IKEY PUBLISHING

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 17:37:00 +0000

2013 Latin Billboard Conference & Awards

Now that the Grammy’s are over, it’s time to move onto the next big event, the 24^th Annual Latin Billboard Conference & Awards. On April 23rd 2013 the Latin music industry’s top executives, artists and music fans will gather at the JW Marriott hotel in downtown Miami to talk about what to expect from the music industry this coming year.

This year the 2-day conference will include topics such as New Music Platforms, Latin’s Leading Ladies and the popular segment of How I Wrote That Song presented by BMI. Some of this year’s panelist includes Grammy winning Latin artist Carlos Vives and a special appearance from Emilio Romano, Telemundo Media’s President.

Some of this year’s top finalist include Don Omar, Wisin Y Yandel, & Michel Telo. Not to mention some of last year’s new upcoming artists such as Grupo Treo and Juan Magan.

This year will be my 3^rd year attending the Latin Billboard Conference & Awards and I am looking forward to meeting new and exciting people during my trip to Miami. Below you will find links on how to register for this exclusive event and information regarding the locations.

For more information on Ikey Music Publishing, visit our social pages by clicking on the buttons located on the upper right hand corner. Hope to see you at the Latin Billboards April 22^nd – 25^th!

http://www.aimp.org/UserFiles/Billboard%20Latin.jpg

http://www.billboardevents.com

Rdio Acquires Cd Baby and TuneCore's Music Catalogs

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 22:30:00 +0000

Rdio Acquires New Music

Rdio, an Internet radio service, which operates in 13 major markets, has just acquired the catalogs of CD Baby and TuneCore. This major deal settled between these online music services helps raise Rdio’s catalog to over 18 million songs.

This deal was not an easy task for Rdio and faced many challenges along the way. CEO Drew Larner said in a statement “Obviousy the self-service aspect of what these guys do is going to bring a lot of indie music to the platform. We had a couple of issues we had to get over in terms of getting these deals done, but I'm pleased we did finally get them done because it's an important step."

Currently Rdio is working on a system in which artists get paid directly

and do not experience reduced ownership with time. As stated in the article, Rdio wants to be seen as “Artist Friendly.” Clearly the success of Rdio has increased significantly since 2010 starting with 7 million songs and now just over 18 million songs, an 11 million-song increase in two years.

Although Rdio has shown dramatic revenue increase and popularity, they still have hopes to attaining the music catalogs of the Beetles, Pink Floyd, and Led Zepelin. However, this is highly unlikely to happen. Larner does mention that his goal is to acquire the large range of artist-owned catalogs and out of print music still out there.

In a business aspect this is great for Rdio, CD Baby, and TuneCore. Rdio has increased their image drastically, and CD Baby along with TuneCore have entered a new business acquisition in which they will benefit financially due to the extra source of income that Rdio will be paying them.

For more music industry news and the latest on our company events join our social media sites by clicking on the buttons on the right hand corner!

http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/digital-and-mobile/rdio-licenses-3-million-tracks-from-cd-baby-1007842352.story

http://socialtimes.com/files/2011/01/Rdio-Logo-Gradient.png

Warner Chappell Acquires Master Recording's From Miramax Films

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Fri, 03 Aug 2012 21:11:00 +0000

Warner Chapelle/Miramax

Miramax films is known to have some of the most influential and powerful movies of our time such as, Good Will Hunting, Gangs Of New York, Sin City, and Finding Neverland. Along with these films great composers such as Howard Leslie Shore, and Danny Elfman have written their music. Last week Miramax and Warner Chappell reached an agreement
in which Warner Chappell will acquire Miramax’s entire master recordings.

Warner Chappell administers Miramax’s music therefore the agreement was reached due to their longtime acquisition.

With this agreement Warner Chappell owns the rights to Miramax’s master recordings and takes on the responsibility of licensing the newly acquired music to different media channels such as, film, TV, commercials, radio, Internet, advertising and games.

This is a great strategic move for Warner Chappell especially during
a challenging time for major record labels and publishers. In a time where record labels and publishers need to discover more ways to grow profits, Warner Chappell hit a grand slam with this agreement
especially since Warner Chappell will be administering music across the globe in places such as Europe and South America.

Miramax's Senior Vice President of Business Development and Strategy Mitzi Reaugh said in a statement “Miramax's partnership with Warner/Chappell is the perfect example of our strategy to collaborate with the best, and we look forward to working with Warner/Chappell on catalog and future initiatives."

My opinion on this agreement is positive; I am relieved that the music industry is coming together on many terms especially in music publishing. As mentioned in my previous blogs, technological changes such as the Internet and music products brought on unprecedented changes to the music industry, resulting in many lawsuits and the “buying out” of multiple major music businesses. Warner Chappell by far is setting the example to many businesses to come and establishing a sense of understanding as to where the future of the entertainment industry is heading.

