GAMES OVER ... an organiser’s eye-view of ILMC XVI
	SFG SECURES FUNDING ... latest news from the ILMC Safety Focus Group
	SIGN HERE - OR ELSE! ... new UK regulations impact the global business
	RTC NEWSFLASH ... recent business news headlines
	BACK ISSUES ... how to get previous eNews copies if you missed out.
	CONTACT ... how to reach us and get involved in e.News.

COMING SOON TO A 5-STAR HOTEL A LONG WAY FROM YOU! OPENS MARCH 11th - 13th 2005 PREVIEWS AND ADVANCE BOOKINGS FROM NOVEMBER ONWARDS To check remaining marketing opportunities contact Chris Prosser on +44 (0) 20 - 7449 2980 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it WATCH THIS SPACE FOR FURTHER DETAILS

Around this time of year we finally put the last conference to bed and start making plans in earnest for the next one. And so the life-cycle of the ILMC continues...

Zeus Leighton-Pope gets toga'd up for The Arthurs

ILMC XVI came and went in a blur. From the barely-organised chaos of Friday’s opening ceremony until the Australian guy pulled his trousers back up on Sunday night, the event seems to have more than lived up to its self-penned Polemic motto, ‘Sonorius, Sumptuosius, Debilitius’ - noisier, more extravagant, and more knackering. Among the organising team there was a general feeling of relief that most things had come off and nothing major had fallen over. In fact, most of us would probably count No.16 as our best ‘technical’ effort so far. If you were there, you will know all about it. If you weren’t then you can find out pretty much everything you need to know about ILMC XVI in the special Conference Report on our website at www.ilmc.com.

For us the main memory is probably the sheer SCALE of the event. It wasn’t just the attendance figures, although this year did see the highest ever number of invited VIPs being allowed to register with some 775 people travelling to the conference from 49 different countries. It was the multi-layered mayhem that results from this number and variety of people being set against a record number of meetings, parties, dinners, stunts, trade stands, live bands, awards, exhibitions, delegate jams - and that’s not to mention the extra-mural stuff that everyone organised for themselves during the weekend. Not even the most dedicated session attendee or ardent partygoer could have seen more than half of it. Our bet is that you could take any 100 delegates, put them in a room together and find that no two of them had shared the same experience. All of them would probably agree, however, that a few hours at the conference hotel had felt like a week in a tumble-drier...

Of particular interest to us this year was the make up of the attendance. For the second year running there was a noticeable rise in the number of new faces present, with as many as 150 ‘ILMC virgins’ wandering around the place looking faintly bemused. Yes, there were people from countries and/or organisations that had not been previously represented, but most of the ‘fresh blood’ seemed to be made up of the young rising stars of existing member-companies, who were being initiated into the mysteries of the ILMC by their elders. In many cases, in fact, these turned out to be the offspring of long-standing members - with family names like Reiger, Tomasi, Dickins, Thomsen and Schueremans joining our existing dynastic lines of Leighton-Popes, Warsoes and Hopewells. The prospect of having two distinct generations of professionals present at the ILMC is quite fascinating - offering, as it does, a rare and probably short-lived opportunity for us all. The newbies will no doubt learn from the experience of their seniors and - who knows - even the crustiest of our elder-statesmen might be able to borrow from the fresh input of the juniors to rekindle some of the passion of their youth...

Once again the conference rooms produced much food for thought. This year saw a radical shake-up in the way that the meeting schedule was presented. Our hallowed Main Room was split into two and a total of five meeting rooms provided for our largest ever menu of limited-duration discussion topics - and it was clear that the experiment had been a success with most people feeling that the result had been more focused and productive sessions. The conclusions were many, but high on the list for this delegate was a timely reminder that for some people at least this business is not, as the time-worn expression goes, ‘just about the money’ (thanks Marc), and an overdue realisation that there are some industry problems that will never be resolved simply through debate in the conference room, but require hard work during the course of the year if real solutions are to be found.

Not everything about ILMC XVI was rosy, however. For us the happy memories were somewhat marred by the behaviour of a tiny percentage of the attendees who, having arrived to find that the ‘fun settings’ had been turned up to a maximum ‘10’ seemed intent on cranking the control knob to an impossible ‘11’. There’s a fine line that separates professional people having a good time from a bunch of drunken yobs, and the ILMC has always drawn that line surprisingly high on the fun scale. Among our most treasured memories are the stories of delegates climbing the palm trees in the atrium of the Landmark, or being frog-marched out of the Portman bar by London bobbies after parading one hapless promoter around the place as Saddam Hussein. We’ll even turn a blind eye to the rather bizarre penchant of some delegates to whip their willies out in the bar each year. What we won’t accept, however, is the kind of aggressive or rude, beer-fuelled behaviour that spoils the enjoyment of other delegates. So if you’re planning on turning up at ILMC 17 intent on taking a poke at someone in the bar or shouting down some poor sod while they’re trying to make a speech at the Gala Dinner - be warned - the ILMC is not a place for lager louts and bans will be handed out irrespective of how important you think you are.

Since our last meeting in March, more than 40,000 Euros have been raised to secure funding of 160,000 Euros from the European Union - more specifically, the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (OSHA). The funding is being used for a joint project with the Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College (BCUC) into worker safety. The undertaking is progressing well, with the group already having drawn up an initial draft of the website and carrying out the first series of pilots at three European festivals on the first weekend in July. They are now assessing the results of those pilot studies, updating the draft and getting ready for the second round of pilots within the next few weeks. Those of you who haven't already hosted them will no doubt be seeing them at a festival site near you soon.

