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The Sheepdogs & MusiCounts Celebrate Funds Raised for Niagara-area School Music Programs through Hockey Night in St. Catharines

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Yesterday in St. Catharines, MusiCounts held a Band-Aid Celebration event at the DSBN Academy, which featured a special performance by three-time JUNO Award winners The Sheepdogs. The event was celebrating the $30,000 raised for MusiCounts through Hockey Night in St. Catharines 2014, supported by Music Canada and Partridge Wealth Management. DSBN Academy was one of three Niagara-area schools to receive $10,000 worth of instruments through MusiCounts’ Band-Aid Grant program, which has granted $595,000 worth of in musical instruments to 69 schools across Canada this year.

Local MP and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Heritage Rick Dykstra is the organizer of Hockey Night in St. Catharines, and was on hand to speak to the importance of music education and the impact that music can have in a community.

“Every year I have been amazed at the success of Hockey Night in St. Catharines and through United Way of St. Catharines and District, how we have been able to help fund vital programs for the disadvantaged in our community. But what is happening here today is pure magic,” said Dykstra. “Getting instruments into the hands of young people and giving them the gift of music is something that will enrich them all of their lives. I cannot thank MusiCounts, Music Canada and Partridge Wealth Management enough for helping all of this come together and I especially want to thank Ewan and Shamus Currie of The Sheepdogs for taking time out of their schedules to be with us on this very special day.”

During their performance, The Sheepdogs’ Ewan and Shamus Currie spoke of their own experience with music education growing up, and offered some advice to students at DBSN.

“Obviously music is a great opportunity, whether it’s a job or just a really awesome pastime or hobby,” said Ewan in an interview with Cogeco News. “I just want them to realize that maybe it seems difficult and a bit structured at first when you’re learning scales, and starting off with the basic building blocks, but it’s really a pathway that leads you to a lot of enjoyment and a really cool way to spend your time.”

Music Canada and our members Sony Music Entertainment Canada, Universal Music Canada, and Warner Music Canada are proud supporters of the Band Aid Grant program. This is the third year of Music Canada’s partnership with MusiCounts, following a 2012 pledge of $250,000 over the next three years, which supports music education programs in schools in across the country.

Music education is a key priority of Music Canada as one of our five strategies in The Next Big Bang report, which recommends that given the strong evidence that music education prepares workers who are more creative, better problem-solvers, and possess soft skills that are critical in the digital economy, as well as the correlation between music scenes and tech clusters, governments should invest more in music education and should consider music scenes as a tool for economic development.

For more on the event, see coverage from TV Cogeco Niagara, Newstalk 610’s Larry Fedoruk Show, and the St. Catharines Standard, and the social media highlights below.

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Global Forum 2015: The Survival of the Creative Class

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The Global Forum at Canadian Music Week has earned a reputation as a hub for insightful commentary on issues pertinent to creators and the creatives industries. In recent years, the Global Forum has discussed grassroots advocacy with Blake Morgan, brand supported piracy with David Lowery, Chris Ruen, and Chris Castle, strategies for eliminating the digital theft of cultural content with Robert Levine and Dr. Brett Danaher, and how corporations enable digital theft with filmmaker Ellen Seidler. Music Canada is proud to return as a sponsor of the Global Forum, which features a compelling group of panelists for the 2015 edition.

For ten years or more we have heard about the importance of the creative class: that it is essential to the growth and success of businesses, as well as cities and regions. Cities that don’t attract the creative class, apparently fail.

But have we forgotten the fundamental elements of survival? Attracting the creative class is one thing but its members must be able to afford to work in their fields.

Scott Timberg is one of a growing number of people who say the creative economy is broken. According to Timberg, it is virtually impossible for creative artists from musicians to filmmakers, to journalists and book sellers, to earn a living. And the impacts are far-reaching.

Zoë Keating has experience trying to make a living as a full-time musician. A Canadian cellist, Keating didn’t set out to become an artist advocate but was thrust into the spotlight when she refused to back down against one of the largest intermediaries of music, YouTube, over her right to control how and when her music is distributed.

Blake Morgan is no reluctant advocate and since his appearance at The Global Forum in 2014, has seen his I Respect Music campaign log a major success with the recent introduction of bipartisan legislation in the U.S. to ensure artists are fairly paid on digital services and AM/FM radio.
Is survival of the creative class at risk? Has the artist middle class disappeared?
If so, at what cost? And what can we do about it?