For more industry news and information on Ikey Music Publishing click on our social media tabs on the upper right hand corner!

http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/tv-film/warner-chappell-purchases-music-rights-to-1007709162.story

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/warner-chappell-miramax-films-music-rights-356547

Black Keys, Home Depot, Pizza Hut Fight Over Infringement Case

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Tue, 26 Jun 2012 15:39:00 +0000

Unfortunately, many underestimate the importance of proper copyright registration and the damaging power that copyright infringement has on a company’s reputation. In a recent litigation reported by Billboard, Pizza Hut and Home Depot infringed on songs written and performed by the well-known band called the “Black Keys”

The band filled a federal lawsuit claiming that both Pizza Hut and Home Depot did not have the proper permissions or licenses to use their songs in commercial ads promoting their products.

The song used by Pizza Hut is called “Gold On The Ceiling” and Home Depot used “Lonely Boy”, both songs belonging to the hit album called “El Camino” which sold over 840,000 albums during last year’s release.

Spokesmen for both Pizza Hut and Home Depot claim they yet have to receive the claims, however, both companies respect intellectual property rights and take this matter seriously. The Black Keys are suing each company for copyright infringement and are suing for statutory damages that may equal up to $75,000 in damages for each company. In addition, the band is asking the court to order both company’s to immediately stop the use of these songs in their promotional ads.

This proves the importance of music publishers and our role in the music industry. Part of our responsibility for our clients is to ensure all parties requesting usage of our songs have the proper licenses and additional authorizations to do so. If not, it is our duty to ensure that those infringers are brought to justice for their inconsiderable acts.

Considering the approach both companies have made, I do feel that this infringement was not intentional, especially for Pizza Hut since they outsource their marketing efforts to The Martin Agency and The Interpublic Group Of Companies. It is unclear if Home Depot outsources their marketing, however, their concern and consideration for this matter has been acknowledge with a quick response.

To see Pizza Hut's promo video click below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6T7M1w88FU

For more music industry contents and pictures visit our Ikey Music Publishing’s Facebook Fan Page and our Twitter page. You can join these social sites by clicking on the buttons located on the right hand side of this page.

http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/legal-and-management/black-keys-sue-pizza-hut-home-depot-over-1007410352.story

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pizza_Hut

http://apesontape.com/black-keys-set-to-record-new-album-sue-pizza-hut/

http://www.merchantcircle.com/business/Home.Depot.Atlanta.GA.770-433-8211

Defining Quality Music

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Sat, 23 Jun 2012 17:22:00 +0000

Ikey Music Publishing: Quality Music

Just because a song makes you feel in an unfavorable way, does that really mean it is not good quality material? As a music creator, our mission is to reach deep inside of people’s souls and make them feel what we are feeling at that very moment, or at least make some sort of connection.

Regardless of how our lyrics, hooks, or melody arrangements make you feel, if you feel a change in mood, then we have accomplished our goal, in a way.

Recently I have read an article written by Bobby Owsinski called “Quality Is A Moving Target” discussing how quality music may be in front of our faces, however, we may not realize it simply because we don’t fit the market that particular music is trying to reach. Owsinski brings up an excellent point in which I fully agree with, reframing from calling music good or bad, because what may seem bad for me, may seem excellent for others.

Justin Bieber

A perfect example would be Justin Bieber and the amount of criticism he received when he was gaining momentum with his first string of hits. Many people were convinced Justin was a fad, and would soon be forgotten, however, because his music reached the hearts of so many fans, he is now one of the most successful artist of our time, quality music?

As a musician and music lover myself, I understand the amount of work that is required in making a song, especially if you are trying to make a hit. Regardless if you’re trying to entertain 12 thousand people or 12 people, an audience that will consider your music as “good quality” will accept your music. This proves Ikey Music Publishing’s beliefs, to encourage music creators to never quit searching for your audience. As we love to say, Explore, Create, and, Entertain.

Ikey Music Publishing: Montreal

Make sure you reach us on our social media pages for more pictures and music content. Join us by clicking on the tabs located on the upper right hand side. Ikey Music Publishing: Explore create Entertain

http://www.musicthinktank.com/blog/quality-is-a-moving-target.html

http://www.myspace.com/justinbieber

YouTube's Audio Ripping Legal Battle

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Thu, 21 Jun 2012 15:14:00 +0000

Several Websites such as YouTube-Mp3.org and Music-clips.net whose main purpose is to rip the audio from YouTube videos have received letters of violation and have been ordered to stop 7 days of receiving the letters. YouTube’s owner Google, who strongly argues that these audio ripping websites are illegal
and are violating YouTube’s terms of service, has initiated these legal actions.

The way these sites function is relatively simple, users of these sites enter a YouTube link of any kind, and the site rips the audio from the clip converting the audio into an Mp3.

These two ripping sites are just 2 of the many audio ripping sites available to Internet users, however, Google does plan on going after as many sites who are in violation. Audio ripping sites such as YouTube-Mp3.org receives nearly 1.3 hits a day, which is safe to say that 1.3 tracks are being illegally downloaded resulting in financial losses for rights owners such as authors, composers, and publishers.

YouTube-Mp3.org claims that there are approximately 200 million users of audio ripping sites, and that it would not be fair for Google to “criminalize” these users. After all YouTube is made for sharing content.

It is truly upsetting to see that the music industry has a long way to go when it comes to identifying what is being legally shared and what use is being violated. As mentioned in my previous blogs, the Internet, digital downloading and web 2.0 is an unprecedented issue that we must work together to solve, especially through legislation.

