidedupon,alsoareanyofthetwinningsbasedonexistingtwinCityarrangements?
Challice: Essentially the onus is on the in-
dividual AIF festivals to find suitable twins.
With the two Leicester based festivals I
AIF New ‘Twin’ Independent Festivals Initiative – Bergenfest 1st eventAllan McGowan [email protected]
15
VIP-BOOKING.COM
15
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
am involved in, Summer Sundae Week-
ender and Big Session Festival, I wanted to
‘twin’ with two events that are based on
a similar ethos. Bergenfest, Norway and
Tonder Festival, Denmark are both city
based events that are very rooted in their
respective areas. Everybody involved in
these events (organisers, the audience,
the staff, the volunteers etc) have a very
strong sense of ownership that helps de-
fine the events.
I’ve travelled to Bergenfest and Tonder
Festival numerous times and found the
experience of these events and the re-
spective cities inspirational. I know, for
example, that when Oysterband and I first
talked to Richard Haswell at Leicester De
Montfort Hall about starting Big Session,
Tonder Festival was a big reference point
for us. Tonder has a very strong identity
both with international folk acts and in
its region (Jutland, Denmark and North
Germany) I knew if Oysterband were go-
ing to be directly associated with a festival
they would want it to contain a bit of the
Tonder magic.
With regards to Summer Sundae and Ber-
genfest, the key reason for me wanting to
twin the events is the organiser Frank Nes
and his team. They’ve put Bergen on the
map as a destination for acts touring in-
ternationally. Frank has great taste in mu-
sic and he’s always coming up with new
ideas.
Frank Nes: I have known Rob since the
mid 90’s and he also represent acts from
Bergen (Kings of Convenience), thus his
knowledge of Bergen and Bergenfest is
very good. Bergenfest is an indoor, club/
venue-based festival, but we share a lot
when it comes to musical taste - program-
ming a broad palette of artists and genres.
Otherwise we have a strong focus on qual-
ity and love for what we do and I think this
applies to both festivals’ basic ideas of
how to run an event.
VIP-News: This is flagged as a culturalexchange, and these elements are obvi-ous - as far as you know have local andnational -authorities become involved inthe initiative? Certainly there also seemstobeanobviousopeningwith tradeandeconomics, initially for tourism interestsandperhapsinotherareas,hashisaspectbeen-orwillitbe-exploited?
Challice: We are encouraging the twin fes-
tivals to do ticket swaps and invite media
from one country to another. Local press
in Bergen and Leicester have already given
coverage to the initiative for the festivals
I am involved in. It goes without saying
that festivals often give their audiences
a cultural window to the world outside
their region. With Bergenfest and Summer
Sundae we are going to ‘swap’ volunteers.
We’re also sending a couple of journalists
over to Bergen to write about the city. I
see these ‘twinned’ links developing over
time; we’re not going to be able to achieve
everything in the first year.
Nes: We have involved the regional tourist
board from day one on this and we look
forward to being able to help each other
out on developing new ideas. Bergen as a
tourist destination is very strong, being the
main access point for tourists exploring the
fjords and mountains. Also Bergen has a
strong cultural history with names like Ole
Bull and Edvard Grieg as strong identity
bearers and important for tourism.
With contemporary acts like Kings of Con-
venience, sondre Lerche, Datarock, Mag-
net, Casiokids and Röyksopp either hailing
from or being located in Bergen it is a lot
to build on in establishing Bergen as a des-
tination for a different kind of target and
age group. Not to forget the strong Metal
music history in Bergen. A lot of individual
travellers visit Bergen to explore the tracks
of famed (and infamous) Bergen acts like
Immortal, Gorgoroth, Enslaved and Bur-
zum/Varg Vikernes. The metal travellers
are actually so great in numbers, a finan-
cial paper aptly named them ‘blackpack-
ers’ when analysing travels to Bergen. Ad-
ditionally one of my collegues, Pytten, is
the main producer of many of these acts
and his recording studio is located in the
same building as our offices, thus we have
our fair share of people in black knocking
on our door during the year wanting to
see his studios... There are a lot of avenues
to build on and the regional tourist board
is keen to be part of it using the contem-
porary music scene to increase tourism to
Bergen.
