TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS 1
LIST OF TABLES 2
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3
INTRODUCTION 8
SCOPE OF WORKS AND OBJECTIVES 10METHODOLOGY 10KEY CONCEPTS AND TERMS 11STRUCTURE OF STUDY 14CONSTRAINTS OF STUDY 14SUMMARY 14
SECTION ONE: MUSIC 16
CHAPTER ONE: GLOBAL OVERVIEW OF THE MUSIC INDUSTRY 16
1.1 INTRODUCTION 161.2 GLOBAL INDUSTRY STRUCTURE AND VALUE CREATING ECOLOGY 171.3 ENVIRONMENTAL SCAN: 181.4 STATE-LED INTERVENTIONS 231.5 REGIONAL REALITIES 27PROFILE ONE - EHE SEALES SCHOOL OF MUSIC, GRENADA 30PROFILE TWO- OHE ANGUILLA MUSIC PRODUCTION AND PUBLISHING COMPANY (AMPP) 351.6 POLICY AND PROGRAMMATIC ACTIVITIES: 36
CHAPTER TWO: OECS ACTION PLAN MUSIC SECTOR 41
2.1 INTRODUCTION 412.2: ACTION PLAN 42
SECTION TWO: AUDIO VISUAL SECTOR 51
CHAPTER THREE: GLOBAL OVERVIEW OF THE AUDIO–VISUAL SECTOR 51
3.1: INTRODUCTION 513.2: GLOBAL SCAN AND VALUE CREATING ECOLOGY 523.3 STATE-LED INITIATIVES 553.4: REGIONAL REALITIES 59PROFILE THREE: ROSELLE MEDIA (ANGUILLA) 60PROFILE FOUR: ST. PAUL’S DISTRICT, ANTIGUA 61
PROFILE FIVE: TRAVELING CARIBBEAN SHOWCASE 65 3.5 POLICY AND PROGRAMMATIC FRAMEWORK 66
CHAPTER FOUR: ACTION PLAN AUDIO VISUAL - SECTOR 71
4.1: KEY SPHERES FOR ACTION 71 4.2: ACTION PLAN – AUDIO VISUAL SECTOR 74
CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUDING REMARKS 78
5.1 INTRODUCTION 78 5.2 SUMMARY 79 5.3 THE ARCHITECTURE FOR THE PLAN 83
APPENDICES 84
1. SAMPLE QUESTIONNAIRE – EOVERNMENT 84 2. SAMPLE QUESTIONNAIRE – EUSIC SECTOR 86 3. SAMPLE QUESTIONNAIRE – EUDIO VISUAL SECTOR 88
BIBLIOGRAPHY 90
LIST OF TABLES
TABLE 1: WHO GETS PAID IN THE US MUSIC INDUSTRY? .............................................................................20 TABLE 2: EXISTING CD PRICING MODEL (APPROXIMATELY).....................................................................20 TABLE 3: MANDATE OF SELECTED INSTITUTIONS OF SUPPORT FOR THE OECS MUSIC SECTOR ....................37 TABLE 4: IMPACT OF GLOBAL PIRACY ON THE AV INDUSTRY (SELECTED COUNTRIES) - LECT ...................53
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‘Re-imagining. Re-fashioning. Re-building: Actions for our creative eco-
systems 2010 -2012’ lays out a development pathway for the OECS’ music
and audio-visual industries. It achieves this by conducting a situational
analysis of both sectors and comparing this with the vision for the industry as
articulated by a wide range of stakeholders including policy-makers, industry
members, and regional developmental agencies. This action plan
recommends a set of strategic interventions that are aimed at disturbing the
current operating systems, so that a process for closing the gaps between the
current reality and vision for the industry is formulated, implemented and
evaluated.
The rationale for the study is based on the potential of both sectors to act as
vectors for socio-economic growth in the light of the declining value-added
that is derived from the traditional industries such as tourism, bananas and
sugar. The current global recession also acts as an impetus for re-tooling the
economies of the OECS territories to sectors that are not so vulnerable to
external shocks. For instance, a recent UN ECLAC report showed that tourism
related expenditures are equivalent to 15 – 44% of GDP in the OECS territories,
and that growth is expected to slow to between zero and 2 percent in 2009.
Meanwhile, a growing body of research shows that the arts and cultural
industries can act as vectors of growth during tough economic times since
they can create jobs, generate revenue, and facilitate linkages with various
areas of the economy. For example, the Works Progress Administration
Federal One Project – FOP, (1935- 1942) that was launched during the Great
Depression under US President Franklyn Roosevelt was instrumental in putting
people back to work and generating economic activity that helped get the
US out of depression1. As such, the opportunity to develop the cultural sector
is propitious given the economic decline.
1 The FOP was divided into five components, including the Federal Arts Project which employed 5,300 visual artists and produced over 108,000 paintings and 2,500 murals; the Federal Music Project which employed 16,000 musicians and conducted music classes in 27
4
In this regard, the consultants were charged with four main tasks in fulfillment
of the project objectives as follows:
1. To evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of the current inputs
including the deployment of resources, training and programming to develop
the sectors.
2. To analyse the efficiency of current policy approaches as it relates to
the definition of the problem facing the sectors.
3. To conduct a stakeholder and situational analysis of the two sectors to
frame a new strategic vision.
4. To develop a new framework of action for each sector over the next
two-year period.
The action plan is predicated on a set of dual concepts that have guided the
process and outcome of the project. The first concept is related to the
production and consumption of cultural goods and services in a value
creating ecology that emphasises the linkages between the various steps
along the horizontal and vertical value chains. The notion of ‘creative
ecosystems’ refers to a set of dynamic interrelationships between artists, their
audiences and the infrastructure that supports them in bringing their work to
the market. In healthy cultural eco systems these three elements combine
to create integrated and self-sustaining communities where both the intrinsic
and instrumental value of culture is recognised. The second concept is
based on a systems approach to policy making, whereby policy is viewed as
being most effective when it interferes with existing systems in the cultural
ecology with the view to either strengthening good ones, or re-organising
dysfunctional ones. In this approach, the role of policy in directly assisting
individual artists, enterprises or associations is delimited for a more strategic
positioning within and between systems of production and consumption.
The situational analysis reiterated the findings of previous studies (Nurse, 2002,
Callender 2006, OECS-EDU, 2007) that showed that enterprises in both sectors
can be described as nascent concerns with some competitive advantage in
states; the Federal Theatre Project which employed 12,700 theatre workers and produced 12,00 plays. http://www.wwcd.org/policy/US/newdeal.html#FAP. Accessed July 24, 2009.
5
the production phase of the ecology where less value is extracted. Findings
of each sector are detailed in chapters one (music) and three (audio-visuals)
and are summarised here. The economic potential of both sectors are not
fully realised due to confluence of factors, some structural and others less
pervasive. The music industry is by far the more mature of the two areas and
generates more socio-economic activity due in large part to its linkages with
the festival economy of most member states. The audio-visual sector is in its
embryonic stages but offers much growth potential given the technological
advances in media that have improved access to the tools for production.
Both areas are deficient on the consumption side of the value creating
ecology with poor distribution to markets within and outside the region. The
marketing of products is further compromised by the pervasiveness of piracy
both in physical formats and online.
The development of both areas is urgent if the OECS territories are to benefit
from the current global opportunities. In terms of music, opportunities are
related to the decline of the hegemonic strictures of the four transnational
record companies on the global recording industry as evidenced by
plummeting record sales juxtaposed against the concurrent growth of the live
performances and publishing streams. In terms of the audio-visuals, the
increasing global demand for Caribbean cultural products has aligned with
the improved access to media technology. The key findings are summarised
below:
Music:
1. The music industry is vibrant with the greatest value accrued from the live
performance income stream. The live performance stream is currently where
the ‘best value’ is positioned in the global music industry, giving the region a
new competitive advantage.
2. The value ecology is transnational and reliant on overseas markets, especially
in the Caribbean diaspora for both production (i.e. recording and
manufacturing) and consumption (i.e. live performances, CDs and music
downloads) activities.
3. The internal markets are small and exploration of external markets to achieve
sustainability is necessary.
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4. Distribution and marketing strategies are underdeveloped, and not enough
effort has been placed in optimizing trade within the Caribbean diaspora and
other developing countries to the South.
5. The decline of the global recording industry offers new placement and
promotional opportunities for the OECS music sector.
6. The EPA with the European Union offers the promise of increased market
access along with technical assistance for the formulation of cultural policies.
Audio-visuals
1. The audio-visual sector represents a small but growing industry with the best
value extracted at the production phase of the ecology.
2. The OECS region is rich in ‘stories to tell’ which can be translated into
‘products to sell’.
3. The existing distribution channels are centred along the north-south axis,
which does not benefit products from the OECS region.
4. The internal markets for audio-visual products are small and necessitate an
ongoing search for external markets.
5. The linkages between the other cultural sectors (i.e. culinary, performing,
visual arts; animation in video games, advertising etc.) to help cataylse the
industry are not fully developed.
6. Institutions of support are weak both within and outside of the industry.
7. The EPA with the European Union, which is strong on audio-visual content,
offers some promise for increased market access and improved technological
support.
Recommendations
The research highlighted the various challenges facing both sectors and has
identified the lack of a robust policy regime as the core problem. Most member
states did not pay enough attention to this critical role of policies in creating the
environment for the cultural industries to thrive. More importantly, the need to create
convergence and synergies between the various policy domains (i.e. culture, trade &
industry, tourism, community and enterprise development) was weak or completely
non-existent in most territories. Moreover, the lead role of cultural policy in framing
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and setting the tone for the other policies to follow is mute. In this regard, this report’s
recommendations are predicated on a systems approach to policy making with
more emphasis placed on creating the architecture for the industry to thrive. The
action plan also tries to redress the imbalance whereby the policy domain has
traditionally emphasized cultural production. In this regard, various suggestions are
provided to encourage activity and grow sustainable systems in the realm of
consumption through market research and distribution.
A set of broad goals has been devised for each sector. They are focused on four
main areas including human capital development, sectoral development, creation
of cultural districts/clusters and the trade in cultural goods and services. These four
broad areas are underpinned by the need for co-operation between all stakeholders
in constructing the requisite architecture to re-tool the sector. These broad areas are
developed into key actions for each sector, outlined in chapters two and four. More
detailed national action plans are outlined in a companion document. The general
actions for the AV and music sectors are as follows:
1. Developing and sustaining human capital development in the core and
ancillary areas of the sectors.
2. Developing and sustaining the infrastructure for the sector
3. Developing and sustaining the cultural economy.
4. Co-ordinating marketing and events to increase profile of the region as a
cultural destination.
5. Identifying and developing cultural districts
‘Re-Imagining, Re-Fashioning, Re-Building: Actions for our creative ecosystems
(2010 – 2012)’ concludes by employing the metaphor of constructing a house
to facilitate a more systematic approach to developing the architecture for
the industries to grow and thrive (see page 86). It also outlines the roles and
responsibilities for the array of stakeholders, (international, regional, and
national) to delimit the duplication of effort and expending of scarce
resources within the territories. It is hoped that this exercise builds on ongoing
efforts aimed at developing both sectors but that it also marks a small turn in
the road whereby regional policymakers, national governments and the
communities of artists and entrepreneurs join forces to create healthy cultural ecosystems that equally celebrates and respects both the intrinsic and
instrumental values of the OECS’ cultural industries.
8 !
The cultural industry sector has experienced exponential growth in the last
two decades, with global earnings valued at over U.S$1.2 trillion in 20052. The
small-island developing states in the Caribbean are well poised to take
advantage of the trade in cultural goods and services because it offers
opportunities to link critical development imperatives, namely cultural
citizenship and identity, spatial culture, media and communication within a
framework of sustainable economic growth. In this regard, the cultural
industries can play a major role in generating income, creating employment
and bolstering cultural confidence. However, the realisation of this potential is
dependent on a series of strategic interventions including an action plan that
would create a new framework from which the cultural industries can be
developed and promoted to the benefit of its producers and consumers.
The growing popularity of the Caribbean cultural brand especially in the
more commercially oriented sectors such as music and audio-visuals,
underscores the importance of the cultural domain as a vector for socio-
economic development in the region. In this regard, cultural tourism3 plays a
significant part in the development of the Caribbean brand, and has
assumed greater significance within the last two decades due in large part to
the competition from other tourist locations such as those in Latin America
and South East Asia that also offer sand, sea and sun, but at much cheaper
prices. Additionally, the region has had to adjust to the decline of agriculture,
its former economic mainstay due to the expiration of preferential trade
agreements with the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries.
For all of these reasons, cultural tourism represents the new model of tourism
for Caribbean countries because it promotes greater intersectoral linkages
within domestic economies, encourages the consumption of local resources,
2 ‘Entertainment and Media Outlook: 2005 - 2009’ at www.pwcglobal.com. Accessed 240709.3 This term normally refers to tourism that promotes areas such as heritage, popular culture, sports, and the environment.
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and decreases the high leakage rates4 that are normally associated with the
‘sun, sea and sand’ model. In addition, it is believed that cultural tourism
builds and maintains the region’s most valuable assets in an environmentally
and economically sustainable way, while supporting local cultures and
national identities. This model also encourages governments to protect
natural landscapes, to showcase national cultures, to foster research into
local history, and to recover submerged cultural traditions. Therefore, the
appeal of the cultural tourism developmental model throughout the region is
very strong. However, this model is predicated on the existence of a strong
cultural industry platform.
The OECS’ interest in their cultural industry sector can be traced back for at
least two decades, but it is only in the last ten years that any serious attempts
have been made to map the structure and performance of the sectors. In
this regard, several studies have been commissioned including an analysis of
festivals in the Anglophone Caribbean (Nurse, 2002). This study mapped the
structure and economic performance of festivals, and featured two OECS
countries5. The study’s findings suggested that there was great potential for
growth if the requisite support mechanisms were put in place. In 2006, the
Caribbean Export Development Agency developed a strategic plan to
inform the support for the cultural industries under the 9th EDF. The plan
addressed some of the critical challenges facing Caribbean cultural industries
and outlined four areas for support. More recently, the OECS facilitated an
audit (2007) and stakeholder meeting (2008) which successfully analysed the
structure and concerns of industry practitioners. All of the studies have
outlined a set or recommendations to improve industry performance and
productivity. One of the key recommendations coming out of the 2008
stakeholder meeting was the development of a plan of action that would
ensure long-term sustainability.