Kate Taylor, a columnist with The Globe and Mail and frequent writer on technology, the media and music, will lead the panel in an hour-long discussion. The panel will be followed by moderated table discussions on potential solutions.

Update: video from the panel is now available online, and is embedded below.

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Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame Inductees Steve Kane and Cowboy Junkies Recognized at Queen’s Park

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This morning, 2015 Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame inductees Steve Kane and Cowboy Junkies were recognized at a breakfast event at Queen’s Park, which was well attended by more than thirty Members of Provincial Parliament from all three parties.

IMG_2395 Premier Kathleen Wynne dropped by the 2015 Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame breakfast to honour the new inductees Cowboy Junkies and Steve Kane, President of Warner Music Canada.

IMG_2432 Premier Kathleen Wynne dropped by the 2015 Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame breakfast to honour the new inductees Cowboy Junkies and Steve Kane, President of Warner Music Canada.

Amy Terrill, Music Canada’s VP of Public Affairs, provided welcoming remarks, commending the Ontario government for extending the Ontario Music Fund in the provincial budget last month, and reiterating Music Canada members’ commitment to continue to use the Fund to drive investment and job creation in Ontario’s music sector.

The Hon. Michael Coteau, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport, also spoke at the event, noting that Ontario generates more than 80 per cent of Canada’s total recording industry revenue, which is a competitive advantage for the province.

IMG_2424 Premier Kathleen Wynne dropped by the 2015 Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame breakfast to honour the new inductees Cowboy Junkies and Steve Kane, President of Warner Music Canada.
After the event, Steve Kane and Cowboy Junkies’ Margo Timmins and Michael Timmins sat in the gallery of the legislature for Question Period, where they were introduced in statements by Sophie Kiwala, MPP, Kingston and the Islands, and Bill Walker, MPP, Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound.

During the event, several MPPs took the opportunity to pose for photos with the inductees, which were shared on Twitter:

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Update: Artists react to proposal to extend the term for copyright of sound recordings in Canada to 70 years

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Budget 2015, announced on April 21, 2015, committed to extend the term of copyright for sound recordings in Canada to 70 years from 50 years. This is what some artists have had to say in reaction to the news:

“I applaud the efforts of our Government to extend the copyright protection term for our recording artists. It is only fair that they continue to reap the rewards of their creative works well into their dotage, when they need it most.”
– Anne Murray

 

“Thank you for recognizing all that the performers and producers put into creating music and their continued need to be recognized for that effort 70 years later. The government’s Budget 2015 amending the term of copyright is very much appreciated in the music community.”
– Alex Lifeson (Rush)

 

“As a Canadian band, we appreciate that our government recognizes the cultural and economic value in musical recordings, and has protected that value by extending the copyright term of those involved in producing these records.”
– Arkells

 

“The extension of the copyright protection for sound recordings has been long overdue in Canada. I beseech the Canadian government to do the right thing by their recording artists and bring our country up to the seventy year rule that most of the world has adopted. Why should Canada be the only country among our trading partners to lag behind? Our music has enriched the cultural landscape both here and abroad, and we the copyright holders of our albums should be fairly compensated. Thank you!”
– Liona Boyd

 

“I’ve been making music since the early 1970s. Term extension is a huge relief – in just a few short years I thought I would start to see copies of my work and no revenue. Not anymore, thank you PM Harper.”
– Myles Goodwyn

 

“It’s great that Canada has extended the copyright term to align with our international trading partners. This will allow labels to continue to invest in new Canadian artists.”
– Ladies of the Canyon

 

“Thank you PM Harper for recognizing the importance of extending copyright protection to recordings to 70 years, which will allow continued re-investment in the next generation of artists.”
– Brett Kissel


“Term extension is music to my ears and the ears of so many creators in Canada. Thank you.”
– Kim Mitchell

 

“By extending the term of copyright to match our major trading partners, the Canadian government is adding incentive for companies to invest in more Canadian recordings, which will help artists, and everyone in the recording ecosystem.”
– Miranda Mulholland


“Thank you to the federal government for encouraging more investment in Canadian artists and recordings by extending our term of copyright.”
– Brad Roberts (Crash Test Dummies)

 

“We’re glad to see Canada extend our length of copyright protection to terms consistent with other artists in other countries.”
– The Sheepdogs


