Vevo pays up

Music video service VEVO has paid over $200 million to rights owners since being set up in 2009 according to head honcho Rio Caraeff, speaking at the Business Insider conference in New York this week. Although co-owned by Sony Music and Universal Music, VEVO licences content from a wide range of labels and publishers, sharing ad revenues with its content partners.

Bush joints AEG

The UK division of AEG Live has announced the appointment of Sam Bush, of live and management company the Sam Bush Organisation, to the role of Director Of Promotions.

Dre tops artiste earnings

Forbes have published their calculations of artiste's annual global earnings and this year Dr Dre, he of the headphones, comes out top, followed by Roger Waters and Elton John. The full list is:

1. Dr. Dre ($110 million) 
2. Roger Waters ($88 million) 
3. Elton John ($80 million) 
4. U2 ($78 million) 
5. Take That ($69 million) 
6. Bon Jovi ($60 million) 
7. Britney Spears ($58 million) 
8. Paul McCartney ($57 million) 
8. Taylor Swift ($57 million) 
10. Justin Bieber ($55 million) 
10. Toby Keith ($55 million) 
12. Rihanna ($53 million) 
13. Lady Gaga ($52 million) 
14. Foo Fighters ($47 million) 
15. Diddy ($45 million) 
15. Katy Perry ($45 million) 
17. Kenny Chesney ($44 million) 
18. Beyonce ($40 million) 
19. Red Hot Chili Peppers ($39 million) 
20. Jay-Z ($38 million) 
21. Coldplay ($37 million) 
22. Adele ($35 million) 
22. Kanye West ($35 million) 
24. Michael Buble ($34 million) 
25. Sade ($33 million)

Russian court brands Pussy Riot videos 'extremist'

A Russian court has ordered that websites must remove video clips of performances by Pussy Riot after they were deemed 'extremist' and a call for mutiny and "mass disorder" by Judge Marina Musimovitch. Two members of the band remain in custody in Russia's infamous gulags for their cathedral  protest against Vladimir Putin. A third member of the band, Yekaterina Samutsevich, who was released, said the band would try to overturn the decision. 

Stones fined for curfew breach

The Rolling Stones have apparently been hit with a £200,000 fine for their first show at the O2 Arena for breaching the curfew. Greenwich Council imposed the fine after the band played for an additional 35 minutes past their 10.30pm curfew. The band's spokesman Bernard Doherty said "It means a big fine - but the guys just do their thing. [And] there wasn't a janitor standing there, jangling his keys, saying "I want to go home'". Post event the O2 denied that a fine had been levied, and the matter remains unclear.

Artist & Manager Awards 2012

It was the second running of the revamped Artist & Manager Awards at the Troxy in East London last night (27th November), the annual awards bash staged by the Music Managers Forum and the Featured Artists Coalition. Kylie Minogue presented the Peter Grant Award to her long term manager Terry Blamey saying "Thank you for helping a 19 year old girl become a woman and an artist and take on the world." And the winners are:

Breakthrough Manager: Owain Davies (Ben Howard)
Breakthrough Artist: Madeon

Manager Of The Year: Sam Eldridge (Plan B, Tribes)
Artist Of The Year: Plan B

Artist Award: Pale Seas

Pioneer Award: Amanda Palmer
Industry Champion: Zane Lowe
Peter Grant Award: Terry Blamey (Kylie Minogue)

FINAL GREENER FESTIVAL AWARDS 2012 ANNOUNCED

The final winners of the 2012 Greener Festival Award have been announced with thirteen more UK, European and North American winners picking up the Award along with the first ever winner from Brazil. They join the previously announced winners list which included seven festivals in Australia and other sustainable events in Europe, the UK and the USA, a total of forty one winners in all. The new winning festivals, some of the greenest in the world, are:

Lightening in a Bottle (USA) - Outstanding
Latitude (UK) - Highly Commended
Rock The Green (USA) - Highly Commended
Symbiosis Gathering: Pyramid Eclipse (USA) - Highly Commended
Calgary Folk Music Festival (Canada) Commended
Leeds Festival (UK) - Commended
Reading Festival (UK) - Commended
Hadra Trance (France) - Commended
Sled Island (Canada) - Commended
Barclaycard Wireless (UK) - Improving
Hard Rock Calling (UK) - Improving
Milton Keynes Festival Fringe (UK) – Improving
T in The Park (UK) - Improving