VIP-News: There is mention of artist ex-changes - will this involve events in thetwinninglocationsattimesotherthanthefestivalsthemselves-clubdatesetc?CouldthisbeanexpansionoftheJaJaClubidea(Nordicactsappear regularlyat this clubnight in London), and the Oya Festival’sLondonclubinitiative?
Challice: We will announce a Bergen band
for Summer Sundae. Some of the best
Scandinavian bands originate from Ber-
gen, Kings of Convenience etc.
Nes: I think this can be a great way of mak-
ing artist exchanges and this is something Frank Nes
16
VIP-BOOKING.COM
16
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
we have a strong focus on. Historically Ber-
geners have always looked west to the UK
for inspiration, much more so than look-
ing eastwards towards Oslo or Sweden
(heaven forbid...). Thus, Bergen-based acts
have a sound that I think UK punters and
buyers easily can relate to. Then there’s the
Vikings, of course … a lot of Norwegian
blood in UK genes...
VIP-News:Willall themutualpromotion-al activities be agreed on and handledthroughdiscussionsbetweenthetwinnedevents, or will there be someone, an AIFrepresentative perhaps, operating anoverview,andadvising?
Challice: It’s between the twinned festi-
vals to work out what is best. AIF supply
the Twinned Logo and some suggestions
on how the respective partnerships can
work. The AIF board will assess how it de-
velops in the first year and see if we need
to give more hands on advice.
Nes: This is something which I take for
granted will be explored and it will be vital
for the success of the twin festival initiative.
VIP-News:It’sstillearlydaysofcourse,butaretherealreadymoreideasforthedevel-opmentoftheinitiative?
»There’s a lot of interesting festivals involved and as faras I can see it, we all share a
common interest inGREAT music«
- Frank Nes
Nes: It’s early days, indeed. Let’s do this sea-
son, sit down and get the broader perspec-
tive of things. Then we can move ahead and
develop this into a strong and long lasting
unit. There’s a lot of interesting festivals in-
volved and as far as I can see it, we all share
a common interest in GREAT music. That
should always be the basis and I think we
are on to something good with this whole
set-up. AIF’s initiative is very good.
Challice: Yes, there are still AIF members
from the UK who have not landed an inter-
national twin yet. If potential international
festivals want to get further information
they should email Claire O’Neill, AIF or-
ganiser: [email protected]
Other participating Festival Promoters
also had positive views on the initiative:
Stefan Lehmkuhl - Melt, Germany: I’m en-
thusiastic about the idea of the cultural ex-
change between European festivals. Espe-
cially when it comes to independent and
very individual open-air events it’s going
to be an exciting and creative process, as
I’m convinced we’re all on the same page
music wise.
Edouard Rostand - Clavi On The Rocks,
Corsica: It is an honour for Calvi On the
Rocks to partner up with Standon Calling.
We share same values and artistic views.
We are both small festivals and want to
keep it innovative and open-minded. This
twinning will start with cross promotion
on our networks this year.
Nick Ladd - Glade Festival, Winchester:
We are really pleased to be twinned with
Symbiosis in California.... the premier elec-
tronic music experience stateside. It’s what
the San Francisco 60’s scene has evolved
into, an amazing international gathering
created by people with true spirit and it
reflects the Glades commitment to cutting
edge music, incredible site art, non-com-
mercialisation and shanty vibes.
In 2009 AIF negotiated to become part of a
£1.8 million marketing initiative organised
by VisitBritain. The European Value Cam-
paign, ran across 18 key European countries,
and was aimed at the 25-35 age group. Using
the slogan “See More For Less”, VisitBritain
focused on the benefits offered by the weak
pound and Britain’s relatively compact land
area. The campaign included press adver-
tising, direct mail, a web micro site and pr
support and as part of the deal AIF members
offered overseas visitors a 20% discount on
festival tickets purchased through the Visit-
Britain site. The inclusion of AIF in the scheme
was recognition of the value of Britain’s inde-
pendent festivals as cultural assets, and as
an enticement to tourists who may wish to
extend their stay and explore the country
further.
www.aiforg.com
17
VIP-BOOKING.COM
17
Best business year ever for concert pro-
moters in the Switzerland.
