• At MIDEM, more signs of increased licensing in the future by way of streamlined processes: Britain's Music Publisher's Assn. and MCPS-PRS Alliance have launched a pan-European digital licensing template. Music publishers can use the template to opt in and allow the alliance to license their content throughout Europe. (Read article at Billboard.biz)

• Clear Channel has made plans to sell stations in 17 markets, Radio Ink has learned. Seven stations in Fargo, North Dakota will be sold. Six in Casper, Wyoming. Five in Pocatello, Idaho. Seven in Missoula, Montana. (Read article at Radio Ink for complete list).

• EMI's Eric Nicoli has been on a "whirlwind tour" since taking the reins of EMI Music. He has met with analysts, analysts and Norah Jones in London; Joss Stone in Toronto; and former WMG chief (and current consutant) Roger Ames in New York. It is reported Nicoli had a "positive, wide-ranging discussion" with Apple's Steve Jobs. (Read article at New York Post)

• With the backlash against media consolidation, you'd think there are no regional airplay successes. Here's one: Paula DeAnda, who got early support from KZFM-FM Corpus Christi, Texas and charted on the Radio & Records' Rhythm chart without a label. DeAnda secured a seven-album deal with Arista after getting the blessing of Clive Davis, and her album has now sold over 100,000 copies. But here's where the regional success story falters: Her manager is the radio station's program director. (Read Billboard article)

• eMusic is eyeing an Asian service. (Read Reuters article)

Posted by Glenn at 7:55 AM | Link
|EMI||MIDEM||Radio|

I'm not at MIDEM, but I'm keeping watch on the news and notes coming from the annual conference.

The majors' embrace of MP3 will happen within months, reported the Herald Tribune's Victoria Shannon.

"Executives of several technology companies meeting here at Midem, the annual global trade fair for the music industry, said this weekend that a move toward the sale of unrestricted digital files in the MP3 format from at least one of the four major record companies could come within months.

Music executives, while saying that timetable was self-serving on the part of technology companies that would benefit from the change, nevertheless acknowledged that the debate was front and center."

Shannon later adds that some executives say it's not a done deal. The reason for the majors' move to MP3 would be the failure or inability of technology companies to produce copy-protection systems that consumers find agreeable. Going away from DRM, the thinking goes, would shift all risk of copying to the labels.

From paidContent: Chris Stephenson, GM of Zune's global marketing: "Wireless will definitely be part of that roll-out, version two." Also, talking about the importance of Flash drives to Microsoft, Stephenson said, "expect to see a broader range of devices in Q4."

Also from paidContent, a few posts on the ongoing DRM debate. One is a keynote by RealNetworks' Rob Glaser. "For purchases, move away from DRM," he said. Even if DRM is dropped from a la carte purchases, it's not going to disappear from subscription services such as Real's Rhapsody. Analysts and experts predict solid growth for subscription services -- for which DRM is mandatory -- in the coming years.

paidContent also compiled some executives' comments on DRM. The consensus is there is no consensus. Geoff Taylor of the IFPI thinks "DRM will become ubiquitous in a way that is accepted by the consumer." Martin Mills of the Beggars Group thinks non-DRM is a competitive advantage for a label.

The Financial Times's Emiko Terazano has a Day 1 recap.

Posted by Glenn at 6:17 AM | Link
|Conferences||MIDEM|