“Canadian artists create music that is world-renowned and stacks up next to our counterparts from around the world – I’m thankful to the government that our Copyright laws now also stack up to our global counterparts.”
– The Tenors

 

“It is great to see Canada extend our copyright term to match our international counterparts, thank you for caring about the economic contribution music makes to Canada.”
– Tom Cochrane


“I’m still releasing albums but my fans love my older songs. Thanks to the federal government for the recent legislation. Its passage will make sure the sun doesn’t go down on my early songs.”
– Gordon Lightfoot


“As a member of the vast community of Canadian recording artists and labels, I am deeply grateful to this government for taking the initiative to bring even more of our copyright regulations in line with the rest of the world and other cultural industries such as publishing. The creativity which goes into a given performance and the recording process and arrangements should not be undervalued in the ultimate success of a composition. The copyright principle is an essential ingredient in a business model which should allow all creative participants to see a fair return on their investment of time, money, experience and education in the development of their career and product.”
– Loreena McKennitt


“PM Harper – you’ve made Canada’s music, and music industry, competitive with the rest of the world, thank you.”
– Toronto Symphony Orchestra

 

“As artists, ownership of our music is almost like a retirement plan. It is great to see that by extending Canada’s copyright term, the government is protecting that investment”
– Triumph


“Thanks for term extension PM Harper, you really are taking care of business.”
– Randy Bachman

 

“The world has changed since our original copyright laws were drafted. Every piece of music is, at least theoretically, with us forever. Extending the copyright term is an eminently sensible response to this new situation, and a welcome one!”
– Bruce Cockburn

 

“In just a few short years, songs we recorded in the late 1960s will no longer have copyright protection in Canada. Many of us in our 70’s and 80’s depend on income from these songs for our livelihood. We would deeply appreciate any adjustment that would avert a financial disaster in our lives.”
– Leonard Cohen

 

“We are thankful to the government for extending the commercial life of our music.”
– Cowboy Junkies

 

“I support extending the length of copyright for sound recordings in Canada to 70 years.  The copyright of a creative work should not expire in the lifetime of an author.”
– Jim Cuddy (Blue Rodeo)

 

“I’m glad that Canada has extended our copyright term, so we can continue to use the proceeds from classic Canadian recordings to invest in great Canadian talent.”
– Kardinal Offishall


“It is great to hear that Canada has extended our length of copyright for music recordings, which will help our songs maintain their value for years to come.”
– Serena Ryder

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Music Canada Commends The Ontario Government For Extending the Ontario Music Fund

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Toronto, April 23, 2015 – Music Canada applauds the Ontario Government for continuing to invest in one of the province’s competitive advantages, the music industry.

“The Ontario Music Fund firmly places music at the forefront of Ontario’s economic development and has increased substantially the amount of high-value work being done in the Province of Ontario,” says Graham Henderson. “The OMF is a competitive advantage no other province has. Music’s role as a cultural powerhouse, economic driver, job creator, investment stimulus, tourism asset, and community builder has been reaffirmed with today’s OMF extension.”

The Ontario Music Fund has succeeded in stimulating increased economic activity, foreign direct investment, growth of live music production and a focus on music tourism. Over the last two years, the OMF has generated private investment dollars to match the government investment dollar to dollar.

“Our members alone have invested over $3.5 Million in recording projects over the last two years that have resulted in projects being completed in Ontario that would have been bound for other provinces or the U.S., generating significant employment and raising the profile of our talented professionals here in this province,” adds Henderson.

Highlights include:

  • The recording of The Tenors’ latest album with 80 members of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, generating additional opportunities for performance and collaboration between these music ensembles;
  • A Walk Off The Earth recording that would have been done in the U.S. but instead employed two Ontario producers and generated an estimated 1700 work hours;
  • The recording of Scott Helman’s debut EP “Augusta” and production of supporting videos has helped to launch a career. Since the release of “Augusta”, Scott has seen a drastic increase in his following across social media platforms and has toured Ontario with Colin James, played We Day in Ottawa for 17,000 fans, signed on with The Paradigm Agency for the U.S. territory, and hired Azoff Music Management to guide his career;
  • The production of numerous music videos including the Fall Out Boy video for “Centuries” that employed close to 90 music video professionals for two days and funneled production costs to the historic shooting location at Fort Henry.

Renewal of the Ontario Music Fund comes just a few weeks after Premier Wynne announced the recipients of the second round of funding at an event a Coalition Music in Toronto, saying “music moves the earth.”