4 For example, it is estimated that as much as 50 percent of the Jamaican tourist industry’s gross earnings leave the island (Ramjee Singh, 2006:200). 5 Festivals in St Lucia and St Kitts and Nevis were examined in terms of their structure and impact on their respective economies (i.e. tourist arrivals, hotel accommodation, visitor satisfaction and benefit to cost analysis).
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Therefore, this piece of work develops this recommendation by producing a
comprehensive model for activating the music and film sectors within OECS
member states. It seeks to achieve this objective by prioritising the critical
areas for action over the next two year period (2010 -2012).
Scope of works and objectives
The project consultants were responsible for conducting four main tasks,
including a review of the current literature on both sectors, meetings with
stakeholders in all nine territories, an analysis of current and proposed policies
and programmes and the development of an action plan for each sector. In
keeping with these tasks, the project objectives were described as follows:
1. To evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness of the current inputs
including the deployment of resources, training and programming to develop
the sectors.
2. To analyse the efficiency of current policy approaches as it relates to
the definition of the problem facing the sectors.
3. To conduct a stakeholder and situational analysis of the two sectors to
frame a new strategic vision.
4. To develop a new framework of action for each sector over the next
two year period.
Methodology
The methodological approaches that are employed in this study draw from a
wide range of disciplines including management, sociology, economics and
the emerging field of events management. Qualitative impact analysis was
employed to conduct a general situational analysis of both sectors and
management tools were used to assess the impact of existing approaches
and programmes. The study achieves these goals by engaging in a three-
step process as detailed below:
Phase One: Strategic Analysis/Diagnosis (Where are we now?) – A
strategic analysis of the structure and actors involved in the sector
along with a review of the existing literature. Two analytical tools are
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employed including (a): Environmental Scan (PEST analysis), (b): a
TOWS analysis and (c): a qualitative impact assessment.
Phase Two: New Strategic Direction (Where do we want to be?) – The
(re)visioning of each sector by incorporating feedback from internal
stakeholders along with an examination of industry best practices,
policy initiatives and the application of findings from the diagnostic
phase.
Phase Three: Implementation (How will we get there?) – The
development of objectives and actions to realise the articulated vision
of the sector.
Cultural mapping, cultural intelligence and value production chain analysis
constitute the methodological approaches for the country studies discussed
in the plan. Cultural mapping involves the qualitative and quantitative
recording of the sector’s resources for the purposes of social and economic
action. Meanwhile value creating ecology analysis is particularly useful
because it promotes a deeper understanding of the institutions of cultural
production and concerns itself with the cultural marketplace and the
consumers of cultural products. Taken together these approaches have
provided necessary linkages between the socio-cultural, geo-political and
economic dimensions of the cultural domain as they apply to the OECS
countries. Moreover, they have provided a bridge to analyse both the
theoretical knowledge underpinning policy formulation, and the more
practical concerns of planning and implementation.
Key concepts and terms
This study is underpinned by two interrelated concepts that have guided the
process and outcome laid out in the action plan. The first concept is related
to the production and consumption of cultural goods and services in a value
creating ecology. This term is derived from the supply chain method that
describes the series of steps a product (usually a tangible one) takes from the
manufacturer to the consumer. The notion of value suggests that each step
in the chain should add value rather than simply move the product along.
The notion of a value creating ecology suggests a more interactive than
linear relationship between the various steps and involves all stakeholders (i.e.
12 !
consumers, suppliers and competitors) in the production and consumption of
cultural products or services. In this way, the emphasis is placed on a more
holistic approach to value creation in the cultural ecosystem. The second
concept that is applied throughout the study is based on the notion of
creative ecosystems, which refers to ‘the set of dynamic interrelationships
between creative artists, their audiences and the infrastructure that supports
artists and brings their work to the public’ (Seifter and Levine, 2009). In healthy,
creative ecosystems these three elements combine to create integrated and
self-sustaining communities where both the intrinsic and instrumental value of
culture is respected and recognised.
Creative ecosystems bring together a variety of stakeholders who contest,
compete and co-orperate to the general benefit of the whole. According to
Bilton (2007:53), these systems are very fluid and are more responsive to
consumer perceptions of value, specifically with regards to how products are
distributed and packaged. For instance, the impact of new media
technologies have changed the relationship between producers and
consumers allowing for greater personalization, faster response times and
new forms of value added at the point of consumption (i.e. mobility,
convenience and transferability of content between devices). Figure One
attempts to illustrate the high levels of integration and mutual dependence
that is the hallmark of the creative ecosystems within the value chain for the
music industry.
Healthy eco systems thrive on intervention from both private and public
sector organizations and the community of artists. In this regard, the literature
has thrown up four main interventions that qualify as best practices in
creating sustainable creative ecologies. They include:
1. Investment in human capital - where cultural industry policies
address how to nurture creative human capital and interfaces with
both the formal education system and the knowledge gained
through informal networks.
2. Development of cultural districts - recognizes the highly
interdependent nature of creative industries clusters and their
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impact on urban development. Cultural districts maintain a high
degree of product innovation and facilitate ongoing urban
renewal.
3. Sectoral infrastructure – a set of mechanisms to promote growth of
the sectors. These include but are not limited to national
investment in content, tax incentives for R &D investment,
intellectual property legislation, and broadcast/media quotas and
policies.
4. Economic and trade policy – includes the entire range of support
for the production, distribution and export of cultural products and
services.
Taken together these concepts are employed as the basis of analyzing the
efficacy of current policy and programmatic responses in developing the
music and audio-visual sector in the OECS territories, and form the foundation
of how the plans will be articulated and activated.
Figure One- Value Creating Ecology for Music Sector
Live Performances
Distribution &
Promotion
Recording & Manufacturing
Songwriting &
Publishing
(Gov’t, supplier, consumer,
competitor)
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Structure of study
The study is divided into three sections. Section One includes a global scan of
the music industry, and positions this against the reality of the regional music
sector as it relates to the specific institutions, programmes, policies and
practices that have been formulated for its development (Chapter One).
The gaps that were highlighted from this analysis, along with stakeholder
inputs were used to fashion an action plan that brings this section to a close
(Chapter Two). In the same vein, Section Two addresses the differences and
specificities of the global and regional audio-visual sectors (Chapter Three)
and concludes with an action plan (Chapter Four). The study ends (Chapter
Five) with a proposed framework to help policy makers create the
architecture that is required to roll out the proposed action plans. Individual
country reports are compiled in an accompanying study, which can be used
to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the situation in each
territory. Each country report has a series of key actions per sector, and these
can be immediately put to use by a diverse range of stakeholders including
government officials, industry associations and individual artists.
Constraints of study
The main constraint of the study was related to the time allotted for
implementation and completion. The visits to nine territories did not yield the
wealth of information that was required since the consultants were on the
ground for a maximum of two days for each country. Visits to cultural
enterprises or opportunities to obtain in-depth interviews were therefore
rendered impossible. In addition, time did not allow for a thorough
examination of the role of regional organizations in shaping policy since trips
to CARICOM had to be shelved. Another consultant was hired to conduct
research of two other organizations in Barbados, namely CRNM and CEDA. It
is hoped that if similar projects are being developed in the future a period of
three to four months is dedicated to effect the best possible value from the
research.
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Summary
It is hoped that this piece of work will contribute in some small way to ongoing
efforts aimed at invigorating targeted approaches to developing the cultural
sector, and its important role in shaping Caribbean societal formation. It is
only through continued and sustained work in this area that knowledge of the
region’s cultural assets, resources, and modes of operation will be
improved. This improved knowledge can then be applied to policies
aimed at better preparing the region to intervene and frame
international discussions on cultural globalization.
Section One: MusicChapter One: Global Overview of the Music Industry
1.1 Introduction
Music has played an integral part in Caribbean societal formation and more
than any other creative expression is inextricably linked to Caribbean identity
formation. Music articulates the struggles and celebrates the victories of
Caribbean people while inserting their worldview onto the global landscape.
More recently, music has also become synonymous with wealth creation,
because of its capacity to generate income and create employment. In this
regard, governments have attempted to formulate policies to encourage
and facilitate the role of music as a tool for socio-economic development.
However, this brief has proven to be a daunting task because integrating
both the socio-politico and economic benefits of music into a cogent policy
framework has proved to be an elusive goal.
This chapter is divided into three sections that examine the global music
industry, the specificities of the OECS music sector, along with a review of
industry best practices and programmes. The chapter is fore-grounded by a
brief discussion of the current size and operating structure of the global music
industry, which is where the OECS music sector has been trying to negotiate
and sustain a space. This is followed by a discussion on the structure and
operating environment of the OECS music industry along with an examination
of the current set of national and regional public and private sector initiatives
that have been developed to encourage growth. The chapter will end with a
discussion on the obvious gaps that will be thrown up by the analysis of the
previous sections in terms of the specificities of the OECS music industry and
the relevance and efficiency of the architecture that supports its
development. This will set the stage for the set of policy and programmatic
recommendations that will form the foundation for the action plan, which is
laid out in the subsequent chapter.
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1.2 Global Industry Structure and Value Creating Ecology !
World retail sales of music experienced continuous growth in the decade of
the 1990’s, increasing from US $27 billion in 1991, to a record high of US $38
billion in 2000. However, piracy, the advent of new media technologies and
a global economic downturn have stemmed this growth, and the
International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), states that global
music sales fell more that 8% in 2008 to US$ 12.42 billion, underscoring an
almost ten-year trend in declining recorded music sales6. In the US market, a
14.4% decline in the year-end recorded music sales is expected for 2009,
including an overall decline in CD sales of 20%7. Piracy figures have more
than doubled from US $2.1 billion in 1995 to US $4.6 in 2004. The CD market is
particularly affected, as 35 percent of all discs sold worldwide are illegal
copies. By 2006, it was estimated that 37% (one in every three) CDs
purchased were pirated products. In 2005, pirate CD sales outnumbered
legitimate sales in a total of thirty markets8. Internet piracy is also growing with
reports from 16 countries over a three-year period showing that over 40 billion
files were illegally file-shared in 2008, giving a piracy rate of around 95%9. In
spite of these figures, the industry has experienced some growth in the area
of digital sales, but unfortunately, this has failed to make up for the shortfall in
compact disc sales. The increase in digital sales is a direct result of greater
broadband access, the penetration of 3G mobile phones and portable music
players. According to IFPI, digital sales have now overtaken the value of the
global singles market and grew by 24% globally during 2008 to US$ 3.78 billion.
Digital platforms now account for around 20% of recorded music sales, up
from 15% in 200710.
The industry has also experienced a shift in the genres of music that are
currently dominating the charts. For instance, rock and roll music has given
6 ‘http://digital-stats.blogspot.com/2009/04/global-music-sales-fell-by-8-in-2008.html ‘Global music sales fell by >8% in 2008. Accessed 22/07/09. 7 ‘Holiday blues expected for music retailers’ – Reuters.com. Accessed 15/07/09. 8 http://www.ifpi.org/content/library/piracy-report2006.pdf Accessed 22/07/09. 9 http://www.ifpi.org/content/section_resources/dmr2009.html . Global digital music sales grow as music industry develops new business models. Accessed 22/07/09. 10 Ibid.
18
way to hip-hop, R&B, adult contemporary and urban music. The marketing
trends are also noteworthy as it shows that the older demographic (45 year
and older) dominate the purchasing of physical sound carriers (CDs and
DVDs) followed by the 15-19 and the 25-29 demographic respectively.
Moreover, the point of purchase is also shifting from dedicated music stores to
convenience and grocery chains. In this regard, the last five years has
witnessed the decline of Virgin, and HMV with the closing of their stores
worldwide. Instead, top ten artists choose to sell directly to big department
stores such as Walmart and Target11 in the US and Tesco in the UK to push their
product. For instance, in the US market these outlets accounted for 52.8% of
sales as opposed to 33.2% from dedicated music stores in 2005, while
supermarkets in the UK saw their share of music sales grow from 21.9 % in 2003
to 35% in 2008.
1.3 Environmental Scan:
It is fair to say that the last decade has witnessed a sea change in the music
industry as a confluence of technological and socio-economic factors have
changed the way music is produced and consumed. However, it is clear that
although some areas of the music industry (i.e. recording industry) are
experiencing a decline, there has never been a time in history when so much
music is available to so many. Consumer demand for music is higher than
ever, and in the US consumption rose by 33% between 2003 and 200712.
This surge in music production and consumption is due in large part to the
advent of new media technologies. With the improvements in home based
technology, more writers and producers are directly engaged, and exert
more control over the process of creating recordings than in any other time in
history. Digital quality recordings can now be produced in small home based
studios through Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI) technology. This
11 Garth Brooks, AC/DC and the Eagles circumvented the traditional distribution system by brokering exclusive deals with the world’s biggest retail chain Walmart, with successful results. More recently, Prince entered into an exclusive deal with Target to move his latest project Lotusflow3R, a 3 CD set for $US 11.99. 12 http://www.ifpi.org/content/section_resources/dmr2009.html Global digital music sales grow as music industry develops new business models. Accessed 22/07/09.
19!
trend has enabled and ensured that greater volumes and varieties of music
have a space in the market. Meanwhile, the advent of the World Wide Web
has provided an affordable marketing and distribution network for music,
aided by stand alone computer CD burners which have made the replication
of small numbers of CD copies a practical option for many musicians and
pirates. In addition, the creation of the Universal Product Code has
facilitated the introduction of more sophisticated inventory systems, while
electronic data gathering mechanisms have made market research more
comprehensive and dynamic for record companies, broadcasters and music
publishers. Broadcast data systems have been extremely useful in tracking
airplay in the larger markets such as North America, Europe, and parts of Asia
and Latin America. These systems do not track music played in what are
deemed to be the smaller markets of Africa, the Caribbean and Eastern
Europe. Finally the growth in audience consumption can be attributed to the
growing access to broadband, cable, satellite, home videos and DVDs, cell
phone rings and computer games.
Meanwhile, the economics of music presents a far less equitable picture. The
structure of the business is primarily shaped by four transnational companies
(TNCs) operating in an oligopolistic system. They are Universal Music Group
(28.8%), Sony BMG (20.1%), EMI Group (10.9%) and Warner Music Group
(14.4%), and in 2008 they controlled 74.2 percent of global music trade13.
While, there is substantial evidence to show that their stranglehold on the
record business is shifting as earnings from CDs continue to decline, their
influence is still robust. For example, the TNCs also own major production,
marketing and distribution networks and in so doing exert a very powerful
influence on the size, structure and practices of the international music
industry and therefore set the standards for how income from record sales is
divided. In the USA for example, an artist only receives the equivalent of
eleven percent of the Published Price to Dealers ($12.05) on each CD sold.