A Greener Festival have also announced four new GREEN INSPIRATION AWARDS for projects that promote sustainability and captured the imagination of AGF's team of volunteer environmental assessors. The four worthy winners are:

Boom Festival for their STAR waste water recycling scheme (Portugal)

Shambala Festival for their 'Surplus Supper Club' food recycling scheme (UK)

Food and farming alliance Sustain for their 'Good Food For Festivals Guide' (UK)

Open Air Festival for their on-site biodigesters (Czech Republic)

The Greener Festival Awards are supported by Robertson Taylor, insurance brokers. Robertson Taylor are specialists in the music industry and offer a discount  insurance scheme for green events, a scheme fully we endorse and support.

The overall winner of Australia’s Greener Festival Award 2012 was announced at the ‘Are festivals getting greener, or meaner?’ forum at the Eclipse 2012 Festival on Tuesday 13th November 2012 and the winner was The Falls Festival. Well done!

The overall winner of the UK's Greener Festival Award will be made at the UK Festival Awards on Monday December 3rd at the London Roundhouse. The GO Europe 'Green Operations' Award will be handed over to the greenest European festival at the European Festival  Awards at Eurosonic in Groningen, Netherlands, on Wednesday the 9th January 2013.

More on the UK and European Festival Awards here:  http://eu.festivalawards.com/tickets/ and here http://www.festivalawards.com/

Music Makeover finalists announced

PRS for Music have announced the five finalists of their competition to put music back at the heart of pubs. Music Makeover will award a pub £5,000 to improve their venue with live music facilities. Research conducted with pub-data specialists CGA Strategy Ltd. found that using music resulted in a 48% increase in sales over the weekend and 21% on weekdays.

The finalists are:

• The Brunel Arms, Pontyclun, Wales
• Pig & Whistle, Ladbroke Grove, London
• The Burnaby Arms, Bedfordshire
• The Grafton, Kentish Town, London
• The Shepherds Crook, Portsmouth

.

Rock The House!

The Houses of Parliament rocked last night (26 November) at a special event hosted by Mike Weatherley MP to launch Rock The House 2013, the competition to promote new talent and great venues. Playing live, the 2012 competition under 18 winners, Stoneway, admitted that just two nights before they had been gigging to an empty pub in Warrington before their trip to London and the slot in front of politicians, music industry guests and musicians in the grand setting of the Speakers State Rooms. The event was sponsored by Yamaha, PRS for Music, Orange, Future Music Publishing and UK Music amongst others 

Every single UK MP is invited to nominate a solo-artist, a band, an under-18s act and the best small live music venue from their constituency. A panel of international music industry experts and musicians will determine the finalists who will compete in a live battle of the bands  with the winners in each artist's category playing a live set on the Terrace of the House of Commons in the evening at a reception. Runcorn based Stoneway had been nominated by Weaver Vale MP Graham Evans.

Chris Stamp dies of cancer aged 70

Chris Stamp, former manager of the Who, and who also launched the career of Jimi Hendrix, has died aged 70. Stamp, brother of actor Terence, was credited by Who front man Roger Daltrey of being instrumental in the bands success saying without Stamp the band "wouldn't be the band we were".

Frank Barsalona, the pioneering music agent who is often credited with helping create the modern American rock touring circuit, died last week after losing a long battle with Alzheimer's disease. He was 74. Over the years his agency represented the likes of Led Zeppelin, The Who, Tom Petty, Van Halen, Bruce Springsteen, Marianne Faithful, Sinead O'Connor, Suzanne Vega and U2

Stones NOT a sell out!

It seems a number of tickets remained unsold for last weekend's Rolling Stones concerts at London's O2 Arena - with fans shunning what many considered over priced tickets - further inflated by re-sellers and the secondary market. Primary tickets for the Virgin Live-promoted event were already pretty pricey, starting at £106 including booking fees, and going up to £1140 for a premium package but Xfm reported that at the last minute online offers dropped below the face value as touts moved to offload tickers.

