Music Business Group

A statement from the Music Business Group.
 
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Status Quo

Statement on the "Status Quo?" report, from David Ferguson, Chair of the British Academy of Composers & Songwriters;

"The DCMS Creative Economy Programme and the Treasury’s Gowers Review of Intellectual Property clearly show that the Government recognises that the creative industries are major contributors to the UK economy with a significant potential for further growth."  
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Commission Fee Guidelines

The Academy is rigourously continuing its campaign to overturn the ban imposed by the Office of Fair Trading on its annual publication of Commission Fee Guidelines for concert music . . . . .

Commenting on the present impasse, Academy CEO Chris Green said

"It is now some eighteen months since we were first advised by the OFT that we were in contravention of 1998 Competition Act (fully enacted in 2002, following an earlier European Competition directive). The OFT claim was that the issuing of fee guidelines by a trade association was a restraint on competition. A number of organisations, including the Incorporated Society of Musicians and the British Association of Photographic Libraries, have also been forced to change their practices in this area and several others have discontinued the practice voluntarily.  
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Coercion

Coercion battleground moves to Europe.

There aren’t many battles that have gone on as long as the one that has come to be known as "Coercion".

When the Association of Professional Composers was formed some 30 years ago, the issue was at the top of its first agenda. By the time the APC joined BASCA and the Composers Guild to create the Academy, far from being resolved, the problem of coercion was getting worse. It has become the media composer’s version of the 100 Years War.  
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