For more photos and news about Ikey Music Publishing visit our social media pages by clicking on our links located on the upper right hand side of this page. Stay tuned for more blogs!

http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/legal-and-management/google-moving-to-shut-down-sites-that-turn-1007376752.story

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2006-10-27/youtube-thai-threat-of-legal-action-withdrawn/2546386

American Idol’s Steven Tyler Signed To Ole Music Publishing

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Wed, 13 Jun 2012 22:02:00 +0000

Steven Tyler Signed To Ole Publishing

Billboard has recently announced the exclusive worldwide publishing deal made between Ole Publishing and American Idol’s own Steven Tyler. Tyler has been incredibly busy with judging talent on American Idol as well as working on his newest album called “Music From Another Dimension” which has a release date of August 28^th 2012.

Ole Music Publishing’s creative director Chad Richardson said in a statement “I can enthusiastically say that it's an amazing piece of work and that Steven and the band sound better than ever”.

Some of Steven Tyler’s fans might have already heard some of the hits from his forthcoming album such as “Feels So Good” and “The Noise Inside My Head” which made their debuts in early 2011. In addition, these hits were released precisely with his autobiography, which helped boost sales drastically due to his long-term global success.

Ole Music Publishing will be responsible for Steven Tyler’s administrative publishing side such as royalty collection/distribution and granting various licensing deals. It has been made official That Steve Tyler and his band will kick off their “Global Warming Tour” in Minneapolis starting June 16^th 2012.

In a recent statement made by Steven Tyler, he seems thrilled by the new publishing deal made with ole by saying “Chad is a songwriter and lover of music, who heard what I heard and it was a perfect fit into another dimension for all of us," said Tyler in the release. "I look forward to working with Chad and ole”

Steven’s continuation of music creation has astonished millions of music lovers as well as new generations within the music industry. After hearing some music samples myself, I can easily say that Steven and his band still have the elements to make great music which are: Passion and creativity.

For further topics on music publishing and recent industry news follow us on Twitter and on Facebook. This coming summer we will be hosting a combination of events throughout the Orlando and New York area, so feel free to subscribe via email to receive updates of our future events.

http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/publishing/steven-tyler-signs-worldwide-publishing-1007303752.story

http://www.majorlyindie.com/

"All My Life" MIGZ: Featured Artist Of The Week

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 22:26:00 +0000

Migz a native New Yorker from Brooklyn has always had Latin music run through his blood as well as through his family. One can only imagine the excitement and the intense cultural fusion within the New York streets and it’s Latin music pouring out of radios, television and into people’s souls. Migz, inspired by his grandfather Luis Guillermo Colon, also a musician, passionately carries the legacy of musicianship through his rhythmic styles in Bachata and Hip-Hop. Migz along with his chart topping music has been fortunate enough to perform along side Grupo Rush in such places like California. In addition, sharing stages with well-established performers in Puerto Rico, New York, and Miami. Currently Migz is signed to Godsplan Records and is working on his newest album. Down below is Migz recent work called “All My Life” Bachata version. Hope you enjoy our featured artist of the week!

"All My Life" Singer MIGZ

http://www.jango.com/music/Migz+God+s+Plan+Records?l=0

Warner Chappell Changing Their Business Model?

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Mon, 04 Jun 2012 02:29:00 +0000

In the early 2000’s, few understood the power and ability of the Internet as well as the opportunities social media would bring to music creators and consumers. Most, if not all major record companies and their sub publishing companies such as EMI, Warner Chappell and UMP were resistant to change their business models to better satisfy their customers.

However major innovative companies such as Apple, Sharper Image, and multiple online music stores took advantage of this new opportunity and provided music consumers and creators the ease to share their music material for little cost all around. While these quick and bold companies succeeded in their newfound ways, major record companies who resisted change found them selves relying heavily on their major hit makers, a perfect example would be Warner Music. Finally Warner Music seems to be changing their business model and opening their doors to new artists and composers. Where as in previous years they depending on there core artists such as T.I. Lil Wayne, Dr. Dre, and Timbaland. In a recent article by Billboard, Warner Music/Chappell has started a new movement that allows them to speed up the process of signing new writers and adds them to their roaster. In the first 4 months of 2012, Warner Chappell has signed multiple young artists under the age of 23, such as Virginian Lux Luger, and Young Chop. Warner Music/Chappell’s main goal is to maintain a “fresh young image” and not depend heavily on their aging core hit writers. This is a great opportunity for young aspiring composer, since Warner Music/Chappell is slowly opening their doors to new material and artists. It is said that people and businesses are most resistant to change, however with the music industry changing so rapidly and drastically, changing business models is a must if a company wants to survive and remain profitable.

http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/publishing/inside-warner-chappell-s-urban-renewal-1007079782.story

Television's Effect On Song Purchasing

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Thu, 24 May 2012 02:22:00 +0000

