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The Live Entertainment Panel (co-moderated by RotD editor Nicola Slade and ILMC's Allan Macgowan) was a predictably no-nonsense affair.
With panelists such as Harvey Goldsmith and Australian promoter Michael Chugg in attendance, it was hardly a surprise that straight talking would be the order of the day. The panel touched on many subjects in a lively and personable fashion: 360 degree deals, which Ossy Hoppe (Scandinavian booker) decried with enthusiasm, while Goldsmith surprisingly defended (to a point);brand sponsorship as a means of investment in live music (AEG Live managing director Jessica Koravos revealed that O2 invest £6m in the AEG-run venue in London each year).
New technologies was also broached as a subject (all agreed that webcasting and the like have failed to take off owing to the simple fact it is hard to replicate a live show). However, the real hot topic of the hour was addressing the growing problem that middle-weight acts (Goldsmith cited Sheryl Crow as an example) are failing to reach the 'upper echelons' of touring where they might sell out arenas or stadiums.
A lot of the blame was aimed squarely at record companies who are often seen to give up on an act too soon. CAA agent Emma Banks was brave in suggesting that the public's need for immediacy has meant that acts only tend to get one shot these days. In conclusion though, the general feeling about the live sector was upbeat and optimistic, suggesting that even in times of economic difficulty the industry still has the strength to survive.
With panelists such as Harvey Goldsmith and Australian promoter Michael Chugg in attendance, it was hardly a surprise that straight talking would be the order of the day. The panel touched on many subjects in a lively and personable fashion: 360 degree deals, which Ossy Hoppe (Scandinavian booker) decried with enthusiasm, while Goldsmith surprisingly defended (to a point);brand sponsorship as a means of investment in live music (AEG Live managing director Jessica Koravos revealed that O2 invest £6m in the AEG-run venue in London each year).
New technologies was also broached as a subject (all agreed that webcasting and the like have failed to take off owing to the simple fact it is hard to replicate a live show). However, the real hot topic of the hour was addressing the growing problem that middle-weight acts (Goldsmith cited Sheryl Crow as an example) are failing to reach the 'upper echelons' of touring where they might sell out arenas or stadiums.
A lot of the blame was aimed squarely at record companies who are often seen to give up on an act too soon. CAA agent Emma Banks was brave in suggesting that the public's need for immediacy has meant that acts only tend to get one shot these days. In conclusion though, the general feeling about the live sector was upbeat and optimistic, suggesting that even in times of economic difficulty the industry still has the strength to survive.
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The music industry is undergoing profound change on an unprecedented scale and on an accelerated timetable. Most industry professionals attending the Global Forum believe that CD sales will dramatically decline in the next two years, and that monetizing user-generated content will be the wave of the future.
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adolfo
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