– 30 –

For more information:
Quentin Burgess – Manager of Digital Media, Music Canada
qburgess@musiccanada.com 647-981-8410

Music Canada is a non-profit trade organization that represents the major record companies in Canada, namely Sony Music Entertainment Canada, Universal Music Canada and Warner Music Canada. Music Canada also works with some of the leading independent record labels and distributors, recording studios, live music venues, concert promoters, managers and artists in the promotion and development of the music cluster.

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Backgrounder: Term Extension for Sound Recordings

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How Copyright Works & Canadian Copyright Law

Copyright is a form of intellectual property protection provided to a creator who expresses an idea in a creative work such as a sound recording. The owner of copyright in the creative work has the exclusive right to copy, use, distribute, and receive compensation for such uses of the work for a defined period of time. The copyright owner uses the time during which the creative work is protected by copyright to extract value from it and earn a living.

The Canadian Copyright Act sets out the time limitations for exclusive uses of compositions, written works, films, and sound recordings. Section 23 of the Copyright Act currently states that performers and producers of sound recordings are provided a term of protection of 50 years. In comparison, other copyrighted works such as books, films, and musical compositions are protected for 50 years after the creator’s death. When the term of copyright has expired, the works are commonly said to be in the public domain, meaning that they may be freely used, distributed and copied without knowledge of, or compensation to, the creator or other rights holder.

International Comparisons

Over 60 countries worldwide protect copyright in sound recordings for a term of 70 years or longer from the time of the recording (see list attached). Until today, Canada, with only 50 years of copyright protection, has been an outlier amongst developed countries.

Implications for Artists

A term of 70 years will mean that artists and other rights holders retain control of their sound recordings and can profit from them into their elder years. Without term extension for sound recordings, the early works of Leonard Cohen, Neil Young, Gordon Lightfoot, Joni Mitchell, and Anne Murray would be in public domain over the next five years.

For younger artists, additional profits derived by rights holders from older recordings will be reinvested in developing artists. The music industry is second to none in terms of reinvestment in new talent, with over 28% of revenue reinvested in 2014. As IFPI’s latest Investing in Music report illustrates, this is a greater percentage of revenue than the pharmaceutical, biotech, computer software or high tech hardware industries each invest in R&D.

Implications for Consumers

Public domain works, instead of being cheaper for the consumer, simply shift the value between different parties in the value chain. In the case of copyright-protected recordings, the performers continue to get paid for their work and profits are reinvested in new artists. Whereas for a public domain recording, the performer receives nothing; the additional value is instead taken as increased profit for the company distributing the public domain music. Consumers further benefit from copyright-protected works as businesses are incentivized to digitize and reissue classic recordings, often with remastering and additional and enhanced features and previously unreleased recordings. Studies have shown that there was no significant difference in the average price of recordings still under copyright compared to those in the public domain.   This is further demonstrated through a comparison of the price of recordings in the public and copyright-protected recordings of a similar quality: 1950s recordings in the public domain on iTunes are priced no differently than protected 1960s or 1970s recordings. In countries that have extended the term of copyright in sound recordings, as Europe did in 2012, term extension has not resulted in an increase to consumer pricing.

 

Appendix A:

Countries with copyright protection for sound recordings over 50 years

  1. United States (95)
  2. Mexico (75)
  3. United Kingdom (70)
  4. France (70)
  5. ermany (70)
  6. South Korea (70)
  7. Australia (70)
  8. Argentina (70)
  9. Austria (70)
  10. Netherlands (70)
  11. Spain (70)
  12. Italy (70)
  13. Norway (70)
  14. Slovenia (70)
  15. Sweden (70)
  16. Slovakia (70)
  17. Romania (70)
  18. Portugal (70)
  19. Poland (70)
  20. Lithuania (70)
  21. Latvia (70)
  22. Ireland (70)
  23. Bahamas (70/100)
  24. Saint Vincent (75)
  25. Samoa (75)
  26. Bahrain (70)
  27. Brazil (70)
  28. Burkina Faso (70)
  29. Chile (70)
  30. Costa Rica (70)
  31. Cote d’Ivoire (99)
  32. Micronesia (75/100)
  33. Morocco (70)
  34. Nicaragua (70)
  35. Oman (95/120)
  36. Palau (75/100)
  37. Colombia (80/50)
  38. Panama (70)
  39. Paraguay (70)
  40. Dominican Republic (70)
  41. Ecuador (70)
  42. El Salvador (70)
  43. Ghana (70)
  44. Grenadine (75)
  45. Guatemala (75)
  46. Honduras (75)
  47. Hungary (70)
  48. Greece (70)
  49. Finland (70)
  50. Estonia (70)
  51. Denmark(70)
  52. Czech Republic (70)
  53. Cyprus (70)
  54. Croatia (70)
  55. Bulgaria (70)
  56. Belgium (70)
  57. Peru (70)
  58. Singapore (70)
  59. Turkey (70)
  60. Iceland (70)
  61. Liechtenstein (70)
  62. Malta (70)
  63. Luxembourg (70)
  64. India (60)
  65. Venezuela (60)
  66. Bangladesh (60)
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Term Extension Benefits Canadian Artists, Music Companies and the Economy: Music Canada