The record company extracts a further ten percent for free goods, in addition
to the costs for recording, video production, independent promotion and
tour support. Table one illustrates the best-case scenariofor a top-tier artist
13 www.reuters.com/article/idUSL0375895920080403. Accessed 22/07/09
20 !
who sells 500,000 units of a record and obtains approximately $119,000 from
these sales. It should be noted that an artist may not even get this money in
a lump sum, since the record companies usually hold back a reserve of about
thirty-five to fifty percent in case the sales of the record were to change. This
could mean that an artist may get nothing for his/her first financial statement.
Table two lays out the percentage take for various stakeholders in the
recording business and highlights that the creative input from the artist is
valued the least, usurped by the rights of the record label and the retailer.
Morever, it is important to state that the best selling albums in today’s market
rarely ever sell more than 150,000 units14, which further diminishes the earning
capacity of the artist from the recording stream.
Table 1: Who gets paid in the US music industry?
ACTIVITY Financial detailsPublished Price to dealers (PPD) $12.05
Royalty averages eleven percent of the PPD per CD
sale (11% of 12.05)
$1.32
Royalty on sale of 500,000 CDs = 1.32 x 500,000 $660,000.00
Less 10% free goods (which goes back to the label) 66,000.00
Less recording costs $250,000.00
Less 50% of independent promotion $100,000.00
Less 50% of video costs $75,000.00
Less tour support $50,000.00
Total income collected for sales of 500,000 albums $119,000.00
Source: Carter 2007
Table 2: Existing CD Pricing Model (Approximately)
Artist Label Manufacturing Shipping Retailer Customer
8% 49% 8% 5% 30% =100%Source: Kusek & Leonhard (2005)
This system has been traditionally contested by the independent music labels
that account for approximately 20% of the world’s music business. However,
14 This trend was bucked with the rush to purchase Michael Jackson’s music after his death, where in the week ending July 3rd, over 2.2 million CDs of his music was purchased worldwide.
21!
this relationship is no longer simply oppositional, as the majors, through a
complex set of equity or joint venture arrangements, have acquired many
independents totally or in part. Many have argued that the role of ‘indies’ in
the contemporary global music scene has been reduced to that of recruiting
agencies for the major labels (Negus, 1996). However many claim that the
advent of the internet has provided artists with another distribution avenue
that can circumvent the hegemony of the ‘majors’. But the rush to use the
many social networking sites such as You Tube and My Space Music poses yet
another problem for independent artists since it leaves them vulnerable to
even greater copyright infringement. In addition, the popularity of the sites
can actually create a problem of differentiation and positioning in the
market. For example, a recent report showed that there are over a million hip
hop videos on YouTube and that it is becoming increasingly difficult for
consumers to negotiate their way through all of the noise if it videos are not
reinforced by other marketing and management support. As such, the
advent of the new media technologies while holding the promise of
increased access, are still put to better use as one aspect of an overall
strategy that at this point the major recording companies are still better
poised to exploit because of their pre-existing networks and resources.
Analytical Model
The analytical framework that would be employed in this chapter is based on
the Three Income Streams Model (see Figure 2) developed by Hull (2004:20). It
describes the structure of the music industry as it pertains to countries with a
longer tradition of commercial pop music and for whom the pecuniary
aspects of the music industry are paramount. The model focuses on the three
major sources of income, which are derived from i.) the utilization of a song,
ii.) the recorded performance of that song, and iii.) live performances of that
song as follows:
1. The Recording Stream –includes the recording artists, record labels,
producers, session musicians and vocalists, recording engineers, record
manufacturers, distributors, merchandisers and the consumers.
2. The Songwriting Stream – includes the songwriters, music publishers,
performing rights organizations, broadcasters, other media, and the
consumers.
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3. The Live Appearances Stream – includes the musicians and singers,
personal managers, talent agents, promoters, venues and the
consumers.
Figure 2: Three Income Stream Model (Hull, 2004)
Songwriting Recordings Live Appearances !
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According to Hull (2004), in order for a player in any stream to maximize
security and profitability, they must have a stake in the other two streams.
Each stream has a point of control through which the creative input is
channeled; the record label, the music publisher and the personal manager.
Each stream also has a place where consumers can interface with the
product, such as through the radio, a record store or a concert venue. But
most importantly, it is the public consumption in each of the streams that
Public listens, watches & buys The public buys recordings
The public buys tickets
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Songwriters write songs
Music publishers sign songwriters and songs and license the use of song
PROs license broad- casters & others to song
Prints, movies, records and other use of song
Song performed
Song licensed & distributed
Artists perform for recording
Labels sign artists to record
Producers, engineers & artists make recordings
Manufacturers make copies of recordings
Distributors wholesale recordings
Merchandisers retail recordings
Artists perform live
Personal managers coordinate careers
Talent agents book live appearances
Promoters put on live appearances
Venues provide places for live appearances
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generates and guarantees profit and success. Unless the public buys records,
listens to music on the radio, in cinema, on the net, or goes to concerts - the
income generated in each stream is diminished. This model calls for an
enabling environment that provides the necessary inputs for the actors and
activities in all three-income streams. Unfortunately, the input levels for each
stream are not always available or accessible to the creators and consumers
of music, resulting in uneven income levels for the various streams, leading to
some type of government intervention.
Global Music Industry – Take Aways
1. The music industry is strong but the record business is weak.
2. Music and events merchandising, concerts and touring, and live
entertainment account for US$25 billion annually.
3. The artists are the brands, not the record company – and entertainment is the
main attraction.
4. Artists and managers will shape the future. Good managers will guide their
artist through the myriad of choices they must make to stay in the business
and prosper.
5. The publishing income is a crucial income stream. It takes longer to build but
tends to have more value and is a more reliable income stream than
recording.
6. Radio is no longer the primary way that people discover music.
7. Digital niche market outperforms mass marketing. Musicians by defining their
niche and USP can be successful on much smaller volumes reaching much
fewer people.
8. The current pricing model is obsolete. Selling content is no longer going to be
the main method of bringing revenue.
9. Music is mobile and new models will embrace more holistic business models.
1.4 State-led interventions
The previous discussion highlighted one of the most significant characteristics
of the music business, namely the oligopolistic nature of the transnational
companies that control the international trade in music, even as this very
system is under threat by free access to music on the internet. This structure
24
still has an adverse effect on the diversity of the industry by constraining the
type, quantity and quality of music that makes it to the marketplace. It is in an
effort to redress these inconsistencies that governments are drawn into the
policy arena. State responses encapsulate a full range of options that seek to
improve the efficiency of all three income streams – songwriting, recording,
and live performances - as described in Hull’s framework.
These initiatives include but are not limited to the following strategies. The first
is infrastructural development whereby the state creates an enabling
environment through tax and investment regimes, research and
development, promoting the necessary linkages within the public policy
arena, construction of the physical infrastructure, and granting pioneer status
to entrepreneurs in the sector. In this realm governments have subsidised
some part of the production and promotional music cycle. For instance in
the United Kingdom, local authorities in London have subsidized performance
venues, rehearsal spaces and even recording facilities. Secondly,
governments promote investment in the sector by developing a regime of
incentives. For example during the 1980’s, the London Enterprise Board
pushed public investment to critical areas of the independent music sector.
These initiatives led to the improvement of distribution arrangements for
‘Indies’ through agencies such as Rough Trade and Cartel. The third strategy
involves government protection and promotion of the industry through the
implementation of various protective regimes that include intellectual
property and broadcast quotas. One of the most renowned broadcast
quota systems was developed in Canada in order to develop their music
industry in the face of unrelenting domination of their airwaves by American
fare. Beginning in 1971, the Canadian Radio and Telecommunications
Commission (CTRC) set up a quota system of Canadian content (Can Con)
on the AM radio frequency, which was expanded to FM radio by 1976. They
developed what is known as the MAPL15 system that set out a series of criteria
for a song to gain radio airplay (Shuker, 2003:258). Songs had to fulfill at least
two of these criteria to gain access to the airwaves. By 1999, after a series of
15 MAPL – M-usic is composed by a Canadian; A-artist (principal performer) is Canadian; P–performance/production is Canadian; L- lyrics are written by Canadian.
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reviews with the various stakeholders, the quota was increased to 35 percent
Can con. Currently, the TV Broadcasting Regulations requires a public
licensee to devote not less than 60% of the evening broadcast to Canadian
programmes. This system is not without controversy, but it is generally agreed
that it had a positive effect on the Canadian popular music industry and
jettisoned the careers of Celine Dion and Bryan Adams.
Governments are also involved in encouraging consumption of music
products in both local and foreign markets. An example of such an
intervention is the ‘New Zealand on Air’ (NZOA), which was established in
1990 to promote local music (Shuker, 2003:261/2). One of its projects, ‘The Hit
Disc’, assists artists and record companies to obtain airplay for new releases,
and as such, ensures that every radio programme director in every New
Zealand radio station has access to broadcast quality copies of new singles
that have commercial appeal. To qualify for assistance artists have to meet
three criteria – the music must be classified as being from New Zealand, there
must be a secure record release date and accompanying plans for a video,
and the release must have broadcast potential. The programme has raised
the bar among local music groups in terms of technical quality and market
appeal.
Training and education also play a major part in government’s development
of the sector primarily through the provision of opportunities within and
outside of the school system. For example, the state of Chicago supports
various community initiatives aimed at spreading music throughout the state,
primarily to maintain its brand as a major US cultural hub. The Merit School of
Music is one such intervention aimed at giving young men and women life
changing experiences through music that has received consistent
government funding since its establishment in 1979. Merit offers a full range of
music programming for children, ages newborn to 18 years, including early
childhood classes, beginning, intermediate and advanced instrumental and
vocal group instruction, private lessons, theory classes, ensembles and
musical theatre. Merit's classes are offered at 90 sites throughout Chicago
and Northwest Indiana, including Chicago Public Schools, private and
26
parochial schools, community centers and homeless shelters, as well as at
Merit's own 40,000 square foot state-of-the-art facility in Chicago's West Loop,
the Joy Faith Knapp Music Center. Since its inception Merit has developed a
distinguished alumni body that has been recruited to raise the school’s profile
and also to leverage the organization to obtain grant funding from the
private institutions and individuals. In 2008, Merit trained 7,000 young men and
women in its 90 centres throughout Chicago16. The Merit programme forms
an integral part of the Chicago’s strategy to maintain its brand as a cultural
centre specific to its contribution to the global soundscape. Chicago boosts
of being the home of gospel music, and has a sterling record of developing
some of the most renowned Jazz and Blues musicians and clubs including
luminaries such as Louis Armstrong and Chuck Berry.
Generally, the most effective policy interventions involve a combination of all
the strategies described above. However, the operating environment in
each country plays an even more critical role in the policy’s success. As such,
the availability of resources, the positioning and level of institutional support,
the understanding of the operational structure of the music sector, and the
political will of governments all contribute to the policy’s effectiveness.
Finally, all of these responses must be guided by a clear sense among
politicians, policymakers and practitioners alike- that policies aimed at
supporting popular music must come to terms with the hegemony of the
global music industry, and how it limits national and regional initiatives. We
now turn our attention to an examination of how these factors are played out
in the case of the OECS music industry by describing its structure and
examining the impact of the current set of policy and programmatic
approaches.
16 http://www.meritmusic.org/about/index.htm. Accessed on 22/07/09.
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1.5 Regional Realities !
The OECS region has experienced global recognition in the music arena
primarily through the success of individual artists such as Montserrat’s Arrow,
St. Vincent’s Kevin Lyttle, and Dominca’s Ophelia Marie and Michele
Henderson. The efforts of these performers have been instrumental in
creating a cultural brand for the region that now requires a set of strategic
interventions if the cultural industries, including music are to be employed in
the service of the OECS’ socio-economic development. A review of the
current set of approaches reveals uneven impacts that underscore the
urgent need to create a more enabling environment for the music sector to
grow and thrive.
The music business in the OECS territories is comprised of small or micro
enterprises and individuals operating in a fairly unregulated market. Most
recordings are produced in home-based studios, with the ongoing
collaboration with producers from within and outside the region mainly in the
Caribbean diaspora. Most entrepreneurs have limited access to financial,
technological and human resources, are self-financing and operate in the
informal sector. These deficiencies on the production side are amplified by
immature and inefficient market activities on the consumption side. The
primary challenge with the internal markets, in addition to its small size resides
in the seasonal nature of the music, which gives producers a fairly small
window of time to sell their products, since consumer interest wanes
significantly after the festivals are over. The small market size has also created
an ongoing search for external niche markets in the US and UK that have led
to the perennial boom and bust cycles and ongoing volatility.
Like their global counterparts, the members of the OECS music industry have
been affected by the loss of income in the recording stream due to high
levels of physical and on-line piracy. In fact, many of the artists who were
interviewed for this project admitted that it made no economic sense for
them to produce CDs because of the decreasing demand for their products
due in large part to the availability of cheaper, pirated CDs that can be
obtained on any city street. Income from the publishing/songwriting stream
28
is also under-performing since many practitioners did not belong to a
copyright or collection society or the existing structures were weak. As such,
the most lucrative income stream in the OECS is from live performances,
which is inextricably linked to the festival economy and cycle. This over-
dependence on one of the three possible income streams also creates
another set of challenges for the operating environment. The first is related to
the formulaic nature of the festival/popular music that seems to be negatively
influencing creativity and innovation with regards to the textual and semiotic
elements of the music. This trend has resulted in an increasingly homogenous
soundscape that will inevitably affect efforts at market placement due to
poorly developed differentiation and branding of the music product.
Secondly, the smallness and shortness of the festival performance space has
fostered an environment of intense competitiveness and strive among
members of the music fraternity making the viability and longevity of industry
associations a gargantuan task.
The development of the music sector is also hindered by the lack of a
comprehensive approach towards human capital development. A review of
the training and education programmes in the nine territories reveal that
training is primarily confined to music theory and literacy, which mainly takes
place in the secondary school system, and is substituted by some
programming by private institutions. There is very little formal training in the
ancillary areas of the music sector, most notably in the business of music
(management and marketing), entertainment law, bookings facilitation,
sound engineering, DJing, and the technical aspects of performance. As a
result, the human capital that exists consists mainly of persons who have
gained knowledge from apprenticeship/mentorship arrangements, or from
their own experience. Therefore the current human resource base of the
sector is not equal to the task of catalyzing industry growth, and in some
cases accounts for the wariness of both private and public sector agencies to
invest in the sector.