The Swiss Music Promoters Association
(SMPA) has released its business report for
2009 and reported an increase for all key
figure sectors. The organisation’s associ-
ated companies jointly returned a turno-
ver of about 250 million Swiss Francs (174
million Euros). The total number of con-
certs, events and festivals promoted in-
creased by 4.1 percent from 1002 to 1043
shows. The visitor figures for all shows
was 4.564.335 compared to 4.526.925 the
year before, the number of tickets sold
rose from 2.630.648 to 2.793.742. The aver-
age ticket price increased from 82.40 CHF
(57.50 Euro) to 84.20 CHF (58.70 Euro).
The biggest gain of the reported key figures
was the turnover. The overall revenue in-
cluding income from sponsoring, catering
and ticket sales rose from 230.455.386 (160
million Euro) to 250.327.349 CHF (174 million
Euro), a plus of 8.6 percent. The number of
promoted artists rose from 2.246 to 2.308.
The 24 member companies employ 185
people (176 in 2008) as fulltime staff.
Nevertheless Swiss promoters ventured
concerns about having to cope with high-
er expenses for artists and higher spend-
ing for additional staff requirements
for safety and environmental rules. The
organisation furthermore fears an at-
tempt by the consumer organisation SKS
(Stiftung für Konsumentenschutz) and a
high ranked politician to appeal for a law
enforcing personalized tickets in order
to prevent dynamic pricing for concert
tickets.
In reference to this the SMPA concludes
that the current ticket system does not
support such a function and that it will
lead to more cost intensive efforts for
door control. The complete report is
available at the website www.smpa.ch in
French and German.
The German concert market leader has
announced that it will pay shareholders a
dividend of 0.83 Euro per share.
Backed by record-breaking results in the
business year 2009, CTS Eventim will dis-
tribute 19.9 million Euros amongst its
shareholders. The company reported that
it had been able to increase results in all
business sectors. In 2009 CTS Eventim
gained revenue of 466,7 million Euros, an
increase of about 15.4 percent compared
with 404.4 million Euro in 2008. The EBIT
(Earnings before Interest and Taxes) went
up from 50.3 million to 71.3 million Euros,
the EBITDA (Earnings before Interest and
Taxes, Depreciation and Amortisation)
from 57.8 million to 80 million Euros. As
Net Result CTS Eventim reported 39.9 mil-
lion compared with 29.2 million Euro in
2008.
The outlook for 2010 includes plans to pro-
ceed with the growth policy of its online-
ticketing and the expansion of the compa-
ny into foreign markets. The management
furthermore declared that it expects to
raise revenue and earnings results in 2010.
Since the beginning of the year the share
increased from 34.2 to 39.0 Euro. Neither
the news that Live Nation has opened a
German office or that Live Nation intend
to end business relations with CTS Even-
tim for the ticketing business in the US had
a negative impact on the share. CTS Even-
tim currently has a market capitalisation of
945,6 million Euro and net debts of about
98.4 million Euro.
DEAG has also been able to increase its
business results.
The live music stock market pioneer DEAG
delivered business results in line with
expectations. After the company had to
compensate for the departure of Crea-
tive Talent and music pool earlier in 2009,
DEAG managed to restructure its compa-
ny portfolio. The revenue rose from 109.5
million in 2008 to 116.7 million Euro, the
EBIT went up from minus 3.1 million to
7.9 million Euro, the EBITDA grew from
3.7 million to 6.4 million Euro and the net
result turned from a minus of 11.1 million
Euro into plus of 0.5 million Euros.