Intelltix launch in Australia

Intellitix has opened an office in Australia, and is set to announce its first shows within weeks. Having activated 2.5 million RFID chips since it formed in 2011, Intellitix says it will bring its fully integrated access control, social media and cashless payment solutions to the Australian market, " dramatically improving the fan experience". The company’s Sydney office – its fourth after Montreal, Denver and London – has been established by Turnkey Management Group Director Dion Brant who has also been appointed Director of Business Development, Intellitix Australia. Brant, who previously worked as Business Development Director of Ticketek and was a Senior Consultant at Coffey International, said: “Intellitix brings a wealth of new ways to connect fans, friends, artists, brands and even exhibitors. It’s a system that has been proved rock solid at some of the most high profile events in the world, while generating new sources of income. It’s a perfect compliment to what we do at Turnkey Management Group and we believe this technology will redefine the live event experience in Australia.”  Intellitix will  be exhibiting its RFID solutions at the inaugural Electronic Music Conference (EMC) in Sydney, from 27-28 November. Intelltix's client's include  AEG, Live Nation, C3 Presents, and ID&T and festivals include Coachella, Bonnaroo, Outside Lands, Lollapalooza and Tomorrowland as well as corporate clients including Samsung, Adidas, Ford Motors and Mercedes
.

http://www.intellitix.com/intellitix/home/

The 25 Greatest Gigs Ever

The Times has revealed its all time to 25 live shows, topped by The Who at Leeds University in 1970 followed by  Queen at Live Aid in 1985, James Brown at the Apollo in New York in 1962, David Bowie at the Rainbow Theatre, London, in 1972 and Kate Bush at Hammersmith Odeon in 1979. The 25 Greatest Gigs Ever also features Bob Marley at the Lyceum in London (1975) at number 6, Nirvana at Sony Music Studios in New York (1993) at Number 7, Blur at Glastonbury (2009) at Number 8, The Rolling Stones in London's Hyde Park in 1969 at Number 9 and Radiohead at Glastonbury 1997 at Number 10, said to be Michael Eavis's favourite ever show at the Festival and one of four performances from the iconic Somerset event which make the list - the others being Lady Gaga in 2009 (16) and Orbital in 1994 (22). Other notable gigs include Led Zeppelin at the Royal Albert Hall in 1970 (11), The Sex Pistols' 100 club show in 1976 (14), Elvis Presley on the Milton Berle Show in LA in 1956 (15), Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison in California in 1968 (20) and Patti Smith at CBGBs in  1975 (23). 

Viagogo lose court battle

Viagogo have lost an important court battle after the Supreme Court in London ruled the secondary ticketing service must release details of sellers of rugby tickets to the Rugby Football Union. The RFU's ticketing terms prohibit the resale of tickets. Viagogo said that the move would only apply to 'legacy' sales as their new data technology would render the curt ruling irrelevant.  

100 hit by fake Mumford scam

The BBC report that 100 Mumford and Sons fans were turned away from the band's show in Portsmouth after it was discovered that their tickets, brought at inflated prices from secondary ticketing sites, were fakes. Police received a report that about 100 people were refused entry to the city's Guildhall on Thursday night and fan Paula Wynne told BBC News her partner had bought a pair from resale website Viagogo for £200. The tickets had a face value of £23.50 each.  Viagogo said duped fans would be offered real tickets to a future Mumford & Sons gig or a voucher to the value of the original purchased ones.

Sony credit rating cut

Sony Corp, owner of Sony BMG and co-owners of the newly expanded Sony ATV, has had its credit ratting downgraded to 'junk' status for the first time. Fitch cut electronic giant Panasonic’s rating by two notches to BB and Sony three notches to BB minus on Thursday, the first time one of the three major ratings agencies have put the creditworthiness of either company into junk-bond territory. Sony, which has forecast a full-year profit of $1.63 billion helped by the sale of a chemicals business to a Japanese state bank, announced plans to raise $1.9 billion through a convertible bond before the latest rating downgrade.

Curtain call for Earl's Court

Earl's Court, London's iconic music and exhibition space, is being levelled to make way for 7500 new homes. 

The £8 billion regeneration plan from developer Capco, which faced strong opposition from local residents, was used for the 2012 Olympics and has previously hosted shows from Radiohead, The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd and The Who.  