The main challenges involved in developing more comprehensive education
and training programmes are related to the financial output required, the
lack of personnel to teach and manage the programmes, and the paucity of
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physical resources (i.e. instruments, equipment and venues) to support their
development. These barriers are heightened by what can only be described
as the lack of political will among policymakers that make these hindrances
appear insurmountable. In the light of circumstances, it is clear that greater
collaboration between private and public sector approaches are needed.
In the cases where good private initiatives exist, government can assist by
deploying resources to make them better, and where private initiatives are
non-existent, attempts must be made to forge public/private collaborations.
The newly established Seales School of Music (SSM) in Grenada represents
one of the better arrangements in the region. The school offers training in
music theory and practice with a focus on keyboards, drums and strings. In
addition, the SSM (see Profile One) has plans to develop courses in Djing,
music production, voice control and the business of music. There is some
indication that the government of Grenada will support this initiative through
a grant from the government of Austria.
The infrastructure for the development of the music sector can best be
described as incomplete. For instance, the legislative and policy
environment is not cohesive, and it was clear that the objectives of the
various laws and policies that engage the sector are not convergent. So for
instance, in many of the territories custom and immigration laws levy taxes on
re-imported CDs which were produced locally and are sent outside for
reproduction, which puts an additional burden on music producers, while
there are no levies on the importation of blank sound carriers which are then
used to pirate the copyrighted material. Some territories17 had tax
concessions for the importation of equipment and instruments. However, in
all of the cases where these laws were in existence, practitioners were either
not fully cognizant of how they could access and utilize the facility, or had no
knowledge of the law at all. Other disjunctures are discernible in the areas of
intellectual property and broadcast legislation. For example, most member
states have established IP laws that are not being enforced, breeding a
culture of excessive copyright infringement, where some of the major violators
17 For instance, Grenada has a three-year prorated tax concession on the importation on music equipment and instruments, while St. Lucia offered relief for persons bringing material and equipment for the carnival season.
31 !
are state owned print and broadcast media. In one particularly disturbing
case there were vendors selling both local and foreign pirated goods outside
of the main courthouse in the country’s capital! Generally, members of both
the legal and protective services are not fully au-courant with the law, and
litigation costs are generally beyond the means of many in the music industry,
inevitably resulting in legislation that is becoming increasingly irrelevant to the
sector.
Public and private sector investment in the sector is also inadequate fostered
by the lack of incentive programmes. The sector’s viability is undermined by
the conservative nature of the traditional banking sector making it difficult for
most entrepreneurs to inject much needed capital in their businesses. The
Cultural Development Fund in St Lucia stands out as one of the better
government initiatives aimed at encouraging investment in the sector. The
CDF was established under the auspices of the National Development
Corporation and in its inaugural (and only) installation the CDF assisted 54
artists with grants from a pool of $EC 360,000. Participants requested grants
for material and marketing support and were given vouchers in the name of
the service providers to minimise fraudulent activity. Both government
officials and industry practitioners agreed that the fund was useful and
helped to generate activity in the industry. The reinstatement of this
programme with more effective monitoring and evaluation guidelines to
measure the fund’s impact is strongly suggested.
Profile One - The Seales School of Music, Grenada
The Seale School of Music (SSM) was established in 2008 with the view to fill the gap
for music training on the island of Grenada. The school offers training in music theory
and literacy with a focus on the steel pan, drum, keyboard and stringed instruments,
along with sound engineering. According to the principals, the demand for training is
so high, that re-location to a bigger facility is imminent when school re-opens in
September 2009. They also envisage that new courses in the business of music, DJing,
and sound engineering will also be offered in the new term due to ongoing demand.
The SSM has made a positive impact on the Grenadian music scene primarily
because of the expertise of its teachers. The school has been able to attract a cadre
31!
of renowned tutors who have foreign and regional experience along with sound
theoretical knowledge of the industry. For instance, one of the senior teachers is DJ
Biz who teaches engineering and will anchor the DJ course to be offered in the
upcoming semester. DJ Biz has played in clubs across the US and Europe and has
opened for renowned hip hop artists including De La Soul, Rza of the Wu Tang Clan
and Grave Diggaz. His Grenadian roots inspired him to return and contribute to the
music industry there. Another one of the tutors is part of a Cuban exchange
programme, whose area of expertise is string instruments with a focus on the violin.
Aixa Mijueu has lived and taught throughout the region and brings her experience to
the school.
The school is financed using a mixture of private funding, fees and private fundraising
initiatives. However, its positive impact has already attracted foreign technical
assistance as the Austrian Embassy recently announced that they would facilitate the
visit of a leading Opera performer who will be available to train Grenadians in voice
and music through the school. These types of initiatives auger well for the school, and
it is envisaged that the principals will build on this opportunity and develop more
strategic alliances with similar institutions within and outside of the Caribbean.
The institutional capacity of the sector is underdeveloped. The global
recession has meant that the vulnerability of many government agencies is
further compromised by further budgetary cuts, with some agencies
experiencing as much as 30% percent adjustments. This problem is amplified
in the private domain where the sustainability of industry associations is
threatened by resource constraints, internecine fighting, poor management
skills and the absence of belief in the efficacy of trade associations in
changing the operating environment through advocacy and organization.
Meetings with industry members revealed a mix of responses to the issue of
trade associations, including an over-dependence on government to ‘fix’
everything, an absolute distrust of any government sponsored initiative,
complacency about the ability of practitioners to sustain efforts to organize
32
themselves, and a willingness to begin the process of forming independent
organisations18.
The private sector is also engaged in institutional strengthening primarily
through the formation of the Coalition of Services Industries (CSI) organisations
throughout the region. The CSI represents members from across the services
sector and is aimed at maximizing trade opportunities with extra-regional
trading blocs such as the European Union. The cross-sectoral approach that is
employed by the CSI seems to provide a more sustainable organisational
template that is also being followed by some industry associations. For
example, the recently formed Professionals in Action for Creative Enterprises
(PACE) from St Lucia aims to bring entrepreneurs from various sectors
including audio-visual, music, performing arts, advertising, visual arts and
architecture. PACE hopes to provide a platform for advocacy, training,
networking and promotion of the various products and services of its
members. Initial funding will come from membership fees and from the
Coalition of Services Industries in St Lucia. The joined up approach that is
promoted by CSI and PACE has benefits in helping members explore and
exploit the common problems and opportunities of the cultural industries,
along with improving the profile and advocacy potential of the sector.
However, one of the more intractable problems with these matrix groups is
that individual members and/or sectors are usually at different
developmental stages, and these differences must be equally reflected in
work programme. Failure to keep all members engaged inevitably results in
their attrition and eventual organizational decline.
The uneven development of the music sector as described above is caused
in large part from the lack of a comprehensive policy framework. The music
industry is implicated across several policy domains and as such requires
joined-up approaches in the areas of trade and industry, education,
community development, tourism, media and culture. The export-oriented
approach to the cultural industries makes the convergence of the policy
arenas most urgent. However, the policy framework in most OECS territories
18 The meetings in St Kitts and Tortula generated such interest in trade associations that the participants immediately set up meetings to discuss the establishment of organisations. Both countries have since had their meetings and are poised to launch their associations.
33 !
did not reflect this synergistic approach even though most officials
understood its efficacy. Moreover, the important role of cultural policy in
bringing these seemingly disparate concerns together was generally
overlooked, as most territories did not have established cultural policy
regimes. For example, some territories including St Lucia, Dominica and
Antigua had written policies that were all over five years old and in need of
review, while others like Montserrat and St Vincent had not been successful in
activating or sustaining the policy formulation process. It is clear the
opportunity for technical assistance for cultural policy formulation that is
being offered under the recently signed EPA must be maximized.
The concept of cultural districts has not been fully explored as a policy
intervention in the OECS territories. In most of the islands there were many
areas that could be developed into creative centres with some strategic
interventions aimed at encouraging innovation, generating income and
employment, and leveraging tourism branding efforts. Notable mention must
be made of the St. Paul’s area in Antigua (see Profile Four), the emerging
cultural corridor in Montserrat, the Sion Hill area in St Vincent, and the
Carenage in Grenada. Each of these communities can be used as a
springboard for promoting the cultural industries through the hosting of
entertainment, training and trade events, which can be employed in the
service of branding the areas as creative clusters. This strategy also
represents a useful point of entry for policy makers because it can yield
almost immediate returns on investment if the events are well managed, and
can encompass all the components of the value ecology (i.e. human capital
development, infrastructure development, and co-operation between the
various stakeholders). While it is important for government to take the lead in
this area, they must involve the communities where these developments are
planned including residents, the cultural industry fraternity, the private sector
along with the relevant non-governmental organisations. Together they can
craft the most sustainable approaches to cultural industry development.
The music business in the OECS territories is in the nascent stage of
development and in need of the requisite policy and programmatic support
both on the production and consumption sides of the equation. The previous
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discussion has highlighted the gaping chasms between the OECS music
industry and that of the global music economy within which it is trying to find
a space. The key lesson to be drawn is that the global recording industry
model was not set up to benefit the artistic community or the consumers who
purchase the music, which in large part accounts for its current state of
decline. In this regard, it is not a model that small island states like those in the
OECS should try to exemplify.
Therefore, the most effective deployment of the region’s scarce resources is
not in entering the game to play catch up, but rather to explore alternative
routes to market entry that can provide the members of the music industry
with sustainable livelihoods and market presence. In this regard, some clear
opportunities stand out. Firstly, the dismantling of the global recording
industry should be exploited to develop new avenues for distribution and
marketing, with the use of the internet playing a pivotal role, specifically as
this relates to the idea of developing digital niche markets which is currently
outperforming mass marketing approaches in the music business. Secondly,
the global demand for live music events presents a great opportunity for the
region, because the competitive advantage lies in this area. The growing
mobility of music can also be used to the advantage of the region, since
Caribbean people have always been very mobile, and links with the diaspora
are yet to be fully explored in terms of improving market access using both
digital and physical formats. Finally, the development of an enabling policy
environment is now more possible due to the availability of funds and
technical assistance under the recently signed EPA with the European Union.
The OECS community must mobilise to ensure they benefit fully from this
facility.
OECS Music Industry: Key Takeaways
1. The music industry is vibrant with the greatest value accrued from the live
performance income stream. The live performance stream is where the ‘best
value’ is positioned in the global music industry, giving the region a new
competitive advantage.
2. The value ecology is transnational and reliant on overseas markets, especially
in the Caribbean diaspora for both production (i.e. recording and
35!
manufacturing) and consumption (i.e. live performances, CDs and music
downloads) activities.
3. The internal markets are small and exploration of external markets to achieve
sustainability is necessary.
4. Distribution and marketing strategies are underdeveloped, and not enough
thought has been given to optimizing trade within the Caribbean diaspora
and other developing countries to the South.
5. The decline of the global recording industry offers new placement and
promotional opportunities for the OECS music sector.
6. The EPA with the European Union offers the promise of increased market
access along with technical assistance for the formulation of cultural policies.
The foregoing discussion illustrates the necessity for enterprises in the OECS
music industry to develop new business models that are hinged on
adaptability, good market intelligence, a strong HR base and a keen
understanding of the music industry. These firms must work along and outside
of governments to ensure the policy environment supports their work. One
such firm is the Anguilla Music Production and Publishing Company (AMPP)
which is partnering with the government to create a one-stop boutique
business for those in the music industry. AMPP (see Profile Two) is premised on
the ‘360 deal’ where artists can access the full range of services including
recording, touring, intellectual property protection, touring, merchandising
and training and development in one place. This model offers some hope for
the enterprises in the OECS territories specific to its combined funding
methods (private/public) and the holistic approach to artist development.
Profile Two- The Anguilla Music Production and Publishing Company (AMPP)
AMPP is a limited liability company that was established by three principals, Davon
Carthy, Allen Newman and Michael Millius to fill the gap in the island’s music sector.
AMPP is marketed as boutique enterprise built on the 360 approach to business, and
collapses all three income streams into a bundle of entertainment based firms. AMPP
36
engages in both business to business (B B) and business to consumer (B C)
arrangements, and is made up of five core divisions!including:
AMPP songs – a publishing facility that maximizes the exclusive opportunity to
take the lead in servicing both regional and international copyright holders
and musical artists on the island.
AMPRO- a performing rights organization that boasts as being the one of the
few PROs in a tax haven, and capitalizes on the accordant tax benefits when
applicable.
West Indie Records – an on-island record label and music production divisions
that is aimed at developing streams of revenue for distribution through
Universal Records.
AMPP Learning – the education arm of the business aimed at providing music
education services for young men and women whose programmes are
implemented in collaboration with the government.
AMPPAXA – an internet portal that is currently being developed. It aims to sell
merchandise, music and an on-line clearing-house. This arm of the company
is scheduled to come on-stream in November 2009.
The key principals of AMPP have been doing good work with their small roster of
artists. Their latest product, ‘Under Your Skin’ by jazz artist Jaine Rogers has performed
well both at home and in overseas markets. Ms Rogers has already played prestigious
venues such as Radio City Music Hall in New York, and is scheduled to do the
international jazz festival circuit during the next year. AMPP has employed new
business approaches to this project, by keeping down CD recording costs (all 11
songs were done in two days using live musicians). The CD is primarily used as a
marketing tool for her live performances and not solely as a source of income.
1.6 Policy and Programmatic Activities:
Governmental bodies in the OECS and Caribbean have been showing
interest in exploiting the pecuniary aspects of the cultural industries for at least
one decade. One of the earliest regional reports on the music industry was
commissioned in 1999 by the Caribbean Export Development Agency (CEDA)
37!
to explore the export potential of the sector19. The report highlighted the
major barriers to the development of an export-oriented approach and
developed a set of recommendations to ameliorate these conditions. Sadly,
the ten intervening years has not witnessed any meaningful change in the
operating environment save for a more intense gaze by national and
regional governmental agencies of the sector. A cursory examination of the
activities aimed at the development of the music sector within the
Anglophone Caribbean reveals an array of institutions (see Table 3) often with
intersecting or overlapping agendas, which often results in the duplication of
effort and inefficient use of scarce resources.
Table 3: Mandate of Selected Institutions of Support for the OECS music sector
Institution/Agency Mandate, Initiatives, Activities in the Sector
CARICOM Task Force on Cultural Industries
To develop a comprehensive regional development strategy and action plan for the cultural industries.
CARIFORUM-EU Business Forum
To explore the growth potential of emerging sectors, through the strengthening of industry associations, research, study tours and conferences.
Office of Trade Negotiations (CRNM)
To explore and develop trade opportunities for the sector through research, training and trade negotiations.
Caribbean Export Development Agency
To promote trade and investment in the sector through research, institutional strengthening, advocacy, trade and market promotion, direct technical assistance and investment promotion.
