New issue of Music & Copyright with France country report

The latest issue of Music & Copyright is now available for subscribers to download. Here are some of the highlights.

SPECIAL FOCUS: Concerns over the training of generative AI systems take center stage in the US and UK
Artificial intelligence (AI) has been part of several music industry sectors for several years. Simple systems created by some of the more forward-thinking artists date back to the 1990s, and the refinement of studio productions and sound enhancement routinely involves AI programs. However, although the benefits to music production from the use of AI are clear, the training of generative AI systems through the use of copyrighted works is drawing growing criticism. Court cases, industry consultations, and government reports are all looking to force clarity on the subject, but until legislation is in place clearly setting guidelines for AI developers’ text and data mining processes, rights holders from several creative sectors will not be able to rest.

NEWS FEATURE: Tough year for MCSC as the dark shadow of COVID-19 continues to affect results
After 13 consecutive years of royalty collection growth, China’s MCSC has reported a dip in income. In its business report for 2022, the society said rights receipts, as well as distributable income and actual distributions, were down year-on-year. Despite COVID-19 continuing to affect collections, performance revenue registered a sharp uptick. The rise was mostly down to new licensing deals. Digital is the biggest income source for Chinese authors. However, last year, collections slipped from a record high in 2021. TV income was also down. MCSC said the dip was the result of licensing difficulties with broadcasters caused by the pandemic. Mechanical receipts from phonograms more than doubled due to higher sales of physical formats. Overseas income returned to growth after two years of contraction.

SECTOR ANALYSIS: How to supercharge the superfan revenue take
The music business is keen to court the superfan, the most dedicated of an artist’s followers. A new US TV show centers around superfans and their passion, while a forthcoming documentary on the rock band Metallica is looking for superfan contributions. Superfans, estimated at 15% of the population, which is not a small cohort, are an attractive group because of their perceived high propensity to spend—reports suggest they could be worth more than $4bn a year to the audio-streaming sector. Targeting the superfan is all about market segmentation, and this means providing for their wants and needs while boosting revenue. This can certainly be achieved, but there needs to be a focus on delivering real value added.

COUNTRY REPORT: France
In addition to the usual set of music industry statistics and news briefs, the latest issue of Music & Copyright includes a detailed France music industry report. France ended last year as the seventh-biggest economy in the world and the third in Europe, behind Germany and the UK. The French economy grew 2.6% in 2022, down from 6.8% in 2021. For this year, the IMF forecast in its April-published World Economic Outlook report that GDP growth would slow to 0.7%, and then 1.3% in 2024. Like its economic position in Europe, France also lags the UK and Germany for recorded-music sales. However, last year saw trade sales grow for the sixth consecutive year with the positive results down to the continued rise in streaming-generated revenue and higher performance rights and synchronization income. Digital sales first overtook physical sales in 2018 and accounted for almost three quarters of last year’s digital/physical total. UMG maintained its clear distributor market share lead despite suffering a dip in share and second placed SME registering a gain. Collections for SACEM increased to a new record high with the total boosted by rising digital, broadcast, and general rights receipts.

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