IOW survives licence jitters

The Isle Of Wight Festival will go ahead in 2013 after a two day licensing committee review resulted in the event's current licence being upheld after a review was called for by local aerospace firm GKN, which argued that the festival should be given each licence on a twelve month term, with a formal review every five years and more consultation with local residents and businesses. GKN had objected after the traffic chaos caused by the rain deluged 2012 Festival. Promoter John Giddings has been required to make public an Event Safety, Operational & Traffic Management Plan.  Giddings also said that whilst he that he was willing to invest in improving the local infrastructure around his Festival's site to avoid the problems that occurred this year should the event be hit by very wet weather again in the future, he would not be able to fund wide scale infrastructure improvements telling the Committee  "I'm willing to put my hand in my pocket, but if you don't want us to, just tell me and we'll go away".

One in six Brits still downloading illegally

One in six UK internet users access music, films, TV shows and ebooks through illegal downloads or streams, a report has revealed.  New research shows that a quarter of all digital music consumed online in the UK is acquired illegally. 

The study also found that online copyright infringement accounted for a third of film streaming, a fifth of TV shows, video games and an eighth of ebooks accessed during a three-month period analysed by Ofcom. The results revealed that 16% of users aged 12 and above accessed content illegally at least once between May and July this year.  Metro quotes Liz Bales, director general of the Industry Trust for IP awareness, saying: "It's also crucial to help them [the public] appreciate the value of film, TV and video and the role copyright plays in safeguarding the future of the entertainment they love." 

A recent report by Virgin Media showed that two in five people admit to illegal downloading. 

AC/DC join the digital age

Australian rockers AC/DC have agreed to let their entire catalogue, including individual tracks, be sold on Apple’s iTunes as digital downloads, after long refusing, Fellow refuseniks  including The Beatles, Kid Rock and Metallica who had all previously joined iTunes, leaving just Garth Brooks as the only major recording artist to continue to  hold out. 

AC/DC’s catalogue will be available in every country where iTunes Store operates. Additionally, there are two special digital compilations, one that includes all 16 studio albums,and another that has those plus four live albums.

Farmer not liable for ELO death

A farmer and a contractor have been acquitted of charges related to the death of former ELO cellist Mike Edwards in 2010. A Plymouth court found that Brian Burden and Russell Williams were not responsible for an accident in which Edwards was crushed by a giant hay bale. Edwards was driving his van near Totnes in Devon on 3 September 2010, when a rolling hay bale burst through a wire fence, a thin hedge, and on to the A381. The 600kg bale killed the 62-year-old instantly.

Bieber tops AMAs

Justin Bieber has triumphed at the The American Music Awards taking three of the gongs on offer, including overall Artist Of The Year. The genre themed winners in full are:

Artist Of The Year: Justin Bieber
New Artist Of The Year: Carly Rae Jepsen

Pop/Rock
Favourite Male Artist: Justin Bieber
Favourite Female Artist: Katy Perry
Favourite Band, Duo Or Group: Maroon 5
Favourite Album: Justin Bieber - Believe

Country
Favourite Male Artist: Luke Bryan
Favourite Female Artist: Taylor Swift
Favourite Band, Duo Or Group: Lady Antebellum
Favourite Album: Carrie Underwood - Blown Away

Rap/Hip Hop
Favourite Artist: Nicki Minaj
Favourite Album: Nicki Minaj - Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded

SoulR&B
Favourite Male Artist: Usher
Favourite Female Artist: Beyonce
Favourite Album: Rihanna - Talk That Talk

Favourite Alternative Rock Artist: Linkin Park
Favourite Adult Contemporary Artist: Adele
Favourite Latin Artist: Shakira
Favourite Contemporary Inspirational Artist: Tobymac
Favourite EDM Artist: David Guetta

Waters builds a bigger Wall

Roger Waters has announced plans to stage a new version of his iconic 1979  rock opera The Wall, with a 23 date tour, beginning in Ireland on July 13th 2013 and ending at Wembley Stadium on September 14th. The production will be twice the size of the last outing which was presented at the O2 in London. Waters said he wanted to stage the show as he felt that the relevance of its message was 'stronger than ever'. The show will feature 43 projectors, a helicopter, fireworks and 'a small army of children' for Another Brick In The Wall Park 2.  

Nine in frame for Parlophone

According to the FT, nine bidders are in the race to buy EMI's Parlophone label, including Warner Music, and the much discussed joint venture between XIX Entertainment's Simon Fuller and Island Records founder Chris Blackwell. Ronald Perelman's investment company MacAndrews & Forbes, which unsuccessfully bid for both Warner Music and EMI last year, is also thought to be among the nine. BMG has also reportedly signed a non-disclosure agreement with Universal, but has yet to submit a proposal. It's also thought Sony Music has also expressed an interest and signed an NDA, though a Sony acquisition of Parlophone would come with its own competition regulatory issues. Parlophone was put up for sale as a term of the EC's approval of Universal's take over of EMI's recorded music division.