DEAG-CEO Peter Schwenkow extended
his contract until 2015. Unlike CTS Eventim
DEAG intents to expand its business by fol-
lowing a 360 degrees business strategy,
setting up joint ventures with Sony Music
and Klassik Radio, among others. In particu-
lar DEAG expanded its business with classi-
cal music concerts and shows featuring art-
ists such as Jessye Norman, Anna Netrebko,
Philippe Jaroussky and David Garrett.
Nevertheless since January the DEAG
share price went down from 2.20 to 1.85
Euro. The company currently has a market
capitalisation of 34.15 million euro and
net debts of 11.2 million Euro.
Business NewsManfred Tari [email protected]
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
swiss Music Promoter Association reports record Breaking Year
CTs eventim Pays Out Highest dividend
deutsche entertainment Back on the Profit Track
VIP-BOOKING.COM
Admiral TTerritory: WorldwidePeriod: 2010-2011Agency: CARAMBA SpectaclesAgent: ClotairePhone: +33 1 4218 1718E-mail: [email protected]: www.caramba.fr
lady GaGaTerritory: EuropePeriod: Spring 2010 onwardsAgency: William Morris Endeavor Ent.Agent: David LevyPhone: +44 20 7534 6800E-mail: [email protected]: www.ladygaga.com
ChristelleTerritory: WorldwidePeriod: 2010Agency: McGann MusicAgent: Don McGannPhone: +1 702 927 0100E-mail: [email protected]: www.christellemusic.com
Fischer-ZTerritory: EuropePeriod: 01/07/2010 - 31/12/2010Agency: Artist AgencyAgent: Bart QuintensPhone: +32 1677 7670E-mail: [email protected]: www.artistagency.be
sass JordanTerritory: EuropePeriod: November 2010Agency: Paperclip AgencyAgent: Hilde SpillePhone: +31 24 323 9322E-mail: [email protected]: www.paperclip-agency.com
sweetTerritory: WorldwidePeriod: Generally availableAgency: ABS AgencyAgent: Nigel KerrPhone: +44 208 399 3474E-mail: [email protected]: www.thesweet-now.com
18
artist avails ››
MORE ARTIST AVAILS ON:WWW.VIP-bOOkING.COM
POST YOuR ARTIST AVAILS ON:WWW.VIP-bOOkING.COM
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
The merger is done, now it appears that Live Nation needs financial backing
to re-organise it debts.
The world’s biggest concert promoter has announced that it intends to issue
a $250million bond in order to re-finance some of its outstanding debts. At
the end of 2009 Live Nation and Ticketmaster had combined debts of about
$1.552 billion. Live Nation and the purchaser will negotiate the bond condi-
tions individually. Preferred buyers are institutional investors. Currently the
share of Live Nation is at $15.15 and the company has a market capitalisation
of $1.008 billion. Unfortunately U2 and Madonna can’t be considered as insti-
tutional investors, can they?
PRESS RELEASE:
LOS ANGELES, April 19, 2010 – Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. (“Live Nation”)
(NYSE: LYV) today announced that it intends to offer, subject to market and
other conditions, $250 million aggregate principal amount of senior notes
(“Notes”). The Notes will be offered in a private placement in the United States
to qualified institutional buyers pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities
Act of 1933 and to non-U.S. persons outside the United States pursuant to
Regulation S under the Securities Act. The offering price, interest rate and
other terms will be determined by negotiations between Live Nation and the
initial purchasers. The Notes will be unsecured. Live Nation intends to use the
net proceeds from the offering along with borrowings under a new senior
secured credit facility to repay in full the borrowings under its existing credit
facility and the credit facilities of its wholly-owned subsidiary, Ticketmaster
Entertainment LLC, convert existing preferred stock of one of its subsidiaries
into the right to receive a cash payment and pay related fees and expenses.
The completion of the offering of the Notes is conditioned upon our entering
into the new credit facility.