OECS-EDU To encourage export potential of cultural industries through research, technical assistance, strategic and action planning, trade and market promotion.
The activities of these agencies generally include technical assistance,
strategic and operational planning, trade and market promotion, training,
programme development, data collection and research. These initiatives
have been successful in highlighting some of the structural barriers to market
entry, building the empirical database, while offering some support to
develop the export potential of the industry. These organisations are also
involved in hosting regional meetings of the cultural industry and facilitate
ongoing dialogue between cultural entrepreneurs, government agencies,
19 Nurse, K. -The Caribbean Music Industry – Enhancing Export Capabilities and Industrial Deepening, (CEDA).
38
artists and private sector agencies. In the last five years this dialogue has
centred on the trade potential of the sector specific to the introduction of the
EPA. CEDA, OTN formerly CRNM and the OECS have also been on the
forefront of the research agenda and have also commissioned research on
the music industry which to a large extent has centred on IP protection, ICT
regulations, and the trade potential and economic impact (EIA) of the music
industry or specific festivals. The EIAs have been somewhat useful as a
catalyst to justify government investment in the sector, but have still not been
very successful in encouraging greater private sector investment on the
production side of the music sector. In addition, the CARIFORUM EU has
recently embarked on study tours to identify the constraints and opportunities
in the EU market in keeping with efforts to maximize the market access under
the EPA.
More recently, attempts have been made to strengthen the institutional base
of the music sector through the formation of industry associations. Most
notably, the formation of the Coalition of Service Industries was also
prompted in large part by the potential increased access to the EU markets.
The formation of these industry associations represent a critical component in
the overall mandate to develop the sector but the region must be mindful of
using the possibility of funding and increased access to external markets as
the carrot to mobilize stakeholders, since their enthusiasm can be easily
thwarted if the promise of these trade agreements are not fulfilled or greatly
delayed, which will only lead to greater fatigue and disenchantment among
stakeholders. The issue of sustainability is also an important issue facing trade
associations, and stakeholders must be encouraged to explore a combine of
funding sources to ensure longevity.
Several gaps have been identified relative to the work of these organizations.
Chief among them is the absence of policy formulation, implementation and
evaluation interventions as a first step in the development of the music sector.
Member states require both technical assistance and funding to develop and
activate their policies, but also require ongoing support to monitor and
evaluate policy impact. The regional development organisations are
implicated in ensuring that there is policy convergence across and within the
39!
various territories to facilitate all the programming that is required to promote
a vibrant regional cultural sector. For instance, synergies in trade and
industrial policy as they relate to production integration activities will facilitate
greater movement of cultural goods and service and marketability. The
promise of technical assistance for the formulation of cultural policies under
the EPA agreement represents a sensible first step in this direction given the
room for cultural industry policy to promote synergies between various policy
domains, namely trade, environment, education, tourism, community
development and media.
Another gap in the agenda is related to the marketing of cultural goods and
services which is underscored by the paucity of timely and accurate market
intelligence to inform planning and programming. The region continues to
make the mistake of placing emphasis on what can be produced and not
what can be marketed (Benn & Hall, 2006:237). In this regard, exploration of
a brand strategy based on proper market research is urgently needed. In
addition, regional bodies can assist in exploring the market potential of the
Caribbean diaspora by promoting institutional linkages with the Hometown
Associations (HTAs) in North America and Europe to strengthen market and
distribution of products. Relatedly, the regional bodies can also help member
states in developing the capacity to evaluate and monitor their programmes,
with special reference paid to those countries that have developed a festival
strategy to promote their music industries. The impact of these events must
include the triple bottom line approach20 to ensure acceptable return on
investment. Training and development in these new evaluation mechanisms
for the various festival secretariats across the region is a critical component in
sector’s growth.
Regional agencies can also offer some assistance in developing the value
ecology by engaging in innovation pathways using the creative district as a
vehicle. A growing body of research (Scott, 2006,Hearn et al, 2007) has
underscored the role of creative districts and urban planning in ‘enhancing
the collective order of the creative field’ as evidenced by the Bollywood
20 The Triple Bottom Line represents a more holistic method to evaluate major events that places emphasis on the economic, environmental and socio-political impacts.
40!
(India), Bronzeville (Chicago) examples that are cited in this report. Technical
assistance in the areas of urban renewal and planning, events co-ordination,
are all important policy inputs that can aid in this regard.
The current global recession with the attendant decline in funding presents
an opportunity for the regional policy making bodies to streamline their
activities to minimize the duplication of effort and improve effectiveness and
efficiency. Moreover, these organisations must also develop a culture of
measuring the impact of their interventions on the relevant target groups to
ensure their mandates are really being fulfilled including but not limited to the
increase levels of trade in the sectors, the formation new enterprises, and the
access to new markets.
In the final analysis, all of these prescriptions will amount to nought if the
political will and belief in the culture does not exist as a core value of all
Caribbean people.
41!
2.1 Introduction
The Action Plan sets out a timetable for implementation of the objectives for
developing the OECS music sector based on four broad goals as follows:
1. Developing and sustaining human capital development in the core
and ancillary areas of the music sector.
2. Developing and sustaining the infrastructure of the music sector.
3. Developing and sustaining the cultural economy.
4. Co-ordinating marketing and events to increase the profile of the
region as a cultural destination.
It identifies the key tasks, resources and opportunities, milestones and
outcomes for each area, along with the lead responsibility, and the key
partners who should play a part in delivering the strategy. The plan spans a
two year period, and it is hoped that the OECS-EDU will take the lead in the
first year, specifically relating to the first two broad goals, namely human
capital development and sectoral infrastructure. The OECS-EDU will have to
engage other regional development organizations that are named in the
plan to co-opt their buy in to assist in implementation. The plan does not give
detailed timelines since these should be determined internally based on
available resources and synchronicity with the organisation’s ongoing work
plan. The Action Plan should be updated annually and progress should be
reported to the relevant bodies. The actions outlined here are related to
those specified in the country report document, and it is envisaged that the
national ministries of culture, trade and tourism will work along with the lead
agencies to implement specific country actions as outlined.
42
2.2:
Act
ion
Pla
n
actio
n on
e: d
evel
opin
g a
nd su
sta
inin
g h
uma
n ca
pita
l dev
elop
men
t in
the
core
and
anc
illary
are
as o
f the
mus
ic se
ctor
Ob
ject
ive
lea
d
key
task
s re
sour
ces a
nd
opp
ortu
nitie
s m
ilest
ones
O
utco
mes
1. H
uman
cap
ital
deve
lopm
ent:
Put
in
pla
ce tr
ain
ing
in th
e co
re
(mus
ic th
eory
& p
ract
ica
l) a
nd a
ncilla
ry (b
usin
ess,
law
, tec
hnol
ogy)
.
OEC
S a
nd
Na
tiona
l g
over
nmen
ts
(MoC
& M
oE,
MoC
D, B
usin
ess
Dev
elop
men
t C
orp
ora
tions
)
1.1
Dev
elop
link
ag
es
with
reg
iona
l &
inte
rna
tiona
l ed
uca
tiona
l a
gen
cies
. 1.
2 A
chie
ve c
o-op
era
tion
bet
wee
n cu
ltura
l or
ga
niza
tions
to
faci
lita
te tr
ain
ing
a
t na
tiona
l &
reg
iona
l lev
els.
1.
3 D
evel
op ‘t
rain
th
e tra
iner
’ p
rog
ram
mes
OEC
S, C
EDA
and
UW
I, UT
T, E
dna
M
anl
ey.
Min
istrie
s of C
ultu
re
and
Ed
uca
tion
Dev
elop
men
t of
natio
nal t
rain
ing
p
lans
for t
he
sect
or
Esta
blis
hmen
t of
one
seco
nda
ry
scho
ol w
ith
spec
ialis
t mus
ic
sta
tus p
er te
rrito
ry.
A sm
all
cad
re o
f tra
ined
p
rofe
ssio
nals
in th
e co
re &
anc
illary
a
rea
s of t
he m
usic
in
dus
try
Mor
e re
siden
ts
acc
essin
g le
arn
ing
op
por
tuni
ties i
n th
e cu
ltura
l fie
ld.
Incr
ease
in n
umb
er
of sc
hool
ag
ed
child
ren
pa
rtici
pa
ting
in
mus
ic a
ctiv
ities
.
Incr
ease
d a
nd
imp
rove
d m
usic
p
rod
uct t
hat a
re
bro
ad
cast
rea
dy.
43
actio
n tw
o: d
evel
opin
g a
nd su
sta
inin
g th
e in
frast
ruct
ure
of th
e m
usic
sect
or
obje
ctiv
e le
ad
ke
y ta
sks
reso
urce
s and
op
por
tuni
ties
mile
ston
es
outc
omes
2. P
olic
y fo
rmul
atio
n an
d ev
alua
tion:
Cre
atio
n of
a
n en
ab
ling
and
cog
ent
pol
icy
envi
ronm
ent
(cul
ture
, tra
de,
med
ia,
tour
ism a
nd in
dus
tria
l).
3. E
nabl
ing
regu
lativ
e en
viro
nmen
t: C
rea
tion
of
leg
isla
tion
in v
ario
us a
rea
s (IP
, quo
tas,
ince
ntiv
es, t
ax
exem
ptio
ns, i
nves
tmen
t,
com
pet
ition
)
Ca
ricom
, OEC
S,
Na
tiona
l g
over
nmen
ts,
2.1
Acc
ess f
und
ing
a
nd te
chni
cal
ass
ista
nce
for p
olic
y fo
rmul
atio
n a
nd
mon
itorin
g.
2.2
Inve
stig
ate
m
odel
s of h
olist
ic
ap
pro
ach
to p
olic
y fo
rmul
atio
n
2.3
Dev
elop
m
ultid
iscip
lina
ry
mec
hani
sm (i
.e.
task
fo
rce)
to g
uid
e p
olic
y fo
rma
tion
for t
he
cultu
ral i
ndus
try a
t na
tiona
l lev
el.
3.1
Revi
ew a
nd re
vise
ex
istin
g la
ws t
hat
gov
ern
sect
or
3.2
Tra
inin
g o
f p
erso
nnel
resp
onsib
le
for i
mp
lem
entin
g la
ws
(i.e.
jud
icia
ry,
cust
oms,
taxa
tion)
.
EPA
(EU)
, OEC
S,
OTN
and
Ca
ricom
Ta
sk F
orce
on
cultu
ral i
ndus
tries
, O
TN.
Na
tiona
l g
over
nmen
ts
Coa
litio
n of
Ser
vice
In
dus
tries
, Ca
ricom
Ta
sk F
orce
on
cultu
ral i
ndus
tries
, na
tiona
l g
over
nmen
ts
Ca
pita
l fun
ds
secu
red
for p
olic
y d
evel
opm
ent.
Na
tiona
l co
mp
act
with
key
m
inist
ries b
y D
ec
2010
Ratif
ica
tion
of
revi
sed
law
s
Cog
ent l
egisl
ativ
e re
gim
e
Ratif
ica
tion
of
cultu
ral p
olic
ies b
y na
tiona
l g
over
nmen
ts.
Dev
elop
men
t of a
jo
int p
roje
ct o
r p
rog
ram
me
(i.e.
m
usic
fest
iva
l) th
at
refle
cts j
oint
a
pp
roa
ch.
Imp
rove
d p
riva
te
and
pub
lic se
ctor
in
vest
men
t in
sect
or.
Incr
ease
d a
nd
imp
rove
d p
rod
ucts
a
nd g
rea
ter
ma
rket
acc
ess.
44!
4. In
stitu
tiona
l St
reng
then
ing:
Im
pro
ve
cap
aci
ty o
f ins
titut
ions
of
sup
por
t inc
lud
ing
min
istrie
s of
cul
ture
, ind
ustry
a
ssoc
iatio
ns a
nd c
ultu
ral
ente
rpris
es.
OEC
S, C
aric
om,
Coa
litio
n of
Se
rvic
e In
dus
tries
, na
tiona
l m
inist
ries o
f p
lann
ing
and
tra
de
Coa
litio
n of
Se
rvic
e In
dus
tries
, EPA
, C
ARI
FORU
M -
EU
3.3
Dev
elop
syne
rgie
s b
etw
een
the
vario
us
law
s
4.1
Aud
it ex
istin
g
inst
itutio
ns o
f sup
por
t.
4.2
Dev
elop
su
sta
ina
ble
HR
&
fund
ing
mod
els f
or
trad
e a
ssoc
iatio
ns.
4.3
Dev
elop
p
erfo
rma
nce
mea
sure
s for
or
ga
niza
tiona
l su
sta
ina
bilit
y
Coa
litio
n of
Ser
vice
In
dus
tries
, CED
A,
OEC
S.
Tem
pla
te fo
r su
sta
ina
bilit
y of
cu
ltura
l en
terp
rises
and
in
dus
try
ass
ocia
tions
Incr
ease
d a
cces
s to
inst
itutio
ns o
f su
pp
ort b
y cu
ltura
l st
ake
hold
ers
45
5.
Rese
arch
: D
evel
op
evid
ence
-ba
sed
a
pp
roa
ch
to
pol
icy
and
p
rog
ram
min
g in
the
sect
or
CED
A, C
aric
om
Task
For
ce o
n C
rea
tive
Ind
ustri
es, O
TN
5.1
Imp
rove
ma
rket
in
tellig
ence
&
rese
arc
h fo
r ext
erna
l m
ark
ets.
5.2
Dev
elop
co
nsist
ent m
essa
ge
for r
egio
nal
&
natio
nal a
udie
nces
a
nd to
pot
entia
l in
vest
ors
5.3
Co-
ord
ina
te
effo
rts to
eng
ag
e ne
w a
udie
nces
and
in
crea
se
pa
rtici
pa
tion
of
exist
ing
aud
ienc
es
5.4
Dev
elop
m
echa
nism
s to
ensu
re re
sea
rch
info
rms p
lans
&
pro
ject
s at n
atio
nal
and
reg
iona
l lev
els
CA
RIFO
RUM
– E
U Bu
sines
s For
um,
CED
A, U
WI
Dev
elop
3 y
ear
inte
gra
ted
m
ark
etin
g
stra
teg
y b
y D
ec
2010
Gre
ate
r and
mor
e d
iver
se a
udie
nces
.
Incr
ease
d m
ark
et
acc
ess i
n th
e EU
a
nd C
arib
bea
n d
iasp
ora
46 !