Depeche Mode swap CAA for WME

Depeche Mode have signed a new deal with agents William Morris Endeavor to manage their live activity in North and South America, having previously been represented by the Creative Artists Agency in those territories. The band are currently working on a new album to be released in 2013 and plan to head out on a world tour.

Which is Europe's greenest festival?

The GO Group have announced the final nominations for the new Green Operations Award which will be handed over at the 2013  European Festival Awards.

The Award is the European Festival Award for Green Excellence and is annual award presented by Yourope and the GO Group, targeting festivals that have made a significant contribution to or achievement towards developing more sustainable events. It replaces the prestigious Green n Clean award, handed over at the last three EFAs. The winner of the Award is decided by a panel made up of experts who are not directly linked to any specific festival,  with the exception that the previous year's winner who will be invited to cast a vote for the following year's award only. For 2013 the judges panel comprised representatives from Bucks New University (UK), Green Events Europe (GER), The Green Music Initiative (GER), A Greener Festival (UK), Greener Event Foundation (NOR) and 2012 Green n Clean winners Melt! Festival (GER)

The short list for the Green Operations Award 2012:

Boom Festival (POR) - Awareness, creativity and overall approach to sustainability at the highest level. Boom is a true leader on green issues.

Maifeld Derby (GER) - A great debut from a young group of people with Greener Maifeld Derby. Our "Rookie of the year".

Open Air St.Gallen (CH) - For their continued contribution to leadership in general, and for their work in developing greener festivals over a number of years.

Way Out West (SE) - Great sustainability approach on a triple bottom line. Absolutely remarkable: this major event went 100% vegetarian.

We Love Green (FRA) - The second year of We Love Green sees the festival already as a shining example. Exceptional work on various topics.

Jacob Bilabel (Go Group, GMI) said: “Green trailblazers of the European festival industry will be awarded with the new EFA Green Operations Award. They are the smart operators, who have shown innovative and outstanding approaches in the field of green operations as integral part of their activities.”

The winners will be announced and presented with their accolades at the European Festival Awards gala ceremony, which crowns the opening night of the Eurosonic Noorderslag conference and showcase in Groningen, Holland on Wednesday 9th January 2013. The event features a three course gourmet dinner, live performances drinks reception and after show party and is a unique opportunity to celebrate with the leaders of Europe's festival industry.

Tickets to the event are available here

Flowers' throat a Killer

The Killers were forced to stop a show at Manchester's MEN Arena yesterday (13th November) after just five songs after frontman Brandon Flowers lost his voice.

A second date in Manchester has also been cancelled, and it's not yet certain what will happen to the band's planned London shows later in the week. 

AEG ink deal with StubHub

AEG has announced an alliance with eBay ticketing service StubHub which will see the auction site's secondary ticketing set up declared the official resale platform for some US shows promoted or hosted by AEG. Under the new arrangement, resellers using StubHub will be able to have tickets for AEG shows automatically reassigned to buyers using the ticket's barcode, meaning fans buying from the secondary market won't rely on the seller to deliver the ticket. As part of the new alliance, eBay-owned PayPal will also become a payment option on AEG's new primary ticketing service AXS.com.

MTV Europe Awards out

The MTV Europe Music Awards are out with UK boy boyband One Direction and Carly Rae Jepson both picking up two awards and the recently dumped Justin Bieber,  and  the lovely pizza selling Taylor Swift each grabbing three in Frankfurt.

Best Female: Taylor Swift
Best Male: Justin Bieber
Best New Act: One Direction

Best Rock: Linkin Park
Best Pop: Justin Beiber
Best Hip Hop: Nicki Minaj
Best Live: Taylor Swift
Best Alternative: Lana Del Rey
Best World Stage: Justin Bieber

