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The MMF has applied for 4 panels to be included at SXSW in March 2020, but we need your help to be selected. Please vote for all the MMF panels you would like to see take place at the conference next year.

It is a hugely competitive process to secure a panel at SXSW so your votes are hugely appreciated and would allow us to share the vital research we have been conducting this year with the industry in the US.

Click on each link and Vote Up!

PANEL 1: WHERE ARE THE MISSING SONGWRITER ROYALTIES?
How come artists can be paid within weeks of their music being streamed, while a songwriter might wait years? Or receive no payment at all?

The new ‘$ong Royalties Guide’ from the Music Managers Forum and CMU Insights reveals how licensing complexities and a global matrix of ‘royalty chains’ are leaving songwriters short-changed.

While the MMA addresses specific issues around mechanical royalties in the US, the system for paying songwriters worldwide remains incredibly complicated. Intermediaries and data-clashes all impact on when, how and if a writer gets paid.

Our panellists will bring order to this chaos, discussing how royalty systems can be simplified, and revealing the questions writers should be asking their business partners to ensure they get every cent they’re due.

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PANEL 2: MANAGING EXPECTATIONS: THE VALUE OF MUSIC MANAGERS
Music Managers are increasingly not just the deal makers for artists, but the main investors and drivers behind artists success.

And yet, despite this elevated importance, the role of the manager is frequently misunderstood, misconstrued or mired in outdated Hollywood stereotypes.

However, a new wave of entrepreneurs is now reclaiming the title, building deeper partnerships with their clients, and developing new kinds of commercial ventures that allow creators to dictate greater control of their rights.

Based on an extensive study by music consultancy Music Ally, today’s panel will take a deep dive into what music management means today, and discuss new data indicating what the role will entail in the future.

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PANEL 3: TICKET SCALPING IS OVER! (IF YOU WANT IT)
While US audiences continue to face challenges in the $8bn secondary ticketing market, recent actions in the UK, led by the FanFair Alliance campaign, have empowered artists and promoters to more effectively stamp out the rent-seeking scalpers and provide fans with consumer-friendly alternatives to resell a ticket.

A real sea change is taking place. But why is the UK making such progress in tackling online ticket touting?

What can other territories learn from changes to the UK market – especially North America?

Why in the digital era is it so challenging to get tickets into the hands of fans?

And, the $64,000 question: is the live business truly incentivised to solve the problems with secondary ticketing.

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PANEL 4: THE NEW OIL? ACCESS AND OWNERSHIP OF FAN DATA
Even if it’s not “the new oil”, it’s an indisputable fact that data is vitally import for artists when building their business – and getting the good stuff often involves serious drilling, extraction and refining. More problematically, the more useful data is often the hardest for artists and their managers to find.

The UK’s Music Managers Forum is leading initiatives to provide artists with greater transparency and ownership of data and IP. Their Fan Data Guide identifies ten key kinds fan data, pinpoints where and how this information is being gathered, and explains – both legally and contractually – who has the rights to access and use it.

Drawing on expert viewpoints, the session will provide practical insights on unlocking the value of data to benefit artist careers.

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