In addition to their workers’ safety initiatives, the SFG has been working with the BCUC on Super Scale Event Safety, and there are plans on the drawing board for developing a safety video with a view to showing it to crowds before outdoor shows and festivals.

Not only is this all good, worthwhile stuff in its own right, but it’s also a positive sign that this industry is capable of making things happen when confronted with a cause that is sufficiently important. Well done. We’re proud of you.

SIGN HERE - OR ELSE!

Phones, faxes and email systems have been running hot throughout the international concert industry during the past few weeks as UK agencies struggled to meet deadlines imposed by their Government’s new employment regulations, and promoters and artists around the world - presented with the end result - were left dazed and confused by the sudden flurry of activity and the possible implications to their future business.

Intended to "make provision to secure the proper conduct of employment agencies and employment businesses and to protect the interests of persons using their services" the Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003 is, no doubt, a well-intended and laudable initiative. Many fear, however, that when rigorously applied to our industry, these regulations will lead not only to an enormous amount of unnecessary and time-consuming paperwork but to almost prohibitive working practices and heavy penalties if the letter of the law is applied and not adhered to. In spite of hopes that the impact on our normal working days would be a ‘storm in a teacup’, as things stand at the moment, non-compliance with the regulations is, in fact, a criminal offence - and the responsible Government office, the Department of Trade and Industry, is apparently recruiting extra staff to ensure that the rules are enforced.

Although this is purely UK legislation it has wider implications to the international business as a whole, as it requires that all British music agents provide their terms of business, in writing, to every artist, promoter and/or venue they deal with - irrespective of nationality. These documents, based on an interpretation of the legislation by the Agents Association of Great Britain, must be formally agreed to - without amendment - by any companies receiving them before they can continue or commence doing business with the agency that has issued them. The companies must also provide specific information about the details of their business - including proof of identity, company structure, and full disclosure of the role being fulfilled (sub-agent, promoter, etc).

Paul Fenn of the   Agents' Association

Confronted with an imminent deadline for the completion of this exercise, various agencies have already issued the requirements with notes to the effect that non-compliance will lead to cessation of business - a warning that seems to have been interpreted by many as a threat rather than simply advice... In fact the arrival of this legislation has been on the horizon for some time now, however, and has been mentioned on at least three separate occasions during ILMC meetings. Much good work has already been done by the Agents Association of Great Britain who, with the assistance of a group of agents including such notables as Peter McLeod, Barry Dickins, Bob James, Paul Fenn and Jan Sikorski, have presented entertainment agencies as a special case to the UK Government and managed to win certain concessions. ILMC stalwart and music business lawyer, Ben Challis, has also written a guide to the new regulations, with the help of Paul Fenn.

In spite of these worthy efforts, though, it is clear that there is much confusion and concern surrounding the current situation. Some UK agencies may still be unaware of their precise obligations and the consequences of non-compliance, or alarmed by the prospect of having to ‘drop’ from their roster any artist who does not comply with the formalities requested. As one well-known agent put it: ‘The problem is that no one seems to know the full scope, implementation and application of these regulations to our business. We almost need to be given some sort of checklist for booking a show. We also need to know where the lines are drawn in the regulations - what is a red card offense, a yellow card or just a caution’.

Rather unsurprisingly, it seems that many non-UK promoters have already registered their unwillingness to accept demands from a foreign government which might conflict with their established business practices or local regulations. The ramifications to the international industry’s future of any kind of spontaneous ‘promoter boycott’ can only be guessed at.

Under the circumstances, it would be wrong for an organisation like the ILMC to stand by and do nothing to help resolve some of the obvious problems that people are facing. The question is what should be done? Within the next few weeks we will set up a special information centre on the ILMC website, but to get a comprehensive view and decide on a course of action we will clearly need your help. If you are affected by these regulations and have an opinion to express, please contact us now at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . It’s probably naive to expect that any substantial changes can be made at this point, but it’s surely unreasonable to imagine that any government will refuse to pay attention if the possible consequences to one of their most valued export industries are really as serious as many seem to think

14/07/04 - COURTNEY HOSPITALISED AS WARRANT ISSUED
14/07/04 - BOWIE HAS HEART SURGERY
14/07/04 - MUSIC BOOTLEGGER MADE £15 MILLION PROFIT
14/07/04 - GEORGE MICHAEL SHUTS WEBSITE CHATROOM
14/07/04 - HMV REVAMPS ONLINE POLICY
05/07/04 - BMG LAUNCHES NO FRILLS CDS
05/07/04 - KAZAA PARENT COMPANY FACES TRIAL
01/07/04 - MUSE TRAGEDY AT GLASTONBURY
01/07/04 - CANADA'S SUPREME COURT RULES ON INTERNET TRANSMISSIONS
01/07/04 - BOWIE CANCELS EUROPEAN TOUR
01/07/04 - PROFITS SURGE AT HMV
29/06/04 - MALAYSIAN STAGE COLLAPSE LEAVES TWO INJURED
29/06/04 - RADIO 1 LAUNCH OFFICIAL DOWNLOAD CHART
29/06/04 - BEENIE MAN SHOW CANCELLED OVER HOMOPHOBIC LYRICS

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