It’s time for the radio and music industries to get on the same page of the songbook

Michael McCabe, outgoing president/CEO of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters, kicked off Canadian Music Week earlier this spring with a call for greater collaboration between the music industry and the radio industry. For homegrown talent to succeed in the world stage, he said the two industries must resolve their differences in areas like copyright and focus instead on building a strong homegrown music industry that succeeds here and abroad, and on multiple distribution platforms. An edited excerpt of his speech follows: As we begin a new century, we must set aside comforting old assumptions and confront the new reality; the reality of a global culture, where Canadian artists compete for listeners against those from around the world. The reality of digital technology, like Napster and MP3. The reality of changing demo-graphics, consumer tastes and attitudes. In order to succeed in the face of global cultural competition, in order to address the challenges of new technology, we must pull together all the elements of the music business. Together we must unite in a common purpose: the promotion and development of our artists and their music. (Recently) I saw an example of how this can work when the Barenaked Ladies tour came to Ottawa. In that instance, radio stations, TV stations, the concert promoter, the record stores, the record label and the artists all worked together on a variety of promotions that ensured maximum exposure for the show. I know that this is not the only example of such a high level of cooperation and coordination, but what I’m saying is that we need more of it. And instead of spontaneous eruptions of cooperation, it should be standard practice… If we are going to produce high quality, popular Canadian music, we need a strong music industry and a strong radio industry, both working closely together. Right now, the balance that has traditionally existed is in danger of breaking down. Perhaps the most telling example of this is in the area of copyright… with the addition of a tariff for the so-called reproduction right to the two existing copyright tariffs, radio may find itself under the obligation of spending a total of over $50 million a year in copyright tariffs. This burden could have serious, negative consequences. For example, the proliferation of significant new rights payments can hold back investment in new technology by the radio industry. As American radio moves to new platforms, like the Internet or satellite broadcasting, Canadian radio must be able to keep pace. After all, we are entering an era where listeners will be able to tune into any radio station in the world, at the office, in their car, or walking down the street. In that world, Canadian radio’s competitive advantage – the thing that sets us apart in the 500-channel wireless Internet universe – is always going to be the fact that we play Canadian music. However, for this to be an advantage, Canadian music has to appeal to the widest audience possible… Radio consolidation In an era when Canadian companies are banding together to hold their own against foreign competitors, shouldn’t the Canadian music industry be considering a similar approach? Does it make sense that there are 239 small companies in the Canadian music industry fighting over $200 million in business, while a handful of multinationals controls $1 billion of Canadian record sales? Is it in the interest of Canadian artists that only 23 Canadian sound recording companies have revenues greater than $1 million?…Do these small Canadian companies have the resources they need to give artists the promotional and marketing support demanded by global competition? We must be willing to consider new partnerships, new practices and new policies. In doing so, we can reenergize our music sector.

It’s time for the radio and music industries to get on the same page of the songbook

Broadcast | May 24, 2001

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