Local industry releases National Contemporary Music Plan

The ideas and developments that were proposed at the inaugural National Contemporary Music Roundtable conference last year have been laid out in a National Contemporary Music Plan.

Commissioned by the national music advocacy body Music Australia and ratified by 14separate industry organisations, the plan was launched at this week’s Contemporary Music Roundtable at Customs House in Sydney.

Some of Australia’s key music institutions, including ARIA, APRA AMCOS and the Live Music Office, gathered together at last year’s conference in Sydney to collectively develop strategies for the growth and consolidation of Australia’s music industry. The outcome was today’s announcement for six fundamental strategies to stimulate an industry that has come under intense strain as a result of rapid digital change and a significant drop in global market share over the last few years.

The six strategy points announced today are:

1. Increase Australia’s music exports and international market share of music

2. Ensure there is a robust and effective copyright framework as the foundation of industry growth and prosperity

3. Increase consumer demand for both recorded and live music through audience development, public engagement and promotion

4. Foster industry skills and business development to build capability and competitiveness

5. Strengthen artist development to deliver a more secure vocational livelihood for musicians and a more globally competitive industry

6. Deliver best practice regulatory environments, effect regulatory reform, and implement targeted investment incentives

The legitimacy and breadth of the plan, which addresses specific areas such as copyright infringement, live music permitsand regulatory reform for venues, musicians and engineers, is apparent considering the 12-month timeline the industry worked toward. The plan represents a holistic perspective of the music industry landscape, boasting input from a wide range of industry experts and organisations.

Michael Smellie, Chair at Music Australia, expressed the overall importance of the plan in helping Australia’s music industry recover from dire circumstances.

“Australia’s recorded music sector has dropped from third to sixth in the IFPI global export list and copyright exports have halved over the last decade”, he said. “We know that Australians still value music, so it’s time for the industry and government to make a stand together to secure the value chain for our culture.

“It is an important time to have all the major players in our industry speaking with one voice. The National Contemporary Music Plan is the first step on our way to taking Australian music back to the top of the charts.”

The National Contemporary Music Plan is a testament to an ongoing bid to bolster Australia’s music industry and to foster growth in the sector.

This week’s Roundtable, which was held on Wednesday and Thursday this week (August 3 and 4) provides a forum for delegates to debate the next steps to further the plan. With guest speakers Katie Noonan and Michael Chugg, the implementation of the plan will be a prominent issue on the agenda today.