FMC Policy Summit: why *you* need to be there
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In just three weeks, hundreds of musicians, technologists, lawyers and policymakers will be convening in Washington, DC for our eighth Future of Music Policy Summit. And, honestly, it's our best yet. In this newsletter, we're going to make the case why you should join us. If you're a musician… • Sunday afternoon's programming is chock full of practical advice to help you navigate the new digital landscape. We'll review of many new business models available to musicians, how to use social networking tools to build buzz, getting paid in the digital age, and a musician-friendly policy primer that will highlight the issues that affect artists. If you're an attorney… • Our programming on Monday and Tuesday has been approved for 7.5 CLE credits – including 2 of those elusive ethics credits – by the Virginia Bar Association and the Pennsylvania Continuing Legal Education Board, all for the low price of $349. Approved CLE credits from PA and VA may be claimed by attorneys in CA, NY and IL as reciprocal credits. Check out the CLE details here. If Inside the Beltway is your scene… • On Monday, October 5, Senator Franken will be delivering a keynote address on net neutrality. Then, right after his speech, he'll sit down to be interviewed by Mike Mills of R.E.M. On Tuesday, Rep. Mike Doyle (D-PA) will take part in a similar chat with New Jersey singer-songwriter Nicole Atkins. Look out, Katie Couric. • We're especially honored to announce that FCC Chair Julius Genachowski will be joining us on Monday. The recently appointed FCC chief will deliver a keynote speech to eager ears in the Beltway and beyond. • Panels on Monday are packed with representatives from some of the most important organizations in the music/technology/policy space including RIAA, AFM, CEA, Public Knowledge, Copyright Alliance, Google, the Justice Department and the US Copyright Office and more. If you love to network… • Start at the Copyright Criminals screening on Sunday evening, followed by the not-to-be-missed Pho Dinner at Nam Viet in Arlington, VA, where you can share a crowded table and boisterous conversation with dozens of other panelists and attendees. • Make your Twitter followers and FB friends jealous by live tweeting or blogging from the Summit. #FMC09. • Rub elbows with other conference attendees at our cocktail parties and our Monday night rock show! If you live on the bleeding edge of music/tech … • …then get a front row seat on Monday morning when journalist/author Greg Kot leads a conversation on the new ways that musicians and indie labels are leveraging their multiple assets to take control of their careers, including Ian Rogers from TopSpin Media, Bertis Downs from R.E.M, Mac McCaughan from Merge Records, manager Emily White, and musician Erin McKeown. • You'll also love to hear the Tuesday morning presentations from Daniel Ek from Spotify and Brian Message from Courtyard Management (co-manager of Radiohead). • During Tuesday afternoon's breakout sessions, listen to Jim Griffin describe the Choruss music project, or let legendary producer Sandy Pearlman blow your mind as he discusses music in "the cloud" and the paradise of infinite storage. • Then hop over to the breakout session featuring some of the most innovative ideas in the music/tech space, with reps from Kickstarter (microfunding startup), Band Metrics (cross-platform data analysis for musicians) and more. If you're a data geek… • Check out the breakout about metadata and its importance for artist compensation in the future, featuring Rob Kaye from MusicBrainz, Jim Selby from Naxos, Peter Jenner and Joe Wallace from Mediaguide. If you're a music critic… • Join the "Condition: Critical" conversation that's bringing a dozen of the nation's most influential music journalists together for a discussion about the future of their craft. Panelists include Greg Kot (Chicago Tribune and Sound Opinions), Fiona Morgan (Durham Independent), Maura Johnston (Idolator), Todd C. Roberts (The Daily Swarm), Eliot Van Buskirk (Wired), Howard Mandel (jazz critics), David Malitz (Washington Post), Alan Light (Rolling Stone), Tom Moon (1000 Recordings You Need to Hear, All Things Considered) and Scott Plagenhoef (Pitchfork). If you're an activist… • Learn how dozens of musicians have pitched in to support the rebuilding of New Orleans' unique music community following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina from Jordan Hirsh, director of Sweet Home New Orleans. • Check out the breakout session on Tuesday afternoon discussing musicians as agents of social change, featuring Erin Potts from Air Traffic Control, veteran political organizer Scott Goodstein and musician Wayne Kramer. • Then roll right over to the breakout on State and Local Policy, where regional organizers will talk about how musicians can get involved in their own community to effect change. Check out the entire schedule and register today! Other perks Can't make it in person? Web.illish.us will be there producing a high-quality interactive live webcast of the entire conference, for those of you that absolutely, positively can’t make it to DC. Head here to reserve your spot to virtually attend Summit 09, sponsored by LiveStream.
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Keynote SpeakersSenator Al Franken (D-MN) Rep. Mike Doyle (D-PA) FCC Chair Julius Genachowski PanelistsKen Abdo Lommen Abdo Law Firm |
"Behind the Policy Summit" FutureBlog series
If you want to know a bit more about some of the awesome speakers we've got lined up for the event, you won't want to miss our ongoing "Behind the Policy Summit" series over at FutureBlog. So far we've got entries on Brian Message (Radiohead management team), Ian Rogers (music-tech visionary, Topspin founder), Al Franken and Mike Mills. There's more on the way, so keep checking back!
FMC joins PBS' Independent Lens and Community Cinema for free documentary screenings
FMC is pleased to announce its participation in a series of free community film screenings organized by PBS' Independent Lens Series and the Community Cinema program.