5.5
Dev
elop
ca
pa
city
to
con
duc
t ev
ent/
pro
gra
mm
e ev
alu
atio
n st
udie
s (t
riple
bot
tom
line
a
pp
roa
ch)
5.6
Con
duc
t res
earc
h on
the
effic
acy
of
upco
min
g tr
ad
e a
gre
emen
ts (b
ilate
ral
with
Ca
nad
a a
nd
MER
CUS
OR)
Ca
ricom
–
CO
HSO
D, M
inist
ries
of c
ultu
re
CED
A, C
ARI
FORU
M-
EU B
usin
ess F
orum
, UW
I/ALJ
Sch
ool o
f Bu
sines
s (T’
da
d)
OTN
Esta
blis
h fo
rum
for
sha
ring
of
rese
arc
h w
ith k
ey
ga
teke
eper
s and
p
olic
y m
ake
rs
Even
t eva
lua
tion
and
tra
inin
g
pro
gra
mm
es
Esta
blis
h p
ublic
fo
rum
on
thes
e im
pa
ct o
f tra
de
ag
reem
ents
on
sect
or
Imp
rove
d b
enef
it to
cos
t of m
usic
a
nd re
late
d
pro
gra
mm
es a
nd
pro
ject
s
Imp
rove
d R
OI o
n cu
ltura
l eve
nts
Info
rmed
dec
ision
-m
aki
ng a
nd
gre
ate
r pub
lic
aw
are
ness
actio
n th
ree:
Dev
elop
ing
and
sust
ain
ing
the
cultu
ral e
cono
my
47
!
obje
ctiv
e le
ad
ke
y ta
sks
reso
urce
s a
nd
opp
ortu
nitie
s m
ilest
ones
O
utco
me
6.Em
ploy
men
t: E
ncou
rag
e a
cces
s to
em
plo
ymen
t a
ctiv
ities
in th
e se
ctor
7.
Busin
ess
Deve
lopm
ent:
Esta
blis
h th
e O
ECS
as
a
reg
iona
l hu
b
for
exce
llenc
e in
mus
ic
Min
istrie
s of
La
bou
r, En
terp
rises
a
nd
Busin
ess
&
Dev
elop
men
t
Na
tiona
l sk
ills
and
yo
uth
train
ing
p
rog
ram
mes
.
6.1
Enco
ura
ge
links
b
etw
een
educ
atio
n a
nd i
ndus
try (
i.e.
wor
k p
lace
men
ts)
6.2
Dev
elop
coa
chin
g
and
vo
lunt
eer
pro
gra
mm
es.
6.3
Link
loca
l em
plo
ymen
t in
itia
tives
w
ith c
ultu
ral i
ndus
tries
.
6.4
Und
erta
ke
dev
elop
men
t w
ork
in
scho
ols
to
raise
a
wa
rene
ss
of
emp
loym
ent
in
mus
ic
sect
or
7.1
Dev
elop
sup
por
t fo
r in
frast
ruct
ure
for
bus
ines
s a
ssist
anc
e ta
rget
ing
mus
ic se
ctor
.
7.2
Ena
ble
in
cub
atio
n in
itia
tives
to
a
ssist
g
rad
uate
s in
acc
essin
g
emp
loym
ent
CA
RIFO
RUM
-EU
Busin
ess F
orum
Cul
ture
in
dus
try
pre
senc
e in
ann
ual
care
er
fairs
a
t se
cond
ary
a
nd
terti
ary
le
vel
inst
itutio
ns
acr
oss
the
reg
ion
Incr
ease
d
aw
are
ness
of
em
plo
ymen
t op
por
tuni
ties
Incr
ease
in
num
ber
of
cr
eativ
e en
terp
rises
es
tab
lishe
d
at
the
natio
nal l
evel
48
8.
Trad
e &
Inve
stm
ent:
Ma
rket
OEC
S a
s a
lo
catio
n fo
r cr
eativ
e se
rvic
es (m
usic
)
____
____
____
____
____
____
__
9.
Cul
tura
l Di
stric
ts:
Upg
rad
e a
nd
bra
nd
sele
cted
ur
ba
n a
rea
s a
s cr
eativ
e ce
ntre
s
OEC
S/ED
U
CED
A,
OTN
M
inist
ries
of
Tour
ism,
Urb
an
pla
nnin
g a
nd
Com
mun
ity
Dev
elop
men
t
8.1C
rea
te d
ata
ba
se o
f m
usic
/cre
ativ
e en
terp
rises
8.2
Exp
lore
pro
duc
tion
inte
gra
tion
pos
sibilit
ies
for O
ECS
mus
ic se
ctor
8.3
Exp
lore
tra
de
pos
sibilit
ies w
ith m
ark
ets
in
the
sout
h (L
atin
A
mer
ica
, Su
b S
aha
ran
and
Sou
th A
frica
, Sou
th
Asia
); a
nd
the
Ca
ribb
ean
dia
spor
a i
n N
orth
A
mer
ica
a
nd
Euro
pe
9.1
Upg
rad
e
exist
ing
cu
ltura
l hu
bs
at
natio
nal l
evel
OEC
S/ED
U,
CA
RIFO
RUM
-EU
Busin
ess F
orum
OTN
, C
EDA
, O
ECS-
EDU
Hom
etow
n A
ssoc
iatio
ns
in
UK &
USA
suc
h a
s th
e C
arib
bea
n A
mer
ica
n D
iasp
ora
D
evel
opm
ent
Initi
ativ
e (C
AD
DI)
Ca
ricom
Ta
sk
Forc
e on
C
ultu
ral
Ind
ustri
es
Dev
elop
men
t of
on
e In
cub
atio
n p
ilot
pro
ject
in
se
lect
ed
OEC
S te
rrito
ries
Econ
omic
g
row
th
sect
or st
rate
gy
Dev
elop
men
t of
cu
ltura
l d
istric
t st
rate
gy
at
reg
iona
l le
vel
Imp
rove
d
bus
ines
s p
erfo
rma
nce
and
ec
onom
ic g
row
th
Ad
ded
va
lue
to
reg
iona
l ec
onom
y:
tour
ism,
trad
e a
nd
bus
ines
s rel
oca
tions
OEC
S b
rand
ed a
s a
cu
ltura
l co
rrid
or
with
in
Ca
ribb
ean
reg
ion
!
actio
n fo
ur: C
o-or
din
atin
g m
ark
etin
g a
nd e
vent
s to
incr
ease
the
pro
file
of th
e re
gio
n a
s a c
ultu
ral d
estin
atio
n
obje
ctiv
e le
ad
ke
y ta
sks
reso
urce
s a
nd
opp
ortu
nitie
s m
ilest
ones
ou
tcom
es
10. E
vent
s: D
evel
op
an
even
ts st
rate
gy
11.
Tour
ism
and
visit
or i
nfra
stru
ctur
e:
Imp
rove
th
e in
teg
ratio
n of
to
urism
a
nd
visit
or
serv
ices
a
nd
ma
xim
ize IC
T
Min
istrie
s of
Tou
rism
, C
ultu
re a
nd In
dus
try
CED
A,
CTO
, M
inist
ries
of T
ouris
m
and
Tra
de
10.1
D
evel
op
an
Even
ts
Partn
ersh
ip
Boa
rd
at
natio
nal
and
reg
iona
l lev
els.
10.2
C
larif
y re
spon
sibilit
ies
for
even
t p
lann
ing
and
d
eliv
ery
10.3
Id
entif
y ke
y ev
ents
w
hich
b
uild
on
O
ECS
cultu
ral
stre
ngth
a
nd
cele
bra
te d
iver
sity.
11.1
D
evel
op
and
in
teg
rate
vi
sitor
in
form
atio
n
and
se
rvic
es
11.2
Im
pro
ve
info
rma
tion
serv
ice
pro
visio
n fo
r w
eb,
tele
pho
ne,
and
p
erso
nal e
nqui
ries
CED
A, C
aric
om T
ask
Fo
rce
on
Cre
ativ
e In
dus
tries
.
CTO
, M
inist
ries
of
Tour
ism
Two
yea
r Ev
ents
p
lan
ag
reed
b
y Se
pte
mb
er 2
010
Dev
elop
a
n in
teg
rate
d
serv
ices
st
rate
gy
by
Sep
tem
ber
201
0
Ima
ge:
hig
h m
edia
p
rofil
e co
ntrib
utin
g
to
mor
e p
ositi
ve
per
cep
tions
of
O
ECS
reg
iona
lly
and
inte
rna
tiona
lly.
OEC
S es
tab
lishe
d a
s m
ajo
r sh
ort-
bre
ak
des
tina
tion
Visi
tor
satis
fact
ion
incr
ease
d
49
Section Two: Audio Visual Sector
51!
Chapter Three: Global Overview of the Audio–Visual Sector
3.1: Introduction
The nine islands of the OECS feature verdant foliage, diverse topographies,
black and white sand beaches, lakes, quays and distinct mountain
formations. These same features that have made them profitable as tourism
destinations have also made the islands attractive to film makers. In addition
to the physical landscape the islands also possess a rich heritage from Creole
languages, musical forms, distinctive tastes/spices and a fascinating built
heritage landscape. Spiritual festivals, spontaneous celebrations and folkloric
traditions, leave no paucity of material from which to erect rich and
meaningful fiction, documentaries, films, infomercials, or animated AV
products. A dynamic content driven industry is thus within the scope of the
OECS AV sector. However, governments have focused their efforts on
creating access for foreign film-makers and promoting their islands as film
locations. In this regard, the approach to the development of a film sector
has not directly addressed the growth of a skilled labour pool, and the
development of the requisite infrastructure.
The architecture for the development of the audio-visual sector in the OECS
territories is weak. Institutions of support are absent in most islands, with film
commissions and film desks present in only three out of nine islands21. In
addition, there seems to be a strong affiliation with the ministries of tourism,
which represents the dominant approach towards the sector as a location for
foreign films. The human capital of the industry is miniscule, and is primarily
made up of small and micro-enterprises that not up to the task of developing
a viable audio-visual sector. However, there is ample evidence of the
sector’s potential since even with minimum state support, some member
states have attracted major Hollywood films and numerous commercials that
21 Dominica, St. Lucia (inactive), and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
52
have resulted in the generation of foreign exchange and some short-term
employment.
However, a more systematic approach is required if plans to develop the
sector are to be realized. This can only be accomplished by the construction
of a solid foundation that is anchored in the process of continuous cultural
mapping, good market intelligence and ongoing stakeholder analysis with
the view to providing a more evidence-based approach to policy
formulation.
3.2: Global Scan and Value Creating Ecology
Size and Structure:
The global audio-visual sector represents a vibrant and burgeoning industry,
with over thirteen hundred film festivals in eighty countries worldwide. The US
motion picture industry generates the most income worldwide, and in 2005
accounted for over US$60 billion in revenue and created employment for
over 1.3 million Americans. The Hollywood model is built on big blockbuster
films such as the ‘Titanic’ which generated $600.8 million in the domestic
economy and $1234.6 million in the overseas market during 1997, while
‘Pirates of the Caribbean: At the World’s End’ yielded revenues of $423.3
million in the US market and $637.3 million overseas in 200722. The same picture
emerges in the European Union where over 1 billion Euros were generated
from the AV sector in 2000. However, much of the market is still flooded with
US content, which comprised 64% of all films screened in France during that
year. Domestic production is an ongoing issue in Europe with only 6% of all
films screened in the EU emanating from France and about 1% from the UK.
However, France produced the largest percentage of domestic films that
constitute 28% of all the films screened in that country.
While efforts towards improving domestic production of films are ongoing,
piracy has significantly diminished returns on investment. A Motion Picture
Association Inc. (MPAA) study revealed that the film industry lost $3.5 billion to
22 http://www.factbook.net/wbfilmsmkt.htm Accessed 15/07/09
53!
hard goods piracy in 200423. In 2003 the Smith Barney study projected an
industry loss of $5.4 billion (including internet piracy) for 2005, with US figures
amounting to $1.3 billion and $4.8b lost internationally. The study estimated
that $2.4 billion would have been lost through bootlegging, $1.4 from illegal
copying and $2.3 from internet piracy.24 The actual figure arrived at by the
MPAA was $6.1 billion for 2005. The study spanned eighteen months and over
22 countries and was based on consumer demand rather than on DVD
seizures. According to the study, losses from piracy were exponential world
over, with France, China, the UK and Canada losing $US 943 million, $US 2,124
million $US 220 million, and $US 14 million respectively (see Table 1).
Table 4: Impact of Global Piracy on the AV Industry (Selected countries) - 2005
NO: COUNTRY INCOME LOST FROM PIRACY
($US)
1. United States of America 1.3 billion
2. China 2,124 million
3. France 943 million
4. United Kingdom 220 million
5. Canada 14 million
Political Economy:
The hegemony of the US in terms of production and distribution of films in the
world market is a marked threat to developing nations. The following six
companies are all members of the Motion Picture Association of America and
are the major players dominating the entertainment industry, Paramount
Pictures Corporation; Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc.; Twentieth Century Fox
23 World wide study of losses to the film industries and the international economies. www.fact-uk.org.uk/site/media_centre/.../2006_05_03leksumm.pdf Accessed 15/07/09 $&! (a). Bootlegging: involves either the purchase of illegally duplicated HS/DVD/VCD or obtaining of hard copies of bootleg movies. (b). Illegal copying: involved duplication of copies for self or receipt of illegal copies from peers who possess legitimate VHS/DVD/VCD. (c).Internet piracy: downloading of movies from the internet free of charge of acquiring hard copies of downloaded movies from friends and family.
54!
Film Corporation; Universal City Studios LLP; Walt Disney Studios Motion
pictures; and Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. These companies generally
employ independent producers, some specifically hired for a particular film
and others are established, larger entities working alongside the majors. The
‘majors’ focus their efforts on financing, marketing, merchandisng and
development.
The same structure exists in Canada where the largest eight companies
account for almost 80 % of total rental revenues and are subsidiaries of the
majors and members of the Motion Picture Association of America.25 The
majors and their production and distribution subsidiaries account for around
90% of US and Canadian box office.26 Robert McChesney of the National
Media Watchgroup writes in the article “The Global Media Giants” that these
transnational companies create and perpetuate ‘a system that works to
advance the cause of the global market and promote commercial values,
while denigrating journalism and culture not conducive to the immediate
bottom line or long-run corporate interests’27 . The majors sell their content at
lower rates than local producers due to the volume of their sales, thus
reducing the potential of local content to gain airplay and market share.