This press release is being issued pursuant to Rule 135c under the Securities
Act and does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy
securities. Any offer of the securities will be made only by means of a private
offering memorandum. The Notes have not been registered under the Securi-
ties Act or the securities laws of any other jurisdiction and may not be offered
or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption
from registration requirements.Forward-Looking StatementsThis press re-
lease contains forward-looking statements regarding Live Nation’s intention
to issue the Notes and its intended use of the resulting proceeds. There is no
assurance that Live Nation will successfully complete the proposed offering
or use the proceeds as presently intended. Investors should not place undue
reliance on forward-looking statements as predictions of future results. Live
Nation undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking
statements to reflect developments or information obtained after the date
of this press release.
live Nation looking for Money
19
VIP-BOOKING.COM
notiCe board ››
Another new service in the improved and redesigned VIP-News is the Notice-board, which is available for all readers. Reader’s messages will be posted on the Notice-board as a free service, passing on announcements, job postings, buy-ing and selling notices, inquiries or alike. Announcements should be emailed to [email protected]
VIP- News - A u g u s t 2 0 0 5
19
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
VIP-Booking ApS cannot be held responsible for loss or damages
incurred as a result of transactions with individuals or companies
through the notice board. We recommend all to make the necessary
enquiries before entering into any agreements.
VIP-Booking ApS may not, for reason of space, be able to post all
announcements received. Announcements should be emailed to
[email protected], including name and email address.
Please shorten your message to the extent possible, to make room for
as many notices as possible.
edge Performance raises more than £32m
Wednesday 21 April 2010: Entertainment
industry investment and advisory group
Edge has announced that its specialist en-
tertainment funds the Edge Performance
VCT (EPVCT) and the Edge Performance EIS
fund together raised £32.1m in their latest
fundraising round, nearly three times last
year’s total.
It makes the 2009/2010 fundraising round
Edge’s most successful yet and brings the
total raised by Edge since it launched four
years ago to £88m.
This success further consolidates Edge’s
lead as the UK’s biggest manager of spe-
cialist investment funds in live music and
events, and also catapults EPVCT into sec-
ond-place in the overall UK VCT fundrais-
ing rankings for this year.
The announcement comes just two weeks
after music industry lobbying group UK
Music, headed by former Undertone Fear-
gal Sharkey, highlighted access to finance
as one of the UK music industry’s greatest
challenges.
The Edge Performance funds now have
£32m more to invest in the music, live
events and entertainment industry, says
Edge Group founder David Glick.
”Too many great businesses in the entertain-
ment industry struggle for want of the invest-
ment they need to grow,” said Glick. “Edge’s
success in raising funds for the sector will al-
low us to play an increasing role in helping
good executives reach their potential.”
EPVCT originally set out to offer 10m shares
but in February 2010 increased this to 20m
and then subsequently to 30m.
Edge benefited from the increased popu-
larity of VCT investments this year, said
Glick, but it also increased its market
share.
“Key to our success has been the timely,
above target, return in June last year of cash
to holders of EPVCT’s original 2006 Ordinary
share issue,” he said. “When we started out,
investors had long believed that the enter-
tainment business was too risky a business
to countenance. By leveraging our industry
knowledge and targeting our investment on
executives with a real track record we believe
we have gone a long way towards reshaping
that perception.”
Edge’s reputation has been built on the
quality of an executive team which in-
cludes not just renowned music industry
dealmaker Glick himself, but also impre-
sario Harvey Goldsmith, former Sony Mu-
sic business affairs head Alasdair George,
VCT pioneer Gordon Power, Elton John
manager Frank Presland, former Emap and
HMV Group chairman Sir Robin Miller and
superstar DJ Pete Tong.
“Access to the best people is a key advantage
in a people business like entertainment,“
said Glick. “We believe that our background
in the entertainment business not only gives
us access to better opportunities, but also
enables us to evaluate them better than our
competitors. This year’s fundraising success
suggests the investment community agrees
with us.”
Companies in which Edge Performance VCT
has invested have promoted more than 200
live concerts in total since December 2006
featuring artists ranging from Kanye West
to Backstreet Boys, Eric Clapton and recent
Grammy Award winner Jeff Beck.
