Winter Class of Music Business School 2012 - London

Meet Our First Students studying to graduate the MMBE Music Business qualification.

It was a great day for us at Music Business School when our first group of students began classes for the new industry recognised MMBE Music Business qualification.  We’re sure you agree they look like a smart bunch and it was encouraging to find that so many of them are already either working in the music business or developing their own business plans. We’re confident that the information they are receiving as part of the course will support them as the begin to grow their music business plans.

Day One of the new year not only saw us teaching the new course but saw the return of our industry guest speaker programme. This week Dave Goggin from the PPL came along and informed us of the role that the PPL plays in the music business. Perhaps the PPL is one of the most important companies in the music business that you’ve never heard of.  Well Dave’s presentation fixed that for our students.

The current course was fully subscribed, however if you want to find out more about attending Music Business School London then now is the time to act.  We are now taking applications for the next course which commences on May 09 2012.  To find out about an interview and coming into the school to meet tutor Steve Melhuish to go the contact page and fill out the form.

We’ll also be introducing you to some of the students over the coming months so that you can hear first hand from them what they are getting from the course and where they are hoping to go in the music business. To keep up with this and other useful music business news subscribe to our newsletter via the subscribe form on the side of this page.

We look forward to meeting you soon.

Steve and the Music Business School Team.

In a post towards the end of last year we looked at the issue of how much artists are getting paid for their plays on Spotify.  However reading Jay Frank’s blog today confirmed what I have been thinking for some time.  That for new artists and their teams the strategy of being on Spotify should not actually be about the income.

Jay points to data that shows

In an iTunes world, the average person consumes music by, at most, 7 artists a month. In a Spotify world, the average person consumes music by, at least 40 artists a month.

With consumers listening to music by so many more artists per month and with much of that listening inspired by viral recommendations from friends the chance of discovery for new artists is so much more. As has been said on numerous occasions recently – for new artists the aim should not be how much money are you making from your sales but how much scale are you achieving? How many new fans are you adding to the tribe and how many friends are they bringing along.

The way Spotify is becoming an music discovery tool is a real opportunity for both new artists and promoters who book and promote new artists but tell us what you think.  Good or Bad, Friend or Foe? Which is Spotify?

Let us know your thoughts in the comments section here or over on our Facebook Page.

PS. Jay Frank might just be one of the smartest people in the music business.  His compelling blog FutureHit DNA is here and his blog post about Spotify is HERE.

Is this the end of the cover song on YouTube?

The big announcement this week for new and developing artists was that YouTube owner Google had purchased rights administration and payment company RightsFlow. However the news was hardly reported here in the UK on the usual unsigned artists networks.

Why is it significant? Industry pundits have been observing that earlier this year Google made commitments to music rights owners to do something about all those cover versions that new artists post on YouTube; or more particularly the fact that when they get posted the songs rights owner rarely gets compensated.

In the future, if things pan out as expected artists will pay a small fee by way of compensation to the owner of the published work – that is the songwriter.  This should be seen as a good thing in a business where declining incomes have become an issue and this new source of income will hopefully be seen as fair by all parties concerned.  However we expect some disquiet when the new and unsigned community realise they now need to pay for uploading those cover songs in the hope of attracting new fans.

But what do you think?  Are you happy to pay for the right to use someone’s song on YouTube? Are you a rights holder and do you think this will work?  Let us know what you think either here via the comments section or back on our Facebook page.

The full RightsFlow announcement is here and there is an excellent article by Matt Rosoff on Business Insider here. But don’t forget to come back and comment after reading.

Jon Webster – CEO at the MMF

The Music Managers Forum is the peak industry organisation representing artist managers in the UK and their CEO, Jon ‘Webbo’ Webster is one of the best known and best liked identities in the UK music business. We’re proud that Webbo is one of our brilliant guest speakers so we thought we’d take a moment to introduce you to him and the organisation he represents.

The MMF as it’s known is the largest representative organisation of featured artists managers in the world. The membership of the UK organisation has over 400 members who between them represent some of the most successful artists around today.  The MMF is in turn part of the International Music Managers Forum (IMMF) which is the co-ordinating organisation between the 17 MMF groups around the world.

