Rockol Tracks: The BBC – a friendly foe of the UK music industry?
The UK label executives present at the 1 September annual general meeting (AGM) of trade organization BPI could not believe their ears. But was keynote speaker Bob Shennan, the new music boss at the BBC, insisting the UK public broadcaster had no plans to compete against the music industry?
Not many in the business were even aware there was a remote possibility. Yet, the subject had come up. Indeed, as Shennan listed a series of future BBC Music activities, some sounded similar to the BPI’s Music Export Growth Scheme and the BPI-hosted BRITS, the British equivalent of the US Grammy Awards.
Still, Shennan said he came in peace. And he had plenty of good news for BPI members, which include all the major labels (Universal, Warner Music and Sony Music), 300 independents and represent 85% of music sold in the UK.
Shennan pledged to make music a priority this year. He said the BBC is giving the new BBC Music brand, launched in June, the same importance as BBC News and BBC Sports, its current jewels in the crown.
“The BBC has renewed its commitment to music and sees it as a brand that sits equally alongside of BBC News and BBC Sports,” he declared. “Our (TV and radio) audience believe music is an important component of what the BBC does, and music is still what we’re famous for around the world.”
When he was appointed director of music, BBC controller of Radio 2, 6 Music and Asian network in March, Shennan became one of the world’s most powerful industry decision makers. He is now responsible for the music commissioned, used, performed, promoted, broadcast, transmitted and paid for at the BBC, arguably the world’s biggest and most commercially successful public-service TV and radio broadcaster.
And at the BPI AGM, he spoke to an audience that had seen its business decimated by digital technology. Revenue from UK recorded music in 2013 was 61% of the £1.2 billion generated 10 years before in 2003.
He was there to help. He outlined in detail the BBC’s current music assets and the new content, programs, shows, events and future initiatives that would make its TV channels and radio stations even more indispensable to labels and artists.
It has the funds. In the 2013-2014 financial year, the compulsory license fees paid by British households generated £3.7 billion. Combine that with such commercial income as the revenues yielded from the sale of BBC-made TV and radio shows overseas at BBC Worldwide, and the broadcaster collected more than £5 billion the last fiscal year.
In terms of music, part of the revenues will be injected into licensed music used as soundtracks for TV and radio programs, the in-house orchestras, plus the popular music national radio stations like BBC Radio 1, Radio 2, and Radio 6 Music, classical music’s Radio 3, and the Asian Network that play hit and catalog recordings released by most BPI members.
The BBC’s significant commitment to music in the financial year ending 31 March 2014 alone included investments in more than 41,000 hours of TV and radio music programs; the live broadcast of over 2,900 sessions and events, including 600 live concerts on Radio 3; 300 concerts by the broadcaster’s BBC Performing Groups; 28 newly commissioned classical-music works, plus 15 schemes for discovering, nurturing and promoting new talent. The One Show, the BBC TV flagship general-topics magazine show, now has its own music festival.
Just before the new financial year that started in April, the BBC aired the Radio 2 Folk Awards at London’s Royal Albert Hall to an estimated 3.5 million listeners. Its multi-platform coverage of the gigantic Glastonbury Festival reached 18 million people. It is broadcasting 76 classical-music concerts and events linked to its BBC Proms (pictured) series.
It doesn’t end here. There are plans to enhance the music elements of the BBC digital platforms, including the bbc.co.uk/music website, the iPlayer and the Playlister service.
If Shennan, however, sounded too much like Santa Claus carrying bags of endless goodies for the industry, let us disabuse you.
BBC Introducing is a new scheme designed to discover new talent among young music creators and performers. When he mentioned the aspiring young acts would be promoted not only across the BBC’s networks but also abroad, it sounded similar to the BPI’s export growth scheme mentioned earlier.
Then, there is the annual BBC Music Awards, which aims to celebrate a year in British. The inaugural ceremony will be held at London’s Earls Court on 11 December and transmitted during primetime TV.
Eyebrows were raised when Shennan insisted BBC Music Awards would not be a rival to the BRITS. “It will focus on new and established artists, but it will complement the BRITS, not compete against it.” Only time will tell. The BBC’s (public-service) Royal Charter, which gives it the mandate to make decisions with the public’s license fees, is scheduled to be renewed in 2016. And how music is supported could play a major role in decisions about the renewal.
“This is a huge commitment to music from the BBC. We hope it chimes with the audience,” Shennan added. “I know the BBC has not always felt like a great partner (to the music industry), but we need to be working with everyone in this room and the partners beyond it. We can be the catalyst that enables a great future.”
Time will tell.
[Juliana Koranteng]