Impact of Technology
Advances in technology have increased the capacity of AV practitioners in
developing countries to produce low budget films of relatively high quality
and has boosted their collaborations due to the portability of the technology
and the possibility of remote editing. The capacity to convert movies shot in
16milimeter film to 35milimeter film through advances in camera optics,
colour film technology and blowing up of film has rendered film print quality
$" http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0002805 Accessed 22/07/09 $' !http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_film_studio Accessed 22/07/09 27 http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=1406 Accessed 22/07/09
55!
between 16 and 35 millimeter almost indistinguishable.28 However, many
producers from these developing countries are still unable to afford or readily
access this technology.
3.3 State-led Initiatives
Governments have developed a variety of interventions to encourage
growth in the AV sector. They generally focus on five main action areas,
which when taken together, represent something of a tool kit for activation.
These actions include human capital development, the establishment of
cultural districts or creative clusters, sectoral infrastructure, and the trade in
cultural goods and services. The following discussion will examine some of the
best practices that have been deployed by public sector agencies
throughout the world.
Training and education (human capital development) in the core and
ancillary remains a critical component in building a robust industry. This
includes training at the primary, secondary and tertiary levels within both the
public and private sector. In this way, a cadre of well-trained individuals who
are available to create content and maximize the opportunities presented by
the global and local environments is developed. The role of infrastructure in
developing the industry is critical in creating an enabling environment for
both the production and consumption of audio-visual material. The full range
of programming involves the formulation of policies, legislation, the physical
infrastructure and institutional support that would enable the sector. This
includes the creation of tax incentives for investment in the sector, investment
in generation of content, support of trade associations, creation or
improvement of venues and institutional buildings and the design of a
legislative framework surrounding the industry.
The infrastructure for the Canadian AV is worth examining to illustrate the
wide range of policy and programmatic initiatives that are required to
encourage growth. The objectives that have guided the creation of this
framework are multifaceted and include the development of audiences, the
www.nytimes.com/.../business-technology-advances-in-film-low-budget- movies -get-a-high-gloss.html. Accessed 18/07/09
56 !
reflection of Canadian identity, investment in and reinforcement of
excellence, and the adoption of the new media technologies. A series of
public and private institutions have been created to support this mandate
including:
The National Film Board – responsible for the production and
distribution of innovative animation, and documentaries, digital media
and alternative drama productions in both English and French.
Telefilm Canada – provides infrastructural and strategic support to the
Audio- Visual sector including financial support, production and
distribution of films, television and cultural programming.29
The Canadian Television Fund – responsible for policies and funding
programmes, which facilitate creation and broadcast of quality
Canadian programming during peak hours. Their focus is on the
development of programming and audiences in the genres of drama,
children and youth programming, documentaries, and the performing
arts.
The Canada Council for the Arts- provides grants, endowments and
prizes in addition to administering funds for The Canada Council Art
Bank, the Killam Program, the Public Lending Right Commission and the
Canadian Commission for UNESCO.
The Canadian Audi-visual Certification Office (CAVCO) – administers
the Canadian Film or Video Production tax Credit (CPTC) and the Film
or Video Production Services Tax Credit (PSTC) in conjunction with the
Canada Revenue Agency.30
In addition to these bodies, there are also licensing bodies, taxes and funds in
place to ensure that members of the AV community have ample
opportunities to develop and produce. These include the Canadian Film or
Video Production Tax Credit (CPTC), the Film or Video Production Services Tax
Credit (PSTC), the Canadian Independent Film and Video Fund (CIFVF), the
Canadian Television Fund (CTF), and the National Film Board of Canada
$) !http://www.telefilm.gc.ca/01/11.asp Accessed 22/07/09!30 http://www.pch.gc.ca/cavco/ Accessed 22/07/09
57!
(NFB). The Canadian Film and Video Production Tax Credit (CPTC) allows a
refundable credit of 25% of the qualified labour expenditure on a production,
while the Film or Video Production Services Tax Credit (PTSC) encourages
foreign filmmakers to use Canada as a location. Productions that employ
Canadians are entitled to a rate reduction of 16% for Canadian employees
under this regime.
Another important aspect of industry development is the presence of strong
trade associations. These entities are responsible for setting industry
standards, promoting members’ products and services, developing fee
structures and advocating for a more enabling environment, along with
training and education. For instance, the practitioners in Nigeria have
formulated Guilds and associations including the Independent Television and
Film Producers Association of Nigeria (ITPAN), National Association of Theatre
Arts Practitioners, the Directors Guild of Nigeria (DGN) and The Actors Guild
and the Filmmakers Association of Nigeria which is registered in the US to deal
primarily with the formalization of US distribution. These bodies have
responded to issues such as funding and piracy by lobbying for better
conditions, negotiating with the government and with pirates in developing
working infrastructure for this burgeoning industry. In addition ITPAN hosts and
supports film festivals. One major initiative of the associations was the
negotiation for the setting up of Entertainment Departments in banks to
provide loans for filmmakers, where they have been successful in negotiating
the use of the film master copy is as collateral. Some producers have been
fairly successful in setting up independent distribution networks by partnering
with other producers in distributing their product. The persistent threat of
piracy in the Nigerian Film Industry prompted the association to lobby
government for the establishment of an endowment fund, under the auspices
of the Office of the President.
The development of cultural districts is widely acknowledged as a best
practice in growing creatives. Generally, cultural districts facilitate the sharing
of services and amenities, provide easy access to resources (human, physical
and financial), create jobs and assist in branding the cities where they exist.
The example of Bollywood in Mumbai, India illustrates the efficacy of
employing the cultural district strategy. One third of India’s vast audio-visual
58
industry is based in Bollywood and it employs thousands of persons. The state
of Maharashtra (where Bollywood is situated) is consistently ranked number
one by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry as an
investment destination in India. Moreover, the region’s GDP is highly
dependent on services (24%), followed by IT (21%), infrastructure (12%) and
automobiles (10%) by the regional government (Kukenshoner et al, 2008).
Research shows that the AV industry contributes to all four areas, and is
described as the engine that drives the Maharashtra economy by promoting
economic integration within the region since it joins up the music, video, TV
and live entertainment sectors with ancillary areas such as transportation,
hospitality, finance and textiles (ibid).
The trade in cultural goods and services is yet another aspect of creating an
enabling environment for the sector to thrive. In this regard, governments are
involved in developing a set of programmes to encourage production along
with ensuring that they lower barriers to the market. This intervention often
takes the form of national broadcast quotas, which plays the double role of
encouraging local production while limiting the dominance of foreign
content. It should be noted that these measures are seen by some as
protectionist and an anathema to the free market approach that is
advocated by the United States and enshrined in the tenets of the World
Trade Organisation. France is noted for the use of broadcast quotas.
Beginning in 1928, the Herriot Decree was enacted to stave off US
dominance. However, the US was able to ameliorate the impact of the
decree by attaching certain conditionalities to Marshall Aid funds in the re-
construction of Europe after World War 2. They created ceilings for the
number of US films to be screened in France, which that was reduced from
one hundred and fifty to one hundred and ten between1936 to 1951. Later
on the BluByrnes agreement (1952) was passed and designated that four out
of thirteen weeks should be reserved for the screening of local films. In 1948
French audio-visual content accounted for 40% of all screening in the
country. 31 Currently, France insists on 60% EU programming, 50% of which
must be in French in addition to other stipulations of programming for
31 http://blogs.warwick.ac.uk/michaelwalford/entry/french_postwar_cultural/Date Accessed 22/07/09
59!
television stations to ensure that films on television do not clash with releases
of new shows in cinemas.
Taken together, these interventions create a thriving environment for the
sector’s growth. For the best results governments work along with other
stakeholders including private investors, practitioners, entrepreneurs and
intermediaries to develop a shared vision for the industry. In this regard, the
emphasis of what type of intervention is required may shift over time. For
instance, the Canadians initially emphasized the issue of broadcast quotas32
to encourage production (1971), and later on turned greater attention to
setting up of policies to encourage the country as a competitive location for
films . They also developed promotional platforms to showcase content such
as film festivals such as the renowned Toronto Film Festival, which was
established in 1975 and is staged in September of each year. We now turn our
attention to the situation in the Eastern Caribbean to establish how the AV
sector is structured, and to analyse the efficacy of the current set of
government interventions to encourage its development.
3.4: Regional Realities
The OECS AV sector is in its early stages of development and there have been
uneven interventions to encourage its growth. For instance, efforts at human
capital development are inadequate along each stage of the value chain.
Stakeholders have outlined the need for training across the board, from core
skills such as videography, editing, colourisation and scriptwriting to support
areas like IP law and event management. However, the lack of resources
makes the establishment of wide-ranging training programmes impossible. In
this regard, a more strategic approach must be devised to share resources
that involve both private and public sector organisations along the lines
employed by Roselle Media of Anguilla. Roselle Media engages young men
and women in vacation internships that are funded in part by private sector
sponsorship and involves stakeholders from the public sector including
32 Canadian Content legislation or CanCon was first introduced in 1971 beginning with music content on the AM radio bands and was expanded to the FM bands in 1976. By 1999, a 35% quota for both print and electronic media was agreed by all stakeholders.
60
teachers and parents (see Profile Three ). This joint or combined approach
saves money and provides opportunities for organisations to promote their
corporate social responsibility (CSR) programmes, while obtaining the crucial
buy-in from teachers and parents. It also gives the host organization a much
needed injection of human resources to complete some of its own projects.
However, it is important that this type of programming is enhanced by more
formal training interventions and that sustainable modalities are established to
ensure sustainability.
Profile Three: Roselle Media (Anguilla)
___________________________________________________________________________
Mr. Crispin Brooks is a young entrepreneur who holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Film
from the American University and is currently completing his Masters in Film. He
recently returned from the US and has established Roselle Media to develop radio
programming and videography for events and music videos.
During the August vacation Brooks engaged the support of the private sector in
hosting workshops for students. The first program was known as Anguilla Vibe for
which the website Anguilla Vibe .com was constructed. This was a pilot program
teaching students how to write for film. Teachers were asked to select 5-8 of their best
sixth form English students to participate. Seven students were trained and a
photographer was also brought in to give basic training. The students were required
to produce a feature length story (700 words) and a side bar. One of the students
went on to study journalism and Brooks currently employs another of the graduates of
this programme with his company Roselle Media. During the summer of 2006 with the
assistance of sponsors, a choreographer, and theatre teacher from the Hill Middle
School in Virginia were invited to administer workshops. Over 30 children at the
primary school and high school level participated in the “Creative Kids” Programme.
In 2008 on his return to Anguilla and after Carifesta, Roselle Media planned an acting
workshop for adults facilitated by a Barabadian filmmaker known as Nala. Brooks
currently has one intern training on the camera.
While all workshops were beneficial to participants, the final workshop was funded
primarily by Roselle Media and was a financial strain. Other workshops were well
funded by the corporate sector because it was marketed to students. Brooks
company will use leverage gained through contracts with corporate clientele to
continue to support the development of the industry through summer workshops.
61!
The concept of cultural districts or creative clusters is one that has not
engaged policy makers in the OECS. The efficacy of this approach relative to
the encouraging innovation, promoting healthy competition (co-opetition)
and sharing of scarce resources was acknowledged by most stakeholders,
but the injection of capital to realize this goal was cited as a major barrier.
However, stakeholders identified districts in the various islands where this
concept could be developed with the appropriate vision, management and
the injection of some resources. For example, the St. Paul’s district in Antigua
(see Profile Four) has some of the critical ingredients for the development of a
cultural district. St. Paul is home to at least eight festivals that include sailing,
music, and the culinary arts. These initiatives need to be incorporated into an
overall festival strategy aimed at developing capacity, encouraging
innovation and co-petition, and strengthening linkages with the tourism
sector. Similar examples can be found in the Sion Hill area of St Vincent and
the new capital city of Montserrat. The activation of the creative cluster
strategy will require the development of joint strategies between various
ministries including tourism, culture, sport and community development to
brand these urban centres.
Profile Four: St. Paul’s District, Antigua ___________________________________________________________________________________
The St. Paul area is an emerging cultural district with its diverse offering of cultural
festivals including Culture Fest, Music Fest, Model Boat Competition, Classic Regatta
and Antigua Sailing. The existing activity creates the basis for inter-sectoral linkages
and therefore enlargement of audiences for cultural sectors. The table below details
some of these festivals.
Selected festivals staged in St. Paul’s District (Antigua)
FESTIVAL DATE DESCRIPTION
Culture Fest March Themed ‘Rich, Diverse, Alive’ this festival
seeks to highlight and advance arts and
event management skills
Model Boat Competition April Hosted by the Ministry of Tourism assisted
by the Ministries of Culture and Agriculture
62 !
featuring 4 ft, 5ft, 6ft and 7ft races.
Antigua Classic Yacht
Regatta
April Formalised in 1967 and staged by the
Antigua Yacht club this event features
several days of races
Music Fest- Romantic
Rhythms Festival
June Highlights cuisine, heritage and culture of
the ‘love islands’ of Antigua and Barbuda
while featuring the ‘sounds of love’ from
local and International artistes.
Mango Fest July This includes a Mango-Pineapple Culinary
Competition, and Art poster competition.
Antigua & Barbuda
Literary Festival
November This involves a youth day, workshops and
readings for children, students and adults.
With a variety of established events, St. Paul’s is well positioned as a cultural district
that can be branded as a festival city and perhaps the festival capital of the
Caribbean. The Minister of State the Honorable Eleston ‘Namba’ Adams is intimately
involved with these initiatives and fully supports the producers and participants, as it is
his constituency. The Minister is responsible for Culture, Carnival, Independence, the
Romantic Rhythms Music Festival, the National Festivals Office and National Parks. He
can thus be a key driver in rolling out plans and realizing further infrastructure for the
development of the district as a festival center. As the festivals range from sporting
activities to culture with an obvious environmental concern, a number of foundations,
community groups, public and private enterprises as well as Ministries of Culture,
Tourism, Finance and others can partner to support and promote the district. The
success of such partnering is assured as the festivals affect, involve and attract a
wide cross-section of locals and foreigners.
___________________________________________________________________________
The foundation for a strong AV sector is dependant on the establishment of
supporting infrastructure through the setting up of appropriate policy and
legislative regimes, financing, venues, and ongoing research. The lack of
sectoral infrastructure is the most deficient area in the OECS AV sector and
calls for most urgent action, since without an enabling environment the
development of the sector will prove an increasingly elusive goal. For
example, an examination of the country reports (appendix) reveal that
63!
although most territories had laws against IP infringement, they were not
properly enforced resulting in rampant piracy. Additionally, attempts to
establish an investment and tax regime to encourage growth is piecemeal
and uneven. In the rare cases where some provision was made to
encourage investment such as the Cultural Development Fund in St. Lucia,
the impact was not measured, making it easy to discontinue the facility even
though the stakeholders (both government officials and practitioners) agree
that the initiative was extremely helpful. The importation of equipment is yet
another area for concern, since there was little evidence of a comprehensive
approach by the various Immigration and Customs Departments on this issue.
