Path to Growth

UK Music response to : Path to Strong Sustainable and Balanced Growth

DATE: DECEMBER 2010

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

UK Music warmly welcomes Government’s recognition of the growth potential of the creative industries and its commitment to create the best conditions for that growth. At the heart of the UK’s commercial music industry sits a complex network of songwriters, composers, musicians, artists, artist managers, studio producers, record companies, music publishers and collection societies all of which are supported by an expanding number of ancillary, dependent and associated occupations such as booking agents, live music promoters, equipment and instrument manufacturers, retailers online and offline and venue owners.

It is the very structure of this symbiotic relationship which provides our industry with the ability to dominate the world. As a nation we are blessed with the ability to produce generation after generation of uniquely talented young singers, songwriters, performers and musicians whose careers ultimately will lead them to command a global stage.

Per capita, the UK is the largest music consumption market in the world. As a nation we are the second largest producer of repertoire in the world and one of only three countries that can claim to be net exporter of music. Last year approximately one in every ten albums sold in North America and Canada was made by a British artist.

We have a pedigree and history admired by many and while happy to be reminded of our past we have no ambition to live there. That is why earlier this year we published our vision of the future, an industrial manifesto for growth, “Liberating Creativity”. It unveils our single ambition forthe next decade: to challenge the United States as the largest musicproducing nation in the world.

Our aspiration is rooted in the knowledge that music is an important asset and strength for the UK. Music is ingrained in people’s lives, being consumed not only actively through purchasing music and attending concerts, but also passively through its use in film, TV and games. We know that there is a desire for high-quality, well-produced musical content and it is this incessant demand, which will be core to our ability to deliver on our growth potential.

Whilst there has been a global 5-year downward trend in recorded music revenues, it is a trend the UK industry has by and large isolated itself from. Indeed during 2009 the UK’s music industry delivered revenue growth of 5%.

Particular strengths have been the increased digital and online uses of music, greater returns from collective international music rights licensing and live music (with a notable increase in sponsorship, and the increasing recognition of live music as a driver for wider economic activity). One success story comes from our members PPL and PRS for Music. Both organisations license music rights collectively on behalf of thousands of rights holders. Both delivered particularly strong growth in international revenue last year. PPL grew international revenue by 40% to £21.6 million and PRS for Music up 19% to £166.9 million.2

Our industry is keen to build on this base to grow the export, digital and live business further.

In issuing this review, Government invite a fundamental review of all aspects of policy that impact upon this growth in our sector. Some of our comments specifically relate to these stronger aspects of our growth, and others to ways of improving the investment environment and skills framework.

In terms of the regulatory, competition and structural framework that is fundamental to this growth, we focus on:

· the ability of music SMEs to access sources of finance and investment;

· a cohesive policy-making structure for the creative industries;

· a copyright framework that protects creators and investors and enables them to derive a fair value for their work, particularly in the digital market;

· close communication between our industry and the UK’s international trade representatives;

· reform of the Withholding Tax regime and recognition of the investment of our sector in developing new music;

· a more flexible skills framework driven by the needs of employers, and;

· the removal of red-tape around the provision of live music in small venues and international touring.

Clearly Government has a role to play in fostering an environment, which facilitates an ongoing investment programme. In Liberating Creativity we recommend the creation of a Cabinet Committee to ensure complete cross-collaboration between all areas of Government policy which impact upon the Creative Industries. Going forward, it will be essential that all areas of Government policy and strategy are focused on the long-term gains that arise from a coherent approach and secure environment, where talent and investment is rewarded and our industries can fully deliver on their potential and promise.

Click on the link below to view the full document.

UK Music response to HM Treasury and BIS on The Path to Strong Sustainable and Balanced Growth December 2010.pdf