How effective is music placement on Television? Is it very effective or just another jingle from a struggling musician looking to make ends meat? 20 years ago having your song place on commercials or TV shows was a sign of mediocrity or for some, failure. However, now with the changing music industry and technology, having one’s song placed on television channels is considered great success and almost certain to reach stardom.
This complete change has to do with the accessibility of technology and the demand for hit songs that gain instant popularity. Recently Billboard conducted a study on the effectiveness of music placement in broadcast television which resulted in very interesting findings. For example, a video engagement developer studied trends between consumer song discovery and the relationship between buying songs long after the discovery. The results show that consumers are 8 times more likely to purchase a song upon discovery rather than waiting. The whole “sharing content” movement seems to be gaining an obvious popularity among social media these days. Therefore, online music stores such as ITunes and Internet radio channels such as Pandora and Spotify have seen a tremendous spike in sales and membership following. Just to give you guys a understanding of how much leverage online music formats are gaining, 1.2 billion digital tracks were sold in the U.S. and a total of 103.1 million albums were sold just in 2011. In addition Pandora has recently reported that 150 million have joined their Internet services just in 2011. As mentioned in my previous blogs, I think this is great, most 2^nd and 3^rd wave generations are trying to get used to the music online movement, and I see we are finally realizing that it is only fair to pay the artists that we listen to through legal subscriptions, especially with the help of Television

http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/photos/pdf/2012/WHITEPAPER.pdf

Spotify Launches In 14th and 15th Market

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Wed, 23 May 2012 21:29:00 +0000

On Tuesday May 22^nd Spotify launched its service in New Zealand and Australia, its 14^th and 15^th market equaling over 40 million new potential members.

Spotify will be providing each country with 16 million tracks to choose from along with the option of a Spotify app for desktop users. In addition Spotify is in the midst of negotiating a deal with Virgin Mobile in order to provide a mobile app for those who join Spotify. Although each country’s population has approximately 20 million people, Spotify does not have the entire Australian market share to them self’s. Rdio, Deezer and Mog launched their services this past January, as well as Sony’s Music Unlimited service launching around the same time, so why move to Australia? Australia is the world’s sixth largest music market due to their high music consuming population. New Zealand on the other hand, is the world’s 30^th largest music market, but does not have as many music service options as Australia does. Therefore, it would only seem right to take advantage of places such as New Zealand. I feel that this is a great step towards fixing our problem of piracy and opening doors for accurately paying music and rights owners. As I have mentioned in previous blogs, the Internet wave for our generation is an unprecedented era that has cause much turmoil within the music industry. However, efforts seen by Spotify have begun to level out the misunderstandings us rights holders, music creators and music consumers have had for such a long time. As a proud Spotify user, I feel much more secure paying for my service and knowing the artists I listen to be paid then to steal music and end up in an infringement lawsuit. I truly hope to see Spotify and all other Internet radio hosts to expand their services globally in order to see the music industry leveled out once again.

http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/digital-and-mobile/spotify-to-launch-in-australia-and-new-zealand-1007115552.story

Entertainment Copyrights

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Sun, 29 Apr 2012 22:21:00 +0000

Ikey Music Publishing had the honor and privilege to interview entertainment attorney William Hochberg, based out of Santa Monica, California. We had the pleasure of meeting during the 2012 Latin Billboard Conference that took place in Miami, Florida late April. As for my assignment, William was more than willing to answer a few basic question about his opinion on the music industry today, and where he see the future of it. When asked why is music publishing still important and where he sees the future of music publishing, he made it clear that music publishing remains “a fairly stable source of revenue compared to record sales”.

Clearly our American performing rights organization’s (PRO”S) still depend heavily on their licensing deal with broadcast in general, this revenue stream remains “Robust” as William puts it. However, these licenses deals with major broadcasting parties and PRO”s are becoming more difficult since there are so many new changes within the music industry regarding internet interests, market changes and digital downloads, but it is without a doubt that these difficulties between these two parties will be resolved just like everything else, according to William.

When I asked William about his take on legislation and if they have made any changes or improvements about digital royalty rate, he made it clear that the Copyright Royalty Board has been pretty consistent with keeping digital royalties the same rate of 9.1 cents as with physical CD sales. In addition, ringtones remain at 24 cents per download regardless of where they are purchased.

One topic we learned much about in this course was about clearing rights, licensing and their importance. I asked William what advice would he give young entrepreneurs who are dealing with licenses and some common mistakes we all commit. His response was quite interesting because he mention that now there is a new term known as the “Late Fee” which charges those who do not pay licenses on time a “1.5 percent per month for being behind on payments, or the highest lawful rate which ever is lower”. This to me is interesting because this could either make or break your new company. As William puts it, if you’re a small company and are collecting a license fee, which happens to be late on payments, you could be expecting a hefty check. However, if you’re a small company who is late on paying a license fee to a major company, this could possibly put your company in bankrupt.

For my final question, I asked William what he thought was the most common mistake most aspiring artists or entrepreneurs commit within they’re first years? William brought up an excellent point, the fact that many artists and business dive into big deals too quickly. I love to always say, that if an entity is really willing to spend time and money on your talent, then there is no reason why a bigger company cannot give you at least a week to allow yourself to review the contract with a professional. As William says “So resist the temptation to dive into the pool without first making sure there is plenty of water in it”.