Webbo’s CV includes devising the Now that’s What I Call Music brand, the is the founder of the Mercury Music Prize and in 1992 having left Virgin and working with Richard Branson set up his own company to work closely with Genesis, Peter Gabriel and UB 40.

Webbo’s Presentation.

His presentation at the London Music Business School brings real life examples about managing artists in an ever changing environment to life. it gives students an opportunity to ask questions directly of someone who has not only done so much himself but from someone who is working day to day with some of the UK’s leading artist managers.

Jon also talks through the Music Management Bible – a leading publication produced by the MMF and sought globally as one of the must have tomes of the music industry.  You find it listed on our Recomended Reading List.

Meeting key industry figures such as Webbo and our other guest speakers is just one of the benifits of attending the London Music Business School. To enquire about enroling in the next course intake send us a note via our Contact Page or if you’re ready to Apply Now for an Interview with Course Leader, Steve Meluish.

 The Business tops our list of must read books.

Anne Harrison’s book has been the go-to resource for people new to the music industry for some time.  Now in its 5th Edition the book covers all the essential topics. One of the prime reasons that Music: The Business continues to top our list of must have books is that it is written about the UK music business. Whilst some of the best music business books in the world come from across the pond, having such a comprehensive reference book written about the UK legislative environment is a blessing.

To give you an idea of exactly what the book is about look no further than its sub title, The Essential Guide to the Law and the Deals. Chapters within the book cover information on things like, Putting together your team and Finding a Lawyer; What is in a management contract; What is a good record deal and much more.  Too much in fact for us to list here.

Reviews from across the industry have praised Harrison’s book with The Daily Mirror calling this ” The most comprehensive and accessible guide to the workings of the British music industry.”

Need we say more?

There are e Book options for those of you who have the latest devices however at the time of writing the newest 5th edition, published July 2011 hard back is the only current option.

For a copy of the full London Music Business School – Recommended Reading list please have a look HERE.

If there are any music business books that you have enjoyed or thought useful get involved in the conversation over on our Facebook page and let everyone know about them.

No matter what segment of the music business you are considering entering, the income that artists receive from all sources will affect you in one way or another. Knowing the ins and outs of sometimes complex revenue issues is really important in a time when collecting every penny counts.

This issue was highlighted recently when artist Jon Hopkins recently tweeted – “Got paid £8 for 90,000 plays. F**k Spotify! There have been numerous stories around artists receiving little income in return for a high number of plays on digital platforms at they become ever more popular.

However consider the response to this situation from MMF member and independent manager Erik Nielson who looks after the business interests of UK act, A Genuine Freakshow.  He recently told Music Ally – “I saw the Spotify row starting, so went into my sales figures for A Genuine Freakshow for October 2011. In short, we got paid £7.29 for 1,923 plays,” he says. “This is based on £10.24 gross income minus 85p mechanicals, minus £2.10 PIAS distribution fees. And this is based on worldwide Spotify plays.”

Erik’s act is self-released and it would seem is doing a lot better for it. However it raises all sorts of questions that you might need to answer for yourself when you enter the music business.

Is £7.29 a fair income in return for 1,923 plays of a song?

Do you understand how to track this revenue and how to ensure you receive revenue from all sources?

Tell us what you think about this issue. You can make comments below or back on our Facebook page.

Also if you want to ask any questions that relate to this topic ask them here and we’ll answer them on our Facebook page.

After graduating I began to consider the possibility of taking a Masters course in Music Industry Management. However the cost of such a course made it impossible for me. Then, I discovered the Music Business School course, which covered everything I wanted to know over a short amount of time and allowed me to work full-time hours whilst taking part. The knowledge I have gained comes direct from music industry insiders who have been there and know what they are talking about, and are continuing to do fascinating things in their roles. Best of all, everything is taught in an informal and relevant way – guest speakers have made themselves absolutely available to students for questions/queries and general help in their field of work – the contacts made here are invaluable. I feel confident that the course has given me a fantastic level of vital industry information and awareness of the current developments that will give me an edge as I start to progress in the music business.

Claire Thorn

Buckinghamshire