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Ottawa/Toronto, April 21, 2015 – Music Canada applauds the Government of Canada’s 2015 Budget for announcing the intention to amend the term of copyright for sound recordings from 50 to 70 years.

“By proposing to extend the term of copyright in recorded music, Prime Minister Harper and the Government of Canada have demonstrated a real understanding of music’s importance to the Canadian economy. Thank you. We look forward to seeing the full details when the Budget Implementation Act is tabled,” says Graham Henderson, President of Music Canada.

“With each passing day, Canadian treasures like Universal Soldier by Buffy Sainte-Marie are lost to the public domain. This is not in the public interest. It does not benefit the creator or their investors and it will have an adverse impact on the Canadian economy,” adds Henderson.

Leonard Cohen reinforces the urgency of the problem, “In just a few short years, songs we recorded in the late 1960s will no longer have copyright protection in Canada. Many of us in our 70’s and 80’s depend on income from these songs for our livelihood. We would deeply appreciate any adjustment that would avert a financial disaster in our lives.”

This change will rectify the long-standing competitive disadvantage that Canadian artists and Canadian music has had by not being aligned with our international trading partners. A 70 year term of copyright has become the norm internationally. More than 60 countries worldwide protect copyright in sound recordings for a term of 70 years or longer, including all of Europe, the U.S., and Australia. Across Europe, Canadian artists are denied the full 70 year term of protection due to Canada’s shorter term of protection.

“The world has changed since our original copyright laws were drafted,” says Bruce Cockburn. “Every piece of music is, at least theoretically, with us forever. Extending the copyright term is an eminently sensible response to this new situation, and a welcome one!”

“I support extending the length of copyright for sound recordings in Canada to 70+ years,” adds Jim Cuddy.  “The copyright of a creative work should not expire in the lifetime of an author.”

Term extension fosters increased investment in new artists. With a significant average annual investment by music companies of over 28% of revenues in developing talent, the next generation of performing artists will benefit from this copyright amendment now and well into the future.

“I’m glad that Canada has extended our copyright term, so we can continue to use the proceeds from classic Canadian recordings to invest in great Canadian talent,” said Kardinal Offishall.

– 30 –

For more information:
Quentin Burgess – Manager of Digital Media, Music Canada
qburgess@musiccanada.com 647-981-8410

Music Canada is a non-profit trade organization that represents the major record companies in Canada, namely Sony Music Entertainment Canada, Universal Music Canada and Warner Music Canada. Music Canada also works with some of the leading independent record labels and distributors, recording studios, live music venues, concert promoters, managers and artists in the promotion and development of the music cluster.

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Digital Music Report 2015 released by IFPI

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Today, the IFPI released the Digital Music Report 2015, which provides an extensive overview of the global digital music sector, including international market figures, market trends, and worldwide bestsellers information. The report notes that globally, digital music revenues matched physical format sales for the first time in 2014. Digital revenues rose 6.9% to US $6.9 Billion, representing 46% of all global music sales and underlying the industry’s transition over recent years. Overall global revenues fell slightly (0.4%) in 2014, to US $14.97 Billion.

Digital-Music-Report-2015The IFPI says the Digital Music Report shows an industry in continued transition, with consumers embracing music streaming and subscription models. Subscription revenues rose sharply in 2014, growing by 39%, which offset an 8% decline in digital download sales to grow overall digital revenues to US$6.85 billion. The number of paying users of subscription services increased by 46.4%, to an estimated 41 million people worldwide. Subscription services are now a major part of the industry’s portfolio of businesses, making up 23% of the digital market and generating US$1.6 Billion in trade revenues.

