PANEL HIGHLIGHTS AT IN THE CITY 2008

Whilst we realise that this is one hell of a long email, there's just no way we could cut down this year's panel highlights any more. We're sure you'll agree, the pedigree of panellists at this year's ITC is frighteningly strong - and this isn't even the full picture. If you need ANY more reasons to come up to Manchester at the start of October then check out the ITC website at the start of next week for the full list of panels, showcases, bands and parties. Or just go there now, click on 'register' and spend the next two weeks planning who you'll see, what you'll ask and just how you'll get all those booze receipts past accounts...

Here are just some of the forthcoming highlights of this year’s event:

On the Sunday 5th October, the first day of In The City 2008, the opening address will be given by this year’s official In The City host Andrew Loog Oldham. This will be followed by a keynote address from Andrew Burnham MP, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport who will then be interviewed live on stage by Channel 4 News correspondent Faisal Islam.

The highlights of Sunday’s panels include ‘Festival Independence’ a look at the health of the UK’s music festival industry with participants including Fiona Stewart, the MD of the Green Man Festival, Steve Machin of Tixdaq, Geoff Ellis of DF Concerts, Peter Elliott the Managing Director of Primary Talent International and Heather McGill of 2 Rock.

Sunday 5th also sees a panel devoted to ‘The New, New Marketing’ which will look at how music marketing has changed in recent years. Panellists include Co-President of Virgin Records US Ray Cooper who will moderate, Natasha Kizzle from KLP, Oliver Issacs from This is Music and Henry Semmence from Absolute Marketing.

Monday 6th October kicks off with ‘Caught by the Buzz – The Managers Panel,’ which will investigate how managers can build the visibility of new artists. Former Rolling Stones Manager Andrew Loog-Oldham, James Sandom and Cerne Canning of Supervision Management - who between them represent Franz Ferdinand, Kaiser Chiefs and The Cribs – and Petri Lunden, Manager of The Cardigans and Chair of IMMF amongst others will be on hand to debate the subject.

As a counterpoint to the managers panel, this year ITC are introducing an artists debate entitled ‘The Importance of Being Idols – Keeping Your Creativity,’ which is described by the organisers as “a lesson in how to stay creative amongst the chaos”. Taking part will be New Order’s Peter Hook, Steve Chandra Savale of Asian Dub Foundation, Steve White of The Style Council and Clint Boon. The panel will be moderated by former TRB frontman and Radio 6Music presenter Tom Robinson.

Also on Monday will be a three-part debate entitled ‘The Digital Buffet’ which will look at the high- end, mid-end and low-end of the ‘all you can eat’ business model in three separate discussions throughout the day. A stellar cast of panellists including Tim Hadley (Vodaphone), Tim Grimsditch (Nokia), Edward Averdieck (Real World), Ben Drury (7 Digital), Graeme Ferguson (Sony BMG), Mark Mulligan (Jupiter Research), Steve Purdham (We7) and Charles Caldas (Merlin) and more will be chewing over the whys and wherefores.

Keeping with the digital theme, Monday will also see a panel called ‘On the Storefront’ which will look at how artists can monetise their online activities by selling downloads, physical product and merchandise online. Andy Allen (Backstreet Entertainment), Neil Boote (Firebrand), Raoul Chatterjee (Trinity Street) and Andrew Martyn (Mubito) will be among the panellists being moderated by Marc Marot of Terra Firma Management.

In The City disapproves of the expression ‘360 degree deal’ but are hosting a panel on Monday called ‘All Rights – There Are No Record Deals Anymore’ which examines this contentious subject. Nick Stewart of Nick Stewart & Associates will moderate a discussion between Ian Ramage of Sony/ATV, Paul Craig of Atlantic Records, Blair Macdonald of Nettwerk and Craig Averill of Serling Rooks and Ferrara , LLP.

To top off the Monday panels delegates are asked to come along to ‘The Filth and the Theory – The Adult Entertainment Industry Model’ where the porn industry business model will be compared to the music industry model. At the present time the ITC organisers are keeping the speakers on this panel close to their, ahem, chests.

The final day of In The City, Tuesday 7th October, kicks off with a seminar entitled ‘What Becomes of The Broken Charted’ which will examine the development of music TV and the adaptation to online and 24 hour on demand. It will also ask the question “is the concept of charts now almost as extinct as the polar bear?” Panellists will include Chris Cowey, Phil Poole (Box TV), Chris Price (MTV), Symon Hallam (Joost), Martin Talbot (Official Charts Company), Emma Smithwick (BBC Switch) and others.

Advertising in music will be examined in the panel “Syncing In The Rain” which looks at whether having an artist’s music in an advert is now a normal part of their marketing strategy or if it is, in fact, an unfair exploitation of an artist’s rights. Gareth Smith (Chrysalis), Jonathan Tester (Bucks Music Group), Jode Steele (Verbal Vigilante) and Marc Robinson (Universal) will debate the issues.

The radio panel this year is called ‘Dab Your Tears’ and will attempt an examination of whether DAB radio can still break bands without competing with other digital formats for exclusive plays and whether a DJ can still champion a band in these days of safe, commercially viable playlist. A stellar line-up of panellists including Pete Mitchell (Radio 2), Jason Carter (Radio 1), John Kennedy (XFM), Korda Marshall (Warners), Huw Stevens (Radio 1), Mike Walsh (XFM) and others will chew the subject over.

Dance music also gets a special focus this year with a panel entitled ‘Put A Donk On It – The Consistent Success of the Dance Industy’ which firstly carries out an in-depth case study of the hugely successful Clubland TV brand and then moves on to discuss just why dance music continues to do rather well. Matt Cadman (All Around The World), Cris Nuttall (All Around The World), Gareth Davies (Kontor Records), HP Baxxter (Scooter) and Helienne Lindvall (Swede As Candy) work up a sweat about things.

In The City 2008 comes to an end for another year with two panels looking at the big picture and examining exactly where we are at this moment in time in the music industry.

The first panel entitled ‘I’m The Model and I’m Looking Good’ brings together a number of people who are working at the coalface of the modern music industry and asks them whether things are working or not. Talking about this and other issues will be Jay Reynolds (Long Island Records), Paul Griffiths (Babycakes), Sean Adams (Drowned in Sound and The Quietus Group) and J Mcnamara (Retro Fuzz) among others.

And following this debate In The City rolls out the big guns to close the show. ‘Has The Music Industry Gone Full Circle?’ will wrap up 2008’s event and industry legends Andrew Loog-Oldham, Seymour Stein, Alan McGee, Richard Gottehrer and others will gather to cast an eye where the industry has been, where it’s at and where it’s going.

These are just some of the panel highlights at this year’s In The City convention. Delegates will find many more keynote addresses, celebrity interviews, masterclasses, panels and seminars at the event where they can listen to discussions and participate in debates about the future of the music business.

REGISTER NOW

To register as an ITC delegate - or to volunteer as one of our little helpers contact the ITC office on 0161 8393930 or go to www.inthecity.co.uk.

THE MIDLAND HOTEL

To book a room at the special delegates-only price of £109 per night, register online and fill out the hotel booking form. Alternatively, give us a call on 0161 839 3930 or email Gavin on gavin@inthecity.co.uk.

Keep checking www.inthecity.co.uk for all the latest news and updates.