Best Song: Carly Rae Jepson - Call Me Maybe
Best Video: Psy - Gangnam Style

Best Look: Taylor Swift
Biggest Fans: One Direction
Best PUSH: Carly Rae Jepson

Global Icon: Whitney Houston

Union Chapel gigs at risk from planned new flats

Plans to build 90 new hones opposite London's iconic Union Chapel have put the future of the Chapel as a venue at risk. Music promoters say that the plans, submitted by the Notting Hill Housing Trust, could affect evening performances as well as use as a rehearsal space, for conferences and as a homeless 'drop in' centre, with perceived a risk of complaints from new residents in the proposed flats about noise, deliveries and traffic. The Chapel is still also a place of worship. Planners have already forced changes after objections from local residents and conservationists who objected the scale of the development, and its effect on views of the now Grade 1 listed Islington landmark, as well as changes on access for the venue. Developers have already scaled back the scheme, reducing the height of the new building by cutting the number of levels from seven to five, and the number of residencies from 134 to 90. Performers such as Tom Jones, Patti Smith, All About Eve, Noel Gallagher and Elton John have played at the Chapel, voted Time Out London readers' Best Live Music Venue 2012 and more than 4,000 people have signed a petition opposing the planning application.

http://www.unionchapel.org.uk/pages/hire.html  

Picture form http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_Chapel,_Islington 

Tragic scaffold collapse at Linkin Park gig

One woman died and nineteen others have been injured while queuing for a Linkin Park concert in Cape Town after temporary scaffolding built to host advertising by Lucozade collapsed in strong winds. Twelve of those injured required hospital treatment, while a city spokeswoman told reporters that one of those near the scaffolding when it collapsed, Florentina Heaven-Popa, had died from her injuries. 

The Linkin Park gig went ahead, despite the bad weather and resulting scaffolding collapse, with the band unaware of the injuries and fatality until after the show, but the band subsequently posted a message on their website expressing "deep sadness and concern for those injured and our heartfelt condolences to the family of the fan who died as a result of her injuries". The band have no connection to Lucozade or the scaffolding company.

John Mac joins Festival Republic

Festival Republic has announced the appointment of Jon McIldowie, previously Promotions Director for the MAMA Group, to the role of Talent booker for it's Reading and Leeds festivals. McIldowie, more commonly known in the industry as Jon Mac, takes over from Neil Pengelly, the Reading Festival's long time booker.

Brazil blocks EMI mergers

Both Sony/ATV and Universal have been told by the Brazilian competition regulator that they could not merge the respective EMI publishing and recorded music  businesses with their existing companies in Brazil. This is a more difficult position that both majors faced in Europe where divestments had been agreed. US regulators did not set any hurdles for the two mergers, seemingly relying on the EC measures with the recorded music sector. In one of his first interviews since acquiring the EMI record companies, Universal chief Lucian Grainge said he planned to launch EMI's American label brand Capitol in the UK, the mega-major having been forced to sell off EMI's UK-based Parlophone brand by European regulators.

Fourth Victim dies in Madrid tragedy

Details have emerged that a fourth victim had died from injuries sustained at the Thriller Music Park event in Madrid, Spain. The victim was seventeen years old, putting more pressure on the event's promoters and security operation, as the show was for eighteen years and over.  A fifth victim remains in a critical condition.  The Mayor of Madrid, Ana Botella, has now banned "mega-parties" and large-scale concerts from taking place at city-owned venues in the Spanish capital.

Local police are now investigating the tragedy and its causes, and investigators will view 1,350 hours of video footage to determine what went wrong. While initial reports focused blame on a flare being set off inside the venue, it is was subsequently alleged that the venue was overcrowded and that security failed to maintain adequate crowd distribution across the venue's three floors – as ticketholders could drift between the three floors of the venue meaning that  access corridors were particularly busy, leading to the fatal bottleneck in one of the building's main access passageways. Promoters say the event was not over sold.

http://www.spin.com/articles/death-toll-steve-aoki-madrid-thriller-music-park-stampede-rises 

ESA will launch US Event Safety Guide at Event Live Expo

The Event Safety Alliance has confirmed plans to publish an American edition of its guide to best practices in the event production industry, launching the edition at Event Live Expo 2013.

The Event Safety Guide, also known as The Purple Guide, is a 33 chapter publication first published in 1999 and now widely used in the UK. Topics covered include planning and management as well as more specific subjects such as electrical installation, sanitation, structures, and other vital event safety issues for all productions.