“The recorded music business has always led the way for creative industries in the digital world,” said Frances Moore, chief executive of IFPI. “That leadership continues today as the music industry’s digital revolution continues through new phases, driven by the consumer’s desire for access to, rather than ownership of, music. It is a reflection of how much we have adapted that digital revenues today are, for the first time, on a par with physical. The headline statistics of 2014 speak for themselves, with overall revenues still largely flat, down by 0.4 per cent. Music companies are charting a path to sustainable year-on-year growth. That path was never going to be straight, but we are making great strides along it, embracing new models, licensing, investing and improving consumer choice.”

Key trends highlighted in the report includes the increased consumer engagement with licensed digital services, based on a new research study undertaken by Ipsos across 13 of the world’s leading music markets, including Canada. The Ipsos research found that the rise of streaming is driven in large part by young consumers, and that there is substantial untapped potential for growth in paid subscriptions.

The report also notes that bundling partnerships between telecom and digital music companies are becoming standard in markets across the globe, and are playing a significant role in the growth in emerging markets. The report notes that services are also increasingly tailoring their payment models to reach various segments of the market, citing MTV Trax, which offers users in the UK access to 100 songs for £1 per week, ranging to Deezer Elite, which specializes in high quality audio for $20 per month.

The report also addresses the “value gap” in the digital music market, noting the market distortion caused by the way some digital services circumvent normal music licensing rules. The IFPI illustrates this by comparing the share of revenue rightsholders derive from services like Spotify and Deezer to those derived from platforms like YouTube and Dailymotion. The report estimates that music subscription services have 41 million paying subscribers and more than 100 million “freemium” users globally, which generated US$1.6 Billion in rightsholder revenues in 2014. By comparison, YouTube alone has more than one billion monthly users and is considered one of the most popular access routes to music, and yet generated just US$641 million for rightsholders in the same time period.

“The value gap is a fundamental flaw in our industry’s landscape which sees digital platforms such as Dailymotion and YouTube taking advantage of exemptions from copyright laws that simply should not apply to them,” said the IFPI’s Frances Moore. “Laws that were designed to exempt passive hosting companies from liability in the early days of the internet – so-called ‘safe harbours’ – should never be allowed to exempt active digital music services from having to fairly negotiate licences with rights holders. There should be clarification of the application of ‘safe harbours’ to make it explicit that services that distribute and monetise music should not benefit from them.”

The Digital Music Report also covers plans for Global Release Day, which is the industry’s decision to synchronize the release schedule for all markets, allowing consumers to access new music on the same day worldwide. Beginning July 10, 2015, Friday will become the new release day, reducing the risk of piracy by shortening the release gap between markets, and providing new marketing opportunities for record labels over the weekend.

The report also examines music’s impact in the wider economy, with data illustrating the effect of record companies’ investment in artists. The recording industry invested US$4.3 billion in 2013, which, at more than 15% of industry revenues, is a larger share than other sectors like leisure (6.3%) and automobiles (4.2%). This investment is a catalyst for economic activity, said Max Lousada, chairman and CEO of Warner Music UK. “As an industry we make financial investments in our arts that have a ripple effect on the wider economy, whether that is driving new and innovative businesses or creating work for all the specialists that work to develop and sustain artists’ careers from producers, graphic designers and stylists to lawyers and accountants.”

The report looks at the role of music in driving tourism, citing the experience from Austin, Texas, and research from Toronto and the United Kingdom. Music is also a major driver of activity on social media, as the report notes that seven of the ten most-followed people on Twitter are musicians, and nine of the top ten most-watched YouTube videos are music related.

The report also profiles industry efforts to counter piracy, which continues to be a massive problem for the music industry. Research by Ipsos shows that most consumers recognize digital piracy is harmful and should be addressed by governments and intermediaries. 52% of respondents in Ipsos’ survey agreed that downloading or streaming without the copyright owner’s permission was theft. 53% of respondents agreed that licensed services should appear above pirate sites in search engine results, and 52% agreed that companies should not advertise on pirate sites. The report identifies major brands found to be continuing to advertise on egregious pirate sites, which drives revenue for the pirate site and advertisers, but while those who create the music involved receive nothing.