Hochberg, W. (2012, April 28). Interview by K Henriquez [Personal Interview]. Entertainment copyrights.

Recent Entertainment Lawsuits

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Sun, 01 Apr 2012 15:24:00 +0000

If you have ever taken a business class, the Section 1 Sherman Act might ring a bell. This act protects businesses from business practices that may be deemed unfair for competition within its own market. Sirius XM Radio has recently exercised this law in their lawsuit against SoundExchange and A2IM.

In the past few months Sirius XM has been working on proposals in which deals would be made with major record labels in order to reduce the statutory royalty rate from 8% to 5%-7%, also known as direct licensing. However, these reductions of royalty rates will drastically effect SoundExchange’s financial earnings, since SoundExchange serves as a platform for SiriusXM. Due to these facts, SoundExchange allegedly took action and in conjunction with A2IM reached out to their members and commenced a boycott aiming towards SiriusXM’s attempt to pay lower royalties, or direct licensing. SiriusXM took this boycott interference as an unfair business practice from SoundExchange and A2IM, especially when only 80 independent labels signed to SiriusXM’s proposal when potentially they could have signed many more, however due to the boycott, their potential was minimized. I personally feel neutral in this case because I understand SiriusXM is trying to minimize cost, however, they are also reducing the amount of royalties to music owners. On the flip side, I understand SoundExchange since they are trying not to lose revenue, however, they should know better, and not form trusts in order to stop their competition. The case is very recent, and SiriusXM is asking the courts to put some type of monitor system to track SoundExchange’s business movements.

Clearing the rights of a musical composition is one thing; however paying those clearance fees and licenses on time is an entirely different thing as we see in the next article. In this legal case, EMI Publishing sues Cash Money Records for not paying a total of $ 491,176.16 on time, resulting as copyright infringement and breach of contract. This case dates back from 2009, in which Cash Money failed to pay EMI their clearance fees for Cash Money’s “The Carter III” album, however Cash Money paid $1.5 million as the first payment. 180 days is what the court gave Cash Money to pay the remaining, $392,940.39, however it has taken Cash Money until now to pay, and as a result of the failed payment, Cash Money now owes $491,176.16. Its rare to see this in the music industry, but both parties in this dispute resolved this “amicably”.

Another recent case involves top executives Todd DeStefano and Patrick Lynch being accused of stealing and mishandling millions of dollars from the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. DeStefano, the events manager for the arena and Lynch, the general manager served as middle men for promoters and entertainment company who could not successfully obtain permits for certain music concerts. Therefore, DeStefano and Lynch provided these promoters with the space in the arena for their unauthorized acts, and lowering the fees to use the arena and surrounding facilities. Most of these concerts were known to be raves in which large amount of drugs circulated during these events, and eventually killing a young woman due to an overdose at these concerts. Since allowing these acts to take place was illegal, Lynch and DeStefano received multiple bribes, and large commissions from allowing these acts on their property, therefore, since they were collecting all the money, the Coliseum lost millions of dollars. After a long investigation, Lynch and DeStefano have been arrested along with other promoters and are being charged with embezzlement, bribery, conspiracy and conflict of interest.

REFERENCES

1) Deutsch, L. (2012 , March 23). Indictment unsealed in la coliseum contracts probe. Retrieved from http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/touring/indictment-unsealed-in-la-coliseum-contracts-1006565352.story

2) Christman, E. (2012, March 28). Siriusxm files lawsuit against soundexchange and a2im, alleging licensing interference. Retrieved from http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/legal-and-management/siriusxm-files-lawsuit-against-soundexchange-1006591952.story

3) Rys, D. (2012, March 23). Emi resolves lawsuit with cash money over licensing payments. Retrieved from http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/legal-and-management/exclusive-emi-resolves-lawsuit-with-cash-1006564152.story

4) http://usgovinfo.about.com/blsherman.htm

Are the jobs of artists managers decreasing?

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 01:10:00 +0000

Its seems with much passion, creativity and the use of today's newest technology any singer/songwriters can succeed without the help of an artist manager...at least up until they can't handle it anymore.
Up and coming singer/songwriter Ana Free has managed to capture a humbling audience using the well known social channel called YouTube. In 2007 Ana began covering songs in all her fluent languages of Portuguese, Spanish, English, Greek, and French acquiring a total of 700,000 YouTube views on her own. Due to her laid back personality and great voice quality, her Youtube audience demanded more music from her, encouraging her to start her own Ana Free pledge, a video that went viral, gaining financial earnings to start her first full album. Due to this pledge she was able to begin her first album, which is set to finally come out Spring 2012, in addition, she now has a total of 30 million views on her video channels. What does this mean about artist managers? Clearly, having a YouTube platform is not known to be a form of secured fame and fortune, however, we are starting to see that singer/songwriters who are creative and passionate about their work are able to create their own following and buzz through social media networks and launch them selves to regional stardom. Once Ana gained momentum within social medias and word of mouth, an American investor gained her gigs in Miami, New York and London, as well as putting her in a huge billboard in Times Square in order to create more awareness of her music. Still with no manager, publisher, nor record deal, Big time promoters and artists were contacting her to open up for their shows, artists such as Shakira, Linkin Park and well know festivals such as "YouTube stars". I still believe artist management is still a million dollar industry, however, the ability for singer/songwriters to be able to create their own buzz, tightens job security for artist managers.

