The European developer community is about to meet at the Develop Conference & Expo, 14-16 July 2009 in Brighton, UK. The event will enable participants to get up to date with the latest development tools and techniques, make new contacts and catch keynote speeches and workshops. Innovation and achievement will be celebrated at the Develop Industry Excellence Awards. The event could be of interest to game music writers and sound editors.

EDIT: It’s worth noting that the early bird rate of £150 closes June 10. Click through for details.
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According to a report in the Financial Times, the EU is moving closer to its goal of enabling a EU-wide music licensing system. Recent comments from France’s performing rights society Sacem, which represents some 128,000 composers, lyricists and publishers, indicate that it is willing to allow other national counterparts to license its catalogue. Sacem is one of the staunchest defenders of writers’ rights, and its acceptance of an EU-wide licence would be a major step in that direction.There are serious concerns that competition in licensing will further weaken the value of music by putting increased pressure on prices.

Read the full article in The Financial Times. For news about Sacem, visit their website (in French and English).

In a move that is of significance for online music, the British music rights body has significantly reduced the royalty rate to be paid for streaming music. Under the new pricing plan, digital music sites will have to pay 0.085p for each track streamed, down from the previous rate of 0.22p. PRS, which negotiates song and lyrics licence fees for the public performance of music, has agreements with radio stations, television broadcasters and online music channels in the UK. It said that the new plan would “enable the digital market to grow”. There is a feeling that the cut may entice YouTube and popular Internet radio service Pandora back to the UK market, as they had blocked large catalogues of music when PRS started re-negotiating.

Andrew Shaw, managing director of broadcast and online at PRS for Music, said: “The Copyright Tribunal established the principle of a per-stream minimum to protect creators; maintaining this principle will ensure that writers, composers and music publishers continue to be rewarded every time their music is enjoyed. As new entrants join the market and existing providers expand, music creators will reap the rewards by sharing in the success that their talent is generating. This is a good deal for music creators and for music lovers.”

YouTube, which is owned by Google, had said that PRS demanded a “prohibitive” increase in licensing fees that would mean it would lose significant amounts of money with every playback. This is perhaps something that should have been foreseen in the company’s business plan, rather than forcing writers to reduce their income.

The rates for streaming services come into effect on July 1 and will apply for 3 years.

The Council of Europe’s European Audiovisual Observatory has just released a very interesting report on music rights in audiovisual works. The publication covers the various legislations applicable in different European countries, and their implication on contracts and usage. In our experience, many producers are not aware of the complexity of the issues – let alone the actual music creators. So both can benefit from this excellent overview. Who holds the actual copyright in music for audiovisuals, for example? The answer is not quite what you would expect.

The report can be downloaded from the Observatory website. A print version was also made available at the Cannes Film Market. It contains further information, such as recent court cases, that show that one’s opinion of what might seem right can be very different from what a court might decide. So whether you are a producer or a music creator, remember to check your contracts occasionally. Highly recommended.

In a move that shows the ongoing devaluation of music on the web, music library Pump Audio sent out a message to its music suppliers that has caused considerable debate. In essence, the message announces a major change in the payment Pump Audio makes to music producers. Previously, the company split upfront licence fees 50/50 with creators, while also taking 50% of the publishing rights in the highly debatable “re-titling” practice. The new split is now 35/65 in favour of Pump Audio, while maintaining the share on the publishing revenue.

Many users have noted the difficulty in actually tracing the uses and therefore of seeing any performance rights within a reasonable timespan. In fact, it is thought that Pump has realised that music publishing is far from being the automatic money-spinner it is often thought to be, as it requires considerable resources to ensure that music users provide accurate cue sheets and the performance rights companies track them and pay accordingly. So they are asking more money on the front end. Their blog, meanwhile, talks about offering “the best deal in the music business”, which is a little cheeky.

There are music publishers who consider licensing as a core of their business, part of the ongoing job of exploiting a title. There are other companies that focus on the licensing part without touching publishing income.

Just Temptation, a sister company of peacefulfish focusing on investment and marketing solutions for film and music, is organising a workshop for soundtracks during the Cannes film festival with the support of Music Export Norway, Music Export Denmark and South East Media Network.

The workshop will take place at the Cinema de la Plage Pavillon on May 17th between 3-4pm and May 18th between 5-6pm and will give film composers and producers the opportunity to discuss issues like marketing, distribution and investment opportunities. Access is free of charge with a limited number of seats. For details, visit Just Temptation.