In the global charts, the soundtrack to the motion picture Frozen was the top-selling album internationally, while Pharrell Williams’ Happy was the top-selling digital single. Taylor Swift received the IFPI’s Global Recording Artist Award in 2014, as the most popular artist across formats ranging from CD sales to YouTube views.

To view the full report, visit http://ifpi.org/digital-music-report.php.

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Ontario Government announces recipients of the second year of the Ontario Music Fund

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Today, the Hon. Premier Kathleen Wynne announced the 2014-15 Ontario Music Fund recipients, with 123 recipients receiving more than $14 million in grants in the second year of the program. The fund, which is administered by the Ontario Media Development Corporation (OMDC), supports music entrepreneurs, record labels, managers, agents, industry trade associations, and training institutions across Ontario.

Premier Wynne made the announcement at Coalition Music in Scarborough, where she highlighted the music sector’s value to the Ontario economy and stated “music makes the earth move for Ontario.” The press release notes that the recorded music industry generates more than $429 million in revenue in Ontario annually, and that support from the first year of the Ontario Music Fund helped create or retain 2,000 jobs and produced $24 million in additional revenue for music-related businesses in Ontario.

“By establishing Ontario as one of the leading destinations in North America to record and perform, we are supporting the music companies, artists and cultural institutions that bring our sound to the world, boosting a vibrant and important industry, and helping to create good jobs,” said Premier Wynne in the release.

The Hon. Michael Coteau, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport, and The Hon. Brad Duguid, Ministry of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure, also spoke at the event, which featured music performances by The Good Lovelies and Myles Castello.

“By investing in the music sector through initiatives like the Ontario Music Fund, our government has ensured that Ontario remains Canada’s top jurisdiction for making, producing and performing music, said Minister Coteau. “I’m proud that Ontario continues to be one of the most diverse music sectors in the world and a place where artists can grow and thrive right here at home.”

“The Ontario Music Fund has positively changed the landscape for music, and signals that the Government of Ontario agrees that music is a good investment for this province; in fact, that it is one of our competitive advantages,” said Graham Henderson, President of Music Canada. “We commend the Government of Ontario for creating the conditions that encourage the private sector to invest in music in order to create jobs and stimulate growth.”

For further information on the Ontario Music Fund, visit the OMDC’s website at http://www.omdc.on.ca/music/the_ontario_music_fund.htm.

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Music Canada’s Graham Henderson: Junos show culture is a smart investment for Hamilton

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Music Canada President & CEO Graham Henderson has an op-ed in the Hamilton Spectator today, congratulating Hamilton on hosting a very successful JUNO Awards earlier this month. In ‘Junos show culture is a smart investment for Hamilton,’ Henderson notes the multi-million dollar economic impact the four-day event had in Hamilton, as well as the added benefits that a strong cultural scene brings, like improving residents’ quality of life and attracting creative and innovative workers.

“From the dozens of downtown streets and stores that featured free performances, to the 15 venues that took part in JunoFest, to the spectacular closing show at FirstOntario Centre, Hamilton delivered on all counts,” wrote Henderson. “More than 3,000 musicians and industry personnel attended Juno Week, and Hamilton’s tourism sector welcomed them with open arms and exhibited terrific hospitality. Hotels were at full capacity, bars and restaurants were bustling, and taxis were kept busy shuttling attendees around town. Tim Potocic, chair of the Junos host committee, has estimated the economic impact of the four-day event to be between $11 million and $12 million in Hamilton.”

The op-ed comes as Hamilton City Council is scheduled to continue the city’s 2015 budget deliberations, which include a proposed $500,000 added investment in the arts, which would represent the first major arts funding boost in Hamilton in 15 years.

Yesterday, the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce’s Keanin Loomis issued a strong statement on the economic value of music & cultural events to a city in an op-ed in the Hamilton Spectator. In ‘Arts and culture now drive Hamilton,’ Loomis notes that a city’s quality of life is among its strongest tools for economic development.

“It is indisputable that the arts activity that’s been buoying Hamilton’s cultural renaissance over the last decade led directly to the economic boost we got from hosting last week’s Junos,” wrote Loomis. “Considering the type of returns we are receiving from the limited investments we are making to enhance this city’s quality of life, more investment in the arts is an economic imperative.”

Hamilton City Council will deliberate the arts investment motion today in Council Chambers. Members of Hamilton’s arts community are attending in the gallery as a show of support for the motion. The final budget vote is scheduled for April 8th.

Categories: Advocacy, Music Tourism
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