Had the privilege and honor to attend the "Cotton Club's Talent Showcase and Beat Battle"

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 13:15:00 +0000

Janvier On "Negotiation Power"

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 21:10:00 +0000

Janvier is an aspiring R&B singer which signed with IKEY Music Publishing in March 2011. Since then he has had the support and guidance of IKEY Publishing in contracts, career choices, and most importantly in negotiations. However, when Janvier was asked if it was always this easy when he was on his own, the answer was "absolutely not".
Janvier like most independent artists had to learn the hard way of doing business with different types of people. In a very Unfortunate case, Janvier was taught a lesson about trust and bad business. For example, months before Janvier joined IKEY Publishing, he was given an opportunity to play with his band at a local bar and promised maximum exposure. However, this agreement was done as a "Handshake agreement" and the results were upsetting. The night of the performance, the owner and promoter who initially promised stage time, changed the agreements and asked for $250 in order for Janvier and his band to play. At this point, friends and family where already there to see Janvier and his band, however, Janvier quickly turned the tables and decided to not fall for that trickery and decided to not pay and perform. At the end it turned out the club lost half of its attendees, and assuming a huge loss in merchandise sales as well as alcohol sales because of this. On a different note, mutual benefit was seen when Janvier and IKEY Publishing negotiated a contract agreement between the both of them. For example, IKEY Publishing had a strong interest in Janvier therefore, as many benefits as possible was offered to Janvier in order to convince him. In addition, Janvier needed the administrative and connections in order to expand, therefore since IKEY Publishing had all of these resources, it was a simple agreement between both parties. One other benefit that IKEY Publishing had over Janvier was, IKEY Publishing's affiliation to different associations such as NARAS, ASCAP, GrammyU and Billboard.

Carnival Cruise stocks drop significantly

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 03:57:00 +0000

On Friday 13th 2012 the world witnessed the horrific Costa Concordia crash off the cost of an Italian Island. This crash not only had a personal and emotional effect on those on the ship and their loved ones, but also a crippling effect on the financial future for Carnival Cruises and their stakeholders.
Carnival Cruises (ticker symbol= CCL) the parent company of Costa Cruises saw a significant drop in stock prices by a total of 14.2% on Tuesday's opening of the stock market. Since the crash, a reported 11 people on board have died from the incident and approximately 50 people remain missing, indicating that this tragedy is still ongoing and many more people are expected to have been killed. This being so, people who have invested in the Cruise Liner industry fear the strong repercussions that this crash has will have, and already millions of dollars have been lost due to investors and shareholders withdrawing their part from the company. As an investor one must think about the repercussions such as, lawsuits, property damage, and insurance liabilities. However Carnival Cruises (CCL) assures their investors that Carnival has damage insurance and personal injury liability insurance, with a deductible of $40 million in total (still not so good looking). In a statement given by Carnival Cruises, they already reported a loss of $85-95 million dollars due to the non use of this one cruise ship, indicating that this quarter will be financially devastating for the company. On a personal level, call me Maxwell or call me Greene, but this is an opportunity for people to buy Cruise packages or Cruise stocks/shares since most prices will be significantly low due to people's fear of boarding a cruise. However, this incident like most incidents will pass, and people will continue to seek cruises, allowing the stocks to increase during the summer season and allowing those who bought shares at a tragic time, to profit from their risky investments. Of course assuming all RISK!

http://money.cnn.com/2012/01/17/markets/carnival/index.htm?iid=HP_LN

IRS audits 1 in 8 millionaires in 2011

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 04:02:00 +0000

Its is no surprise that in today's economy people look for ways to avoid paying taxes and retaining as much profit as possible. Therefore, the IRS in the past 3 years has enforced audits for citizen earning over $200,000.00, each year becoming progressively more intense.
Personally, I'm glad the IRS is becoming more enforceable, however there's too little being done and a bit too late. My opinion will be shown in the following numbers. Starting with only 12.5% of all US citizens earning over $1million were audited leaving 87.5% of the nations millionaires un-audited and free of any crimes if committed. This world and horrible economy became this way in the previous years due to crimes in politics, banks and different types of lenders within the financial industry. Therefore, why wouldn't more millionaires be audited? Why wouldn't the IRS crack down harder on these millionaires, regardless of what they do? Anyhow, since 2009 the enforcement rate has increased by 2%, which is a great sign. As stated by the IRS, their main focus is on millionaire with large off shore accounts, which are more difficult to audit however, if crimes were committed, then the IRS will find it. This being said, the IRS gave those millionaires and citizens earning over $200,000.00 the opportunity and incentive to confess if any illegal profit was made free of jail time and reduced penalty fees. In addition, those who earn $200k and more also saw an increase in audits conducted by the IRS. For example, in 2010 1 in 32 citizens earning over $200k were audited, however in 2011 1 in 25 of those citizens were audited. As for the rest of the taxpayers earning under $200k, their chances of getting audited are not as high as higher earning citizens. The IRS claims to have only audited 1 in 98 of those citizens. 2010's end report of audits show that a total of $1.6 million of returns were audited, which in my opinion, I feel like that is way to little and the IRS could be doing a more effective job at cracking down these money criminals and possibly recover this damaged economy that we are currently in.