Biggest offer yet takes total raised to £88m
20
VIP-BOOKING.COM
Speak out - participate in the debate. The VIP-News Reader’s-page is open for letters and contributions from readers. Consider the VIP-News Reader’s-page, as your “speaker’s corner” towards professionals in the entertainment industry all over Europe. The purpose of the Reader’s-page is to encourage more interaction and to allow our readers to voice their opinions about the many aspects of our industry. Contributions should be emailed to [email protected].
readers page ››
20
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
VIP-Booking ApS cannot be held responsible for loss or damages
incurred as a result of transactions with individuals or companies
through the notice board. We recommend all to make the necessary
enquiries before entering into any agreements.
VIP-Booking ApS may not, for reason of space, be able to post all
announcements received. Announcements should be emailed to
[email protected], including name and email address.
Please shorten your message to the extent possible, to make room for
as many notices as possible.
red entertainment AgencyRed Entertainment Agency is proud to
announce the Worldwide Exclusive rep-
resentation of one of the most critically
acclaimed bands of the last three decades
10,000 MANIACS
Carlos keyes
Red Entertainment Agency
Email: [email protected]
Tel: +1-212-563-7575
Fax: +1-212-563-9393
10,000 Maniacs
These Are The Days
#1 Billboard Alternative, #34 AC
Trouble Me
#3 Billboard Alternative, #7 AC,
#20 Mainstream
because The Night
#11 Billboard Hot 100,
#7 Alternative, #9 AC
More Than This
#25 US Billboard Hot 100
Candy Everybody Wants
#5 Billboard Alternative
What’s The Matter Here
#9 Billboard Alternative
Like The Weather
#37 Billboard Mainstream
Please contact Carlos Keyes for avail-
able dates. See website for roster:
RedEntertainmentAgency
21
VIP-BOOKING.COM
In this section we offer members of VIP-booking.com some space to present their company to VIP-News readers. If you would also like to present your company please contact Peter briggs at [email protected]
MeMber presentation ››
In this section we offer members of VIP-booking.com some space to present their company to VIP-News readers. If you would also like to present your company please contact Peter briggs at [email protected]
®
vip-booking.com
VIP-BOOKING.COMVIP-BOOKING.COM | 26 York Street | UK - London W1U 6pZ | Phone +44 870 755 0092 | Fax +44 870 622 1953 | e-mail: [email protected]
21
About Our Company
VIP-Booking’s core product is the Internet’s oldest and largest data-base for the European Live Entertainment Industry www.vip-book-ing.com developed as a tool for industry professionals. Since it’s launch in the year 2000, we have consistently offered our subscrib-ers the very best in database services and now boast subscribers in over 30 countries.
Today VIP-Booking offers a range of tools for the industry – inclu-ding VIP-News, VIP-Booking, VIP-Book and VIP-Contract.
Please visit vip-booking.com for further information.
Your comments and suggestions are always appreciated.
VIP- News - A p r i l 2 0 1 0
König-Pilsener-AreNA- sMG entertainment deutschland GmbHThe König-Pilsener-ARENA is a multi-functional venue, offering a
superb setting for a variety of sports events, theatrical presenta-
tions, ice-skating and concerts. Flexible configurations provide
room for audiences ranging from 800 to 13,000 who enjoy family
shows such as Disney on Ice, sports including handball matches,
musicals like Grease, and concerts from rock and pop icons and
orchestras alike.
Since its opening in 1996, the Kõnig-Pilsener-ARENA has earned a
reputation as one of the most sophisticated venues in Europe, of-
fering excellent operational facilities and an unforgettable experi-
ence for all its visitors. The König-Pilsener-ARENA meets the latest
standards in engineering, architecture and security.
Its central location, at the heart of one of Europe’s largest con-
urbations, the Ruhr area, means the Arena is easily accessible by
road, rail and air for the 15 million people living within an hour’s
drive-time. The arena offers great accessibility with 12 motorway
junctions, more than 10,000 free parking spaces, bus and tram ter-
minals immediately outside the venues.
König-Pilsener-ARENA
Top Related