The ESA's mission is to promote a culture of "safety first" throughout the industry and provide materials by which this can be achieved, protecting both those who work in the industry and the millions of fans who attend music events each year. Jim Digby, spokesperson and one of the founders of the Alliance, commented  "This is a collaborative effort by some of the best minds in the industry lending their expertise in the specific areas of event production safety they are most qualified in. This collaboration will provide event professionals with a reference guide that is more than a starting point to find solutions to common problems in attendee safety."

Leaders of the organization include members of some of the most highly respected event production companies and Event Live Expo exhibitors, including Matt Bettenhausen (Vice President of AEG Worldwide), John Brown (CEO of Brown United Staging), Steve MacFadyen (Production Manager for Pollstar), Tim Roberts (TESS), Harold Hansen (IAVM-AVSS Academy), Roger Sandau (Doodson Insurance), Dave Lester (Clair), Charlie Hernandez (Production Manager), Hadden Hipsley (Production Manager), John Conk (Production Manager) and Ron Stern (Production Manager).

Event Live Expo 2013   February 5-7  Los Angeles  http://www.eventlive-expo.com/register

AEG take on Hyde Park

AEG Live has announced a new deal with the Royal Parks to stage six events in London's Hyde Park each year, including a new festival,  all starting next year. AEG  replaces Live Nation who pulled out from the bidding process, with COO John Probyn highlighting curfew and noise issues, high costs and difficulties in working with the Royal Parks. AEG Europe boss Jay Marciano told reporters: "AEG Live is proud to be partnering with the Royal Parks in the creation of an exceptional and ground-breaking new summer festival for London. Utilising AEG's global resources and expertise in delivering similar landmark music festivals, such as the annual Coachella and Stagecoach festivals in California, this event shall set a new standard for the enjoyment of live music at this iconic location". 

AEG has also announced the appointment of Jeremy King as their new Director of Communications for The O2 in London, 

Candle in the Wind tops million sellers in the UK

The UK's Official Chart Company has published a new chart featuring every single that has sold more than 1 million copies in the UK in the last 60 years since the chart began  - and there are 123 of them. Sir Elton John's 1997 Candle in the Wind tribute to Diana, Princess of Wales tops the chart. The 1997 release sold 4.9 million copies - more than a million more than the second placed track, Band Aid's Do They Know It's Christmas? (3.69 millionm 1984) and Queen in third with Bohemian Rhapsody with 2.36m sales. The 1990s feature heavily in the list, with Aqua hit Barbie Girl and Bryan Adams' (Everything I Do) I Do It For You among the Top 20 biggest sellers. The Beatles have six million-selling singles in the countdown, with She Loves You ranked highest in eighth place, although Sir Paul McCartney also features on the 4th placed Mull of Kintyre by Wings. The 1977 hit had 2m sales. This is followed by You're The One That I Want by John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John (1978) with 2m sales, Rivers of Babylon/ Brown Girl in the Ring by Boney M (1978) with 2m sales and Relax by Frankie Goes To Hollywood (1983) also with 2m sales, one of their two chart entries.

With the Beatles, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, The Lightning Seeds and even Ken Dodd, musicians from Liverpool make up a fifth of the recording artists featured, almost double the 10% of musicians from from London and quadruple the 4% from Manchester.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-20203370

UK Festival Awards shortlists revealed after a record number of over half a million votes are cast

Challenges such as extreme weather, financial losses and energy efficiency will be firm fixtures on the agenda for this year's UK Festival Conference 2012 where industry professionals are set to gather on Monday 3rd December at The Roundhouse, North London. Panels featuring veteran industry figureheads alongside up-and-coming, young promoters will provide an opportunity for the industry to convene and discuss one of the toughest years on record for UK festivals, whilst the evening's awards presentation will provide a more positive look at what was still a successful and music-filled summer for many. Shortlists for categories such as Best Major Festival, Best Dance Festival and Headline Performance of the year have been revealed after over half a million votes were cast by the public. For a full run down of the 2012 shortlists visit www.festivalawards.com/shortlists

No Cobain musical says Love

Courtney Love has scotched rumours of a planned Kurt Cobain musical saying that "sometimes its just best to leave things alone. Reports say that Love's sometime co-manager Sam Lufti was working on the project, but this had been vetoed by the Hole frontwoman, although she had been in separate discussions over a planned feature film. Love also took the opportunity to deny that the rights to Cobain's image had passed to their daughter Frances Bean, who had allegedly bailed out her mother in return for control.