D-TOUR follows Pat Spurgeon, whose promising indie-rock career as a member of the Bay Area band Rogue Wave suffers an incredible setback when one of his kidneys begins to fail. D-TOUR chronicles Pat's search for a living organ donor and the challenges associated with finding a viable match. Pat's choice to keep touring and working toward the band's goals is put to the test; the absolute need to perform dialysis daily and to focus on his health became top priority while being on the road. D-TOUR also addresses issues with the health care system, the lack of affordable insurance, and the importance of organ donation.
Spurgeon's story underscores the challenges that many American musicians face attaining health insurance. FMC began studying this issue early in the decade, and launched its Health Insurance Navigation Tool (HINT) in 2005 to help musicians better understand their health insurance options. FMC staff will be on hand at select screenings of D-Tour to discuss the program.
Click here for a full list of D-TOUR screenings
We're also partnering with Independent Lens and Community Cinema for screenings of COPYRIGHT CRIMINALS (which we mentioned in the Summit roundup above).
Produced by University of Iowa professor Kembrew McLeod and Benjamin Franzen, this documentary traces the rise of hip-hop from the urban streets of New York to its current status as a multibillion-dollar industry. Sampling, or riffing, is as old as music itself, but as technologies developed in the 1980s and 1990s that made it easier to sample existing sound recordings – and when record label company lawyers got involved – everything changed. Years before people started downloading music off the internet, hip-hop sampling sparked a debate about copyright, creativity and technological change, and the debate still rages today.
Additional details about Copyright Criminals screenings
FMC has worked closely with Kembrew since 2007, examining the legal and social challenges presented by this ever-evolving art form. Creative License, a book featuring interviews with nearly 100 participants involved in sampling, as well as a thorough economic and legal analysis of the musical practice, will be published by Duke University Press in 2010.
COPYRIGHT CRIMINALS will also be screened as part of Policy Summit 09 on October 4 from 5-7 PM. On Monday, October 5, McLeod and Creative License co-author Peter DiCola will join entertainment attorney Tony Berman, and AU law professor Peter Jaszi for a discussion about their research and possible ways to make the sample license clearance process more efficient.
Register for the Policy Summit
FMC invited to participate in FCC Broadband Workshops
On Thursday, September 17 at 2 PM ET, FMC Policy Director Michael Bracy and composer Alex Shapiro will participate in an FCC broadband workshop called "The Role of Content in the Broadband Ecosystem." According to the Commission's broadband taskforce, the workshop aims to "address issues pertaining to online content and its role in the broadband ecosystem." Bracy and Shapiro will both talk about how important it is to work towards competition in the broadband marketplace where access and affordability are mainstays of high-speed connectivity — for musicians, fans, innovators and the public. The internet is increasingly important in the development of new models for the music business, as well as the viability of the artists who power it. But you can't get to a legitimate digital music marketplace that rewards artists and consumers without more people having access to the technology. And that's what we'll be telling the FCC's broadband team. You can watch a live webcast of the FCC workshop here.
Musicians and Health Insurance: North Carolina Public Radio
On September 10, North Carolina Public Radio (WUNC) aired a segment about the struggles Chapel Hill-area musicians have with obtaining quality, affordable health insurance. FMC's Alex Maiolo joined the conversation to talk about FMC's Health Insurance Navigation Tool (HINT), which offers free information about health insurance to musicians curious to learn about their options.
Head here to listen to the segment. And don't forget, Alex will also be on hand for Future of Music Policy Summit 2009 to talk to musicians and managers about HINT. We're sure he'd love to see you. Register for the Policy Summit here.
FMC at NYS ARTS Summit 2009
On September 22 and 23, FMC's Kristin Thomson and Casey Rae-Hunter will head to Schenectady, NY for NYS Arts Summit 2009, where they'll be give a presentation called Music 2.0: a Look at the Modern Musician's Toolbox on Sept. 22. The next day, Kristin and Casey will talk about net neutrality and why the open internet is so important to musicians, fans and continued innovation in the digital realm. FMC associate Dejha Ti of web.illish.us (the folks who are producing the live webcast of Policy Summit) will also be on hand to talk about, you guessed it, webcasting and podcasting.
NYS ARTS Summit 2009 is the largest gathering of arts leaders, presenters, decision-makers, artists and arts advocates from arts organizations throughout New York State. For more information and to register, visit http://www.nysarts.org/Summit09homepage.html
One Web Day: what's the "big idea?"
OneWebDay is an international celebration of the internet. Held annually on September 22, this worldwide event calls attention to the exchange of information and ideas the internet inspires. From the connectivity between musicians and fans to grassroots organizing and civic participation, the web gives everyone access to the most important communications platform of our time.
For this year's OneWebDay, FMC has been asked to talk about a "big idea" having to do with the internet. (Actually, we probably have a few.) One thing we've definitely been thinking a lot about lately is increasing broadband access for more Americans. We think this is incredibly important to musicians and fans — check out our post on FutureBlog to learn why.
To see a list of OneWebDay events happening around the globe (and to learn how to throw your own party), head to the official OWD site.
Intern Positions Available
FMC is looking for interns who seek experience with communications, event organizing, marketing, and content management. FMC internships are Washington, DC-based positions. Head here for more info.
How are we doing?
You can always contact us at suggestions@futureofmusic.org if you have any questions.
Thanks,
Jean Cook
Michael Bracy
Kristin Thomson
Casey Rae-Hunter
Chhaya Kapadia
Nicole Duffey
Alex Maiolo
