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29.05.10 Music Week 3

at stations to BBC Trust ower of 6

close it would leave 1m-plus listeners disenfranchised, it argues.

Its submission includes a statement from its chief executive Feargal Sharkey, who says the station’s presenters give “new talent a break, they take risks and – ultimately – epitomise the Reithian values of public service broadcasting”.

UK Music goes on to argue that the BBC has a Charter to “stimulate creativity and cultural excellence” and that 6 is the “singlemost-important vehicle for achieving this for a sizeable part of the UK’s musical talent”. According to its submission, more than 750 UK artists registered with PRS would be denied any kind of BBC audience without 6. The only royalties these 750 artists receive, according to PRS figures, are because of airplay on the station.

In backing up its arguments, UK Music also provides case studies from plugging f irm Anorak London, Full Time Hobby Records and Moshi Moshi, which, it is noted, won early support for Florence + The Machine from 6 when presenter Steve Lamacq played her first demos. Florence has since gone on to top the UK albums chart.

In its own submission, the MU notes that 6 is “particularly important” because of its remit to support live music and new artists, while it is also “relatively cheap to run” – about five times less than Radio 1. Axing the Asian Network, meanwhile, would leave a big gap in mainstream broadcasting dedicated to supporting and encouraging Britain’s best Asian talent, it says. paul@musicweek.com

Major signs exclusive music deal with 2012 Committee

Universal strikes gold with Olympic link-up

Events By Ben Cardew

UNIVERSAL IS TO BE THE “MUSIC LICENSEE” for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, after signing a licensing deal with the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG).

“This is the first deal that has pulled together the whole company…you can’t get any bigger than the Olympics” LESLEY DOUGLAS, UNIVERSAL

The deal means Universal Music will exclusively release London 2012-branded music, including compilation albums. It also covers the composing, publishing and recording of London 2012-related music between now and the Games.

Universal director of programming and business development Lesley Douglas says the project involves “an enormous amount of music”, taking in everything from the music used in the opening and closing ceremonies to music played in the Olympic venues, sonic branding and the music associated with individual sports.

Universal will also act as a consultant to advise LOCOG on all aspects of music at the games, working closely with the organisation’s head of sport presentation and music James O’Brien.

Olympics,” says Douglas. “Because one of the USPs of the UK is music, it has always been an integral part of the 2012 Olympics.”

The first fruits of the deal were unveiled last week: Universal Publishing VP of business development and media Simon Mortimer commissioned a piece of orchestral music from unpublished composer Thomas Hewitt Jones to soundtrack the animated film that introduced the Olympic and Paralympic mascots Wenlock and Mandeville to the world.

Douglas stresses it is still early days for the deal and c r e a t i v e directors have yet to be appointed –

“It is the first deal I’ve done that has pulled together the whole company and obviously it is the highest-profile – you can’t get any bigger than the

On their marks: 2012 mascots Wenlock and Mandeville but says that opportunities will not be limited to Universal artists.

“All the music used at the Olympics won’t be Universal music. We are a partner,” she says. “Exactly how much will be known music and how much will be new music, we are still in discussion about.”

However, she says that the Olympics will offer considerable scope to showcase British music. “We would have to think that it would be a great showcase for British music, as was the closing ceremony in Beijing [where performers included Leona Lewis and Jimmy Page],” she explains.

LOCOG commercial director Chris Townsend adds, “From playing music to building up the atmosphere before events, to soundtracks to film and, of course, music at ceremonies, there is a massive role for music at the Games.”

One aspect of the 2012 Games that will not come under Universal’s remit, however, is the Festival 2012 – a 12-week festival from June 21 to September 9 2012 that is part of the Cultural Olympiad, featuring “leading artists from around the world” playing in cities all over the UK. The UK music industry and the BBC are both expected to be heavily involved.

In addition, with the appointment earlier this month of Jeremy Hunt as Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport, many in the industry believe the link between the cultural industries and the Olympics will become ever stronger. ben@musicweek.com

German society switch to swell PPL coffers

PPL WILL ADD SIGNIFICANTLY to its international income this year after persuading German society GVL to dump its previous performer distribution method and switch to a system based on tracks broadcast.

The new deal, under which GVL will gradually shift from its current system based on a performer’s salary earnings in Germany to one based on public performance, will see payments to UK artists increase by around 600% initially and more in the future.

Executive director Peter Leathem, who has held in-depth negotiations with the Germans on this issue over the last couple of years, estimates that under a new interim deal GVL will deliver €3m (£2.6m) in its next payment to PPL later this year – previously the level of payments had been around the €500,000 (£432,000) mark.

However, with the massive amount of British music played in Germany, annual payments to the UK could increase further when the society moves from the interim arrangement to a permanent system based entirely on tracks played.

That is likely to take a year or two to come into effect because it will involve a massive IT investment and an undertaking from GVL to get its new system up and running. However, Leathem says PPL has already offered technical assistance to ensure that the huge amount of data held by both societies matches.

Leathem explains the old system for payments, which had been approved by the German competition authority, was “fairly clumsy” and not tenable in today’s climate.

It also meant that some UK artists, many of whom were unable to show any monies earned in Germany, received no money or next to nothing, despite their records being played extensively on the radio or in bars and clubs. “We thought it was out of date, there were a lot of forms to fill in and a number of other countries had concerns,” adds Leathem.