Sandé triumphs at MOBOs, Alt-J for Mercury

The MOBOs are out, with Emeli Sandé walking away with awards for Best Female, Best Album and Best R&B/Soul. Plan B took Best Male Act and Best Hip Hop/Grime. TLC were awarded Outstanding Contribution to Music, with Dionne Warwick receiving the MOBO Lifetime Achievement Award. Other winners on the night were Sean Paul (best reggae), D'Banj (Best African Act), Labrinth (Best Song), Rita Ora (Best Newcomer), Nicki Minaj (Best International), Tinie Tempah (Best Video for Earthquake), Rachel Kerr (Best Gospel) and Zoe Rahman (Best Jazz). Live performances at the star studded event in Liverpool included  Trey Songz, Conor Maynard, Emeli Sandé, Misha B, JLS, Stooshe, Labrinth and Wiley.

And the bookies favourite Alt-J won the Mercury Music Prize. The four piece indie rockers, who met at Leeds University and have been dubbed 'boffin rock', took home £20,000 having beaten off the likes of Plan B, Jessie Ware, Field Music, Lianne La Havas, and Pulp guitarist Richard Hawley. Past winners include Dizzee Rascal, Pulp and Klaxons plus PJ Harvey, who has lifted the award twice.

3 dead in Spanish festival tragedy

Three young women have been killed at a festival in Madrid on Wednesday night after a crowd surge in a reportedly over-packed venue. The Thriller Music Park event took place at the 12,000 capacity Madrid Arena, though a licence for the show allowed 10,600 tickets to be sold. Promoters insist the venue was not over capacity, and say that the event had actually not quite sold out. Some audience members have disagreed with that claim on the social networks, one estimating up to 20,000 people were in the building at the time, though there is evidence to suggest that the problem wasn't venue-wide overcrowding, but a bottleneck around one exit from the main arena. Some gig-goers have also claimed not enough exits were open during the event, with some claiming only one was available for much of the night. The event was headlined by DJ Steve Aoki.

Promoters say that they believe the fatal surge was caused when a flare went off within the audience area, though some bystanders have subsequently claimed the flare occurred sometime after the crush began. Emergency staff were called to the scene at about 4am and found five people in distress: two were declared dead at the scene after paramedics attempted resuscitation for about thirty minutes, while a third died after being taken to a local hospital. The other two victims remain in a critical condition according to Spanish newspaper El Pais. Local police are now investigating the tragedy and its causes. 

http://pulseradio.net/articles/2012/11/three-killed-at-steve-aoki-gig-in-madrid

Ticketfly upgrades

Ticketfly, a leading social ticketing platform, has announced major upgrades to its social sharing tools, purchasing process, and mobile delivery options including Apple Passbook integration. According to a press release, Ticketfly's new social sharing options allow fans to RSVP to events on Facebook, automatically post events to their Timeline, and share purchases with specific friends by name. An update to the purchase confirmation page allows ticket buyers to "like" artists' and venues' Facebook pages and share events via Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus. The latest update also includes a redesigned purchase process that maximizes conversion and social sharing with the goal of providing an even more streamlined buying experience. The upgrade enables fans to complete their transaction faster. Ticketfly, launched 2008, also revealed the results of a study that showed that electronic dance music (EDM) clients have harnessed the power of social marketing and have discovered that social sharing results in six times more ticket sales for EDM shows than for other genres.

Reading and Leeds add more stages

Reading and Leeds festival boss Melvin Benn has told BBC Newsbeat that he intends to increase the number of stages at both sites next year saying "Within those additional two or three stages there will be a lot more diversity of music. We're changing the arena at Reading and Leeds quite significantly”  adding  "I've got quite a strong buzz and feeling in myself in the changes that I'm making there. I'm still formulating the ideas. There will quite a bit more dance music, quite a bit more other bits and pieces." Benn also reveals that the first headlining act may well be announced in the next couple of months, with the date for the next wave of ticket sales also expected before the festive period. Capacity will not be increased.

The “twin” Reading and Leeds festivals will  take place on the bank holiday weekend, from Friday 23rd to Sunday 25th August. Reading Festival takes place at Little Johns Farm, Richfield Avenue, Reading, Berkshire, and Leeds Festival takes place at Bramham Park, Leeds, West Yorkshire.

Read more at http://www.efestivals.co.uk/news/12/121101a.shtml#EE5mR2BkZQ4zVB1j.99