http://money.cnn.com/2012/01/05/pf/taxes/irs_audit/index.htm?iid=HP_LN

Sheryl Sandberg: Women In The Workforce

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 04:28:00 +0000

In today's society, we often see more women reaching top management and corporate positions, something that was not a norm in previous years. Laws, associations and the strong efforts of our culture and society have allowed for this to happen, however, there still exists a very strong glass ceiling for many women. After recently watching a video on TED.com about women in todays society, Sheryl Sandberg COO of Facebook identifies some interesting facts about women and their views about women in power. She first begins stating some facts about women in the work force, for example Sheryl and her research show that out of 190 heads of state, only 9 are women. 13% of parliament is represented by women, 15-16% of the head corporate is represented by women since 2002. Sheryl also indicated in her video and her audience that, surprisingly within the non profit world, where women are thought to have more of a dominance, only 20% percent dominate the non profit business. In her address to the crowd consisting of mostly women, she gave 3 tips on how women can advance their positions and take participating roles in business. The first tip talked about how women should "Sit at the table". This means women should take on a more aggressive stand in participating in leadership roles and asking questions that men also ask such as salary. Research shows that only 7% of women negotiate salary, when 57% of men negotiate. In addition, 2/3 of men in the corporate world had children, when only 1/3 of women in the corporate world have children which clearly indicates a limitation to women's desire of having children. Systematically, as Sheryl puts it, women underestimate their capabilities, which diminishes a women's desire to excel and become successful. one other tip she gives is to make sure the duties in a family home are equally shared and divided, therefore a women does not feel the strain of a marriage and her life goals. One last tips she points out is that women tend to think way too ahead about marriage and kids, even before they have boyfriends. Therefore this planning ahead that mot women do, does not allow them to take on leading roles or new tasks in fear of the new environment will interfere with marriage and kids. This a critical mistake women make because, then women feel limited or become quiet and never speak out to reach their goals. Sheryl stood out for me, because i feel strong about this topic and i feel that it is important to view women the same as we view men in the work force. There are too many idiots running this world, and quit honestly, women can be very rational more than guys can.

http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/sheryl_sandberg_why_we_have_too_few_women_leaders.html

National Music Publishers Association ( NMPA )

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 04:47:00 +0000

In the world of music publishing and advancing technology, it is of importance to keep copyright law, and regulations updated, in addition, maintain a strong voice for the rights of publishers and its music creators. Thankfully, the entertainment industry and music publishers have the strong support and help from the National Music Publishers Association (NMPA). The NMPA is an association in which protects and advances the interests of copyright owners such as composers and music publishers. NMPA also works in litigations, legislations and creating awareness in any issues involving copyrights. This fine association was started in 1917. I feel strong about this association simply because we are in a time of technological advances in which there is no precedents in such topics as internet laws, and live streaming and mobile music sharing. Therefore, NMPA's efforts to maintain a balance between music users and music creators have not gone unnoticed and continue to have a strong following. Currently NMPA has 2,500 members, ranging from small and large music publishers. Some current Board members consist of Martin Bandier, CEO of Sony ATV Music Publishing since 2007, Helene Blue, president of Helen Blue Musique, and Bob Doyle, president of Major Bob/Rio Bravo Music. NMPA also is the only association that certifies songwriters for Gold and Platinum records. For Gold records a single has to sell 500,000 records and for platinum a record needs to sell 100,000 records in order to qualify. In order to receive plaques, a publisher or songwriter need to be a member of the NMPA. One of the ways I intend to connect with members and players of this association is obviously joining the association since I' am a music publisher myself. One other way will be attending NMPA's events throughout the year such as the NMPA West Coast Reception, and NMPA Annual Meeting's.

http://www.nmpa.org/aboutnmpa/mission.asp

Heavy D's record sales soar after his recent Death

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 19:22:00 +0000

Its amazing how the death of an artist is a factor of successful record sales in a time where record sales is a struggle. Heavy D, a pioneer in the birth of hip-hop passed away November 8th 2011.
His famous hit "Now That We've Found Love" debuts at number 20 on Billboards Rap digital downloads, selling over 18,000 downloads according to Nielsen SoundScan after nearly 20 years. His newly released album named "Love Opus" has has its best selling week, a total increase of 2,194% in sales. God Bless Heavy D and his family.

http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/genre/randb-hip-hop/heavy-d-s-now-that-we-found-love-returns-1005543922.story