PPL chairman and CEO Fran Nevrkla is also happy the society has been persuaded to adopt the new system because it is a “big country with a lot of music usage”.

With both men now expecting to significantly add to the £21.6m overseas income PPL collected last year (up from just £15.4m in 2008), they are turning their attention to other territories and societies which make distributions based on systems other than broadcast or public performance or which have inadequate tools or systems to pay out efficiently.

Already Italy and Belgium have been highlighted as countries that are causing some concern.

IN THIS

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THE BUSINESS OF MUSIC www.musicweek.com

NEWS THE POWER OF 6 Industry rallies round under-threat station for BBC Trust consultation

FEATURES LEVINE: MUSIC MACHINE Music Week pays tribute to legendary producer

Steve Levine

29.05.10 £5.15

FEATURES MAKING ITS MARK How the German music industry bounced back

Catalogue reissue gamble pays off for Universal

Tumbling dice falls in the Stones’ favour…

Labels By Ben Cardew

UNIVERSAL’S GAMBIT OF TREATING THE REISSUE of The Rolling Stones’ Exile On Main Street as a frontline release rather than a catalogue campaign has paid off spectacularly, with the album going straight into the chart at x.

The album, which adds additional material to the original 1972 release, last week sold ???? units to become the most successful repackage of Stones material since Universal secured the rights in 2008 from EMI of the band’s post-1971 catalogue.

[The result means that Exile… is the first studio album to ever return to number one as a catalogue re-issue in the UK.]

Mick Jagger tells Music Week, “Working with Universal on the Shine A Light project proved they understood how we work [and with this news of number one in the UK, it is great news for everyone involved]. Looking back to ’72 it was worth the effort and, yes, Exile… is a great record that has stood the test of time.”

The reissue programme started with Sticky Fingers, Goats Head Soup, It’s Only Rock‘n’Roll and Black and Blue in May 2009, followed

Gathering no moss: Keith Richards and Mick Jagger for the deluxe edition.

“We treated it as if it was a new album,” says Polydor UK general manager Orla Lee. “It is about engaging with a new audience and also having new material from the time.”

Treating the album as a frontline release meant that Polydor issued two of these new songs – Plundered My Soul and Following The River – as “focus tracks” to radio and TV, creating new videos for both. Plundered My Soul was first out of the blocks and made the Radio 2 Clist, as well as picking up considerable airplay on Kerrang! radio. Following The River has just gone to radio.

“Rather than it being a reissue, there are new songs. They’ve been doing lots of interviews, radio, TV and lots of [media] takeovers,” says Lee, who explains that the band were documentary,” he adds.

This frontline approach also extends to the advertising campaign behind the reissue. “We haven’t just approached it as one ad in Record Collector – although we have done that. It has been a far-reaching campaign with outdoor advertising, online, TV and radio, the full frontline approach,” adds Lee.

What is more, Lee sees the album campaign as a sustained one, with further activity to follow, including re-promotion around Father’s Day in June.

“It is a global campaign,” Lee adds. “The midweeks around the world are very strong. It is number one midweek in Holland and three in Germany.”

“Considering Exile… is now in its fourth decade and has been reissued twice before, this is a remarkable achievement,” adds Doherty.

Keith Richards says, “Maybe because it was a double album, we knew there was going to be a sort of reaction to it in a way, just because it was very different. It shows our determination, the Stones’ point of view, that we insisted it was a double record, that you couldn’t split it up in other words. That was what we did. We’re the exiles and this is what we’re doing. It was made with that kind of

…while fans keep the faith in exclusive album

EXILE ON MAIN STREET’S chart success may have kept Faithless off the number one slot, but the band nevertheless scored the highest-charting album in the UK to have been stocked by only one physical retailer.

The Dance, the band’s sixth studio album, was released last week by the band’s own Nate’s Tunes label exclusively through Tesco and iTunes. In total, it sold x units, enough to get it to x in this week’s chart. Of these x were

Arrivals shifted 28,198 units in its first week of release and has sold just over 111,000 in the UK.]

In addition, many retailers are angry that they are unable to sell the new album from a band that they have supported throughout their career. HMV CEO Simon Fox is on record as being against retail exclusives, which he believes create a culture whereby every retailer is forced to offer their own exclusive releases, while several retailers have privately expressed their

NEWS BEGGARS BUOYED 5 The National continue UK indie’s charge across the Atlantic

MEDIA NEWS SLASH HITS

Classic Rock planning further magazine-plus CD deals

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DIGITAL NEWS MOBILE WARFARE 8 Nokia attacks rivals over their subscription strategies

PUBLISHING NEWS ELIOT JAMES INKS DEAL 10 Plan B producer signs up with EMI

LIVE NEWS SUMMER SELLOUT 12 Sensible pricing leads to record rush for festival tickets

UNEARTHED I AM ARROWS

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Former Razorlight drummer Andy Burrows steps forward

FEATURES ROCKERS GALORE 18 Exploring what reggae has in store for this summer

FEATURES PRODUCING THE GOODS 22 Music Week pays tribute to Steve Levine

FEATURES KEEPING THE FAITH 29 Profiling the enduring power of Northern soul