Brian Lambert Appointed new EVP of Universal Music Publishing

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 21:44:00 +0000

Universal Music Publishing Congratulates Brian Lambert who was recently appointed by Even Lamberg (CEO ) to the position of Executive Vice President of Film and TV Music. Brian Lambert is well known to be one of the most prominent creative leaders in the Film and TV industry and has worked for major company's such BMG/Zomba Music/Jive records as their Vice president of Advertising, Film and Television.
In Lambert's new position, he will have a new set of departments reporting to him such as the, U.S. Film and TV creative department, Licensing, and Clearance department. Prior to being promoted to VP, Lambert oversaw Universal Music Publishing's entire synchronization department in U.S. Film and Television. In addition, with his 20 years of overall experience in publishing, Lambert has also generated revenue with his creative placements of commercials and other streams of income using the Universal vast catalog. My personal opinion about Publishing is that this business remains to be one of the most lucrative businesses in the entire industry. Especially now with all of the increased forms of media and technology, we find it easier to have our music placed and generate income. Some of the old ways of income include, records, music sheet paper, radio and film. Now, we have new forms such as, Internet radio, satellite radio, commercials, digital downloads and ringtones. As new VP in any publishing company, one must consider taking all of these new forms of media into consideration and use them effectively. With Lambert's experience, I have no doubt he will do this effectively. However, one thing that Lambert must keep on top of is his legal department and ensures that Universal’s catalog and is protected in all the forms of media to avoid infringement and possible lawsuit in regards to their music catalog.

http://www.thestreet.com/story/11283990/1/universal-music-publishing-group-promotes-brian-lambert-to-executive-vice-presidenthead-of-film-television-music.html

http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/publishing/brian-lambert-named-evp-of-film-television-1005474252.story

Jail time for posting YouTube videos?

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 16:47:00 +0000

We live in an era of new digital technology, in which there is still no precedent to resolve court cases involving internet laws about music, streaming and downloads. Since this technology is fairly new, cases that arise today are the first set we encounter: therefore, rulings may seem absurd and unjustified.For example, the most recent case of Justin Bieber possibly going to jail simply because he "Became famous due to the posting of unauthorized covers of famous R&B songs on YouTube". This past May, Congress began working on a bill that made it a felony to upload/stream unauthorized covers by individuals, and gain recognition because of it. A non-profit organization has really brought out this bill to the light this past week by creating a campaign called "Free Bieber". This campaign has started a petition in order to keep Beiber extradited from Canada and put in jail. However, many subject matter experts in entertainment law have strongly argued that even if the bill is past Bieber will be safe from going to jail. These Lawyers have concluded that streaming websites such as YouTube, have what is known in the industry as "Blanket Licenses" in which gives YouTube users the right to post videos of themselves covering licensed songs. Unfortunately ASCAP and YouTube have not been getting along with the amount that a blanket license should cost. ASCAP has also proposed charging a "Sync License" as well since videos with people singing music is considered a moving picture as well. I strongly believe that way before these online websites and providers publish their material, they have planned well in advanced what proper licenses are needed in order to avoid any litigation and prison time in this case. Although I am an ASCAP member, I believe that all of the performing Right's Organizations should have a well established contract and standard measure for new web developments such as YouTube. One thing that must be kept in mind for everyone in the industry, is that new technological findings are being made to help those who are suffering from CD sales and expanded competition, profit may not be the same a before however, profits will be made if we are conscious and accepting to the change that will inevitably occur.

http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/legal-and-management/why-justin-bieber-won-t-go-to-jail-for-posting-1005432602.story

http://ology.com/celebs-and-gossip/justin-bieber-going-jail

Supreme Court rejects Digital Download Appeal

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 21:58:00 +0000

http://www.allaccess.com/net-news/archive/story/97285/supreme-court-ruling-goes-against-ascap

In 2010 performing right's organization know as ASCAP lost a litigation against the Supreme Court. This case was about acknowledging that digitally downloaded music is in fact a public performance and the retrieval of royalties by two (2) wireless carriers, which were profiting in the millions off of ASCAP catalogs. However, the Supreme Court thinks otherwise and states: The download of a music work does not constitute a public performance"...Really?

People who pay for these downloads are in other words paying the PRO, and the songwriter in exchange for having this song in their possession and playing it any amount of times they wish. ASCAP appealed this decision, but the appeal was rejected at the appeals court. Unfortunately ASCAP and many ASCAP members will not benefit from the million of dollars of revenue that come in annually from digital downloads. In addition, section 101 of the Copyright Act, which states "perform a work means to recite, render, play, dance, or act it, either directly or by means of any device or process." was brought out to light and many examples where given on how musical works are "recited". Personally, I feel that this is a horrible thing done to authors and composer of ASCAP, and absolutely not fair to the ASCAP organization. Industry standards state that if a person purchases a song or any other music work, their paying for a performance in which royalties is payable to the owners of the musical composition. One of the exclusive right that an owner of a copyrighted work has is known as, the right to collect royalties off their work, and the right to license to a party of their choice. So where do these exclusive right come into effect? Music publishing remains a very lucrative business however, there are still too many loops holes to fix due to the growing digital era. Personally, legislation needs to represent composers and authors much more and regulate wireless, an internet activity so that those who are entitled to royalties are actually getting them!

http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/legal-and-management/supreme-court-rejects-ascap-download-appeal-1005382292.story

Welcome

noreply@blogger.com (IKEY PUBLISHING) — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 15:14:00 +0000

Hey everybody,

Welcome to IKEY Music Publishing's Blog where you can find the latest news in Music Publishing and the Entertainment Industry. Make sure you stay tuned and check out our linked pages for our most recent events and news.