In some islands, such as Dominica, Grenada, St Lucia, St. Vincent and the
Grenadines, there was some provision made to waive importation fees on
equipment, but it was clear that the practitioners were not properly informed
about the existence of these facilities, or more importantly, how they could
be accessed. There also seemed to be some ignorance on the part of
customs officials regarding knowledge about the type of equipment used in
the sector sometimes resulting in the incorrect fees being applied. Finally, the
contentious issue of broadcast quotes was raised in all territories, with
practitioners calling for a regime that would mandate a percentage of local
content in the print and electronic media. It is clear, that some compromise
and rationalisation is required between the various media owner
associations33, the practitioners, and international trade policies to which most
OECS territories are signatories that view these quotas as protectionist.
Generally, all member states lacked an overarching policy framework to
develop the AV sector, and overlooked the crucial role of a comprehensive
cultural industry policy in bringing all these seemingly disparate concerns
together.
Institutions of support were also woefully inadequate to the task of
spearheading the development of the OECS AV sector. For example, only
three territories had film commissions or film desks and their primary concern
was selling the islands as locations for foreign films. Those in existence were
not afforded the requisite resources to conduct even that limited mandate,
33 In the OECS territories, most media houses (print and electronic) are owned by the state, which should make it easier to negotiate these quotas.
64 !
and as such they are incapable of incorporating the more expansive role of
taking the lead in developing the local AV industry. The problem of poor
institutional capacity is exacerbated by the paucity of trade/industry
associations throughout the region. There are no active bodies in existence
to advocate for a more facilitative environment, to set industry standards or
to share resources and experiences. However, it is anticipated that a
Caribbean Film and Audiovisual Association (CFAA) will be established in the
near future. The CFAA initiative emerged out of a meeting that was held in
Santo Domingo in March 2009, under the auspices of CEDA, aimed at
examining some of the key issues affecting AV practitioners along with some
recommendations for encouraging growth. If this initiative is successfully
launched and sustained, it can serve as a critical component in creating a
joint regional approach to the sector’s development.
The creation of an enabling environment for the trade in audio-visual
products will be a crucial component in building a vibrant industry. There are
currently many regional and international trade agreements that can have
medium and long term impacts on the way Caribbean audio visual content is
produced and consumed. In this regard, the recently signed Economic
Partnership Agreement (EPA) with the European Union holds both promise
and threat and it is important that the market access and co-production
issues are resolved if the benefits are to be fully derived. The same holds true
for the Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) which promised free
movement of artists and goods but seems to have reached a stalemate. A
more inclusive and evidence-based regional approach to upcoming trade
negotiations including the bi-lateral with Canada and the newly developing
concept with the Boleverian Alliance for the Americas (ALBA) is imperative if
successful implementation is to be fully realized.
In addition to working out the various protocols in these agreements, it is
critical that OECS member states improve the communication strategies to
sensitise the practitioners about the impact of these and future agreements
on their sector. Most stakeholders revealed a lack of understanding and
knowledge of new and existing trade agreements, and how these might
affect their sector. Awareness campaigns, an information desk, incentives for
export and technical assistance are required to prepare stakeholders and
65!
governments to treat with the issue of cultural trade effectively. Meetings
between the Ministry of Trade and the Ministry of Culture are essential to
strategic intervention for the smooth development of the sector. The Road
Map to the EPA is a positive intervention aimed at promoting a co-ordinated
approach among public sector enterprises, but must include representation
from the AV community if it is to be a meaningful exercise.
Given that the issue of resource scarcity will be an ongoing challenge in the
OECS region, it is imperative that co-operation and convergence are
developed as a key strategic approach. With the global economic
recession threatening to affect the earning capacity of the OECS territories in
the short to medium term, a co-ordinated strategy to synergise policy
approaches, to share scarce resources in keeping with the concept of
product integration, and to promote and brand their cultural products must
be developed. The small size and lack of distinctive unique selling properties
of audio visual content between the various OECS territories make a unified
approach propitious. The Traveling Caribbean (see Profile Five) showcase is
an initiative that can be expanded and developed to travel outside of the
region, including the Caribbean Diaspora overseas and markets to the south
(Africa, Asia and South America.)
Profile Five: Traveling Caribbean Showcase
___________________________________________________________________________
The Traveling Caribbean Film Showcase highlights the ‘similarities and diversity of the
cultures of the Caribbean nations and the conservation of the spiritual memory and
heritage of its peoples’. It is sponsored by a range of governmental and non
governmental bodies including UNESCO, UNICEF, TELESUR, Republic Bank, the Cuban
Ministry of Culture, the Cuban Institute of Film Art and Industry (ICAIC) along with
CARICOM and Caribbean official and academic institutions.
The showcase includes films by Caribbean citizens in the region and within the
diaspora along with non-Caribbean authors who focus on the region. The selection
committee sends out an invitation for films, which are judged during the exposition.
The First Traveling Caribbean Showcase was staged in 19 countries in the region in
addition to the American Cinematique in Hollywood and the British Museum in
London. The Second Traveling Caribbean Showcase included works from 27
countries. Latin America will be included in The Third Traveling Caribbean Showcase
66
scheduled for Argentina later this year was based on a request by the Forum of
Ministers of Culture of Latin America and the Caribbean.
The event has served as a platform for increased visibility of Caribbean works and
perspectives, while simultaneously providing a space for sharing and exchange
between filmmakers and their audiences.
___________________________________________________________________________
The preceding discussion has shown that the AV sector is not fully developed.
However, there is room for optimism if consolidated efforts are made toward
policy and product development, along with industry strengthening.
Opportunities for development are based on a combination of factors
ranging from the emergence of niche markets within the film industry, to the
establishment of relationships with international organisations, regional blocks
and other countries. These opportunities can be exploited using the strengths
inherent in the region’s film sector. The emergence of niche markets
worldwide, as evidenced by the exponential growth of Nollywood and
Bollywood, is based on an increasing demand for audiovisual content that
speaks to the particular culture of the viewer. The Caribbean possesses an
identifiable aesthetic that can be marketed to its diaspora in North America
and Europe as a response to this growing demand for ‘authentic’ cultural
products. In addition, the Caribbean’s rich flora and fauna, along with its
striking land and seascapes, imbue its cultural products with an element of
‘exoticism’. However, these opportunities must be bolstered by timely and
relevant government intervention. The following section examines the
efficacy and effectiveness of various government approaches to the sector.
Policy and Programmatic Framework !
Within the Caribbean region, there are a limited number initiatives meant to
develop the productive capacity of the AV sector as well as its underlying
infrastructure. Regional organizations such as the Caribbean Export
Development Agency (CEDA), the Caricom Task Force on the Creative
Industries and the Office of Trade Negotiations (formerly CRNM) have all
developed research projects aimed at mapping the sector and co-
67!
ordinating a more strategic approach. For instance, attempts have been
made to strengthen the sector via the facilitation of dialogue between
cultural entrepreneurs, artists and policymakers. CRNM and CEDA have been
particularly instrumental in this regard. They have hosted meetings and
workshops and commissioned projects and papers all in an attempt to foster
dialogue and the dissemination of information among the various
stakeholders in the creative industries. These initiatives, which have led to the
development of the audiovisual sector, most notably in the establishment of
film commissions, include but were not limited to the following:
A workshop on The Impact of Trade and Technology on Caribbean
Creative Industries (Crowne Plaza Hotel, Port of Spain, Trinidad, November
2004 - CRNM).
A workshop on The Creative Industries and Trade Policy (Hotel Grand
Barbados, Bridgetown, Barbados, October 2006 – CNRM)
A report on the ‘Cultural Industries in CARICOM: Trade and Development
Challenges’ (Lead consultant: Keith Nurse, 2006 -Commissioned report for
CRNM)
A workshop on the Audio Visual Sector (Dominican Republic March 2009 –
CEDA)
A workshop on Best Practices re: Regulatory Regimes and Incentives to
Develop the Audiovisual Sector in the Caribbean (Barbados, June 2009 –
CRNM)
The establishment of the CARIFORUM-EU Business Forum financed by
BizClim.
Initiatives undertaken by the newly-formed CARIFORUM-EU Business Forum
included:
A study tour of stakeholders to Europe in April 2007
68 !
The meeting of participants from two priority sectors (i.e. ICT and
Creative Industries – Film and Audiovisual) held in Trinidad in July 2007
A study tour of stakeholders to Europe in 2008 (with the primary
objective of identifying constraints and opportunities of the business
environment between CARIFORUM and EU in light of imminent signing
of EPA). Regional institutions represented included CAIC, CEDA CRNM.
Recommendations and key issues resulting from the 2008 Study Tour to Europe
include:
The importance of co-production agreements and financing support to
the development of the audio-visual sector.
The opportunities provided by the Spanish markets for other CARIFORUM
countries besides the Dominican Republic.
The exploration of other EU markets such as France while taking into
consideration the relationship with the DOMs and access to the France
Sud funds.
The necessity of securing double taxation treaties to accompany EPA
signatures.
The need for the region’s audio-visual sector to achieve critical mass in
order to provide a sustained effort in European markets.
Public sensitisation, a key element in the sustainable growth of any sector, is
also being addressed through a recent CARICOM, CEDA and UNIDO
Regional Caribbean Creative Industries Project: Piloting a System of
Cinematic & Entrepreneurship Motivation Awards (CEMAs) for CARIBFilm-
Dream Teams. CEMA, a region-wide joint development initiative, is geared
towards encouraging film productions with a distinctive Caribbean identity,
while fostering linkages among the creative producers and practitioners in
the audiovisual sector. The project, in its current form, does not extend to
local TV programming. It is hoped, however, that it can be extended to other
media developments in the region. CEMA’s ultimate goal is to aid in the
establishment of an environmental and industrial framework that will secure a
means of livelihood for practitioners in the cinematic audiovisual sub-sector. It
intends to do this through the following:
69!
The establishment and reinforcement of networks of people working in
entrepreneurship and small enterprise development.
The identification of good practices in the cinematic audiovisual sub-
sector of the creative industries.
The dissemination of information among film practitioners on what actually
works in the audiovisual sub-sector at the local, regional and international
levels with a view of feeding into policymaking on the sub-sector.
The need for infrastructural development is also being addressed through the
establishment of a regional task force for the cultural industries. The task force,
a Caricom initiative, was established to develop a Strategy and Action Plan
for the cultural industries (film, music, fashion, festivals, literary arts and others)
in the Caribbean. So far, the lack of empirical data on the cultural industries
within the region has hindered the task force in the execution of its mandate.
The OECS is represented on the regional task force by the Export
Development Unit (EDU) with the primary goal of ensuring that the sub-region
contributes to the broader regional planning. The unit is also meant to secure
consideration for the conditions faced by the small-island states of the OECS.
The Aid for Trade Initiative, funded by the IDB and IADB, is another
intervention that can provide film practitioners with the funding needed to
facilitate the trade and distribution of their products. Developments in
technology, resulting in cheaper and more efficient ways of producing and
distributing audio-visual content, also present the film practitioner with
opportunities for the production and retention of revenue.
Despite the existence of all these activities as described above, the impact,
on the AV sector is still not clear in terms of actually increasing market access,
entrepreneurial skills and technical capacity of the sector. In addition, there
seems to be some duplication of effort and targets. This situation must be
urgently resolved and greater clarity regarding roles and responsibilities is
suggested. Even with these improvements, it is fair to say that the future of
the audiovisual industry lies in the hands of local policymakers, practitioners
and stakeholders. Policies for the sector must be formulated to govern the
operations of the industry while contextualizing it development in a
70
philosophical framework. In this regard, OECS member states are well
minded to create a more enabling policy environment for the sector to thrive.
71!
4.1: Key Spheres for Action
The action plan developed, based on information presented in this
document, is organized thematically under the best practices identified in the
literature for sector development: Human Capital, Sectoral Infrastructure,
Cultural Districts, Trade & Diversity and Collaboration. A general ‘tool kit’ is
created which is based on developing the architecture for industry
development using the metaphor of a house as its guide. The foundation is
related to developing the core values philosophy of the cultural citizens. The
various levels above the foundation represent policies, programmes, projects,
and products while the framework represents the legislative and regulatory
regime. The fence must be built around the house to control access including
content restrictions etc. created by broadcast quotas and other policies.
Human Capital
Within the OECS training is required to develop the skills of producers including
filmmaking: generation of story ideas, script writing, screen writing, shooting,
(camera work), lighting, sound, editing and distribution. Training is also
needed in the business aspect of the film sector including marketing,
branding, distribution and events management. Teachers need to be trained
and finally assistance is needed in policy design and implementation.
The breadth of needs, small numbers and cost of training renders it
impractical to make provisions for capital development separately for each
island. As such islands, which have equipped facilities such as the Cultural
Centre in Montserrat and the new Audio-Visual laboratory in Grenada can be
used as headquarters to conduct regional programs.
Sectoral Infrastructure:
Development of a policy and legislative regime is a critical component in
growing the AV sector. This includes generating policies and frameworks to
access funding for policy formulation through the EPA , funding for product
development through governments, product export, information and training
through CEDA, CRNM and Aid for Trade and platforms for collaborations
72
through the bi-lateral with Canada the EPA and ALBA. It also includes the
setting up of film funds and the creation, tax incentives and broadcast
quotas.
Cultural Districts
The development of cultural districts was recognized in some islands
especially the district of St. Paul’s in Antigua and Sion Hill in St. Vincent. As
such the identification of cultural districts is recommended with the
establishment of a facility to house trade associations within the named area
and incentives created to support the development of the area.
Trade & Diversity
The synchronization of various trade policies and the development of an
OECS approach which involves the input of stakeholders, the corporate
sector, ministries and supporting agencies is essential. A system of interface
for bodies and stakeholders should be set up. Training in preparation for trade
of goods and services should be provided to stakeholders to ensure that the
OECS is well represented through every exchange. Training includes
awareness campaigns, product, marketing and distribution development
and contract negotiation.
Collaboration
Initiatives falling under collaboration also support the development of Trade &
Diversity in effecting sub-regional, intra-regional and international
collaborations. Creation of a joint calendar or magazine which deals with
issues faced by practitioners, while functioning as a point of contact between
practitioners can also work as a marketing tool to stimulate interest by
potential foreign trading partners. Inter- ministerial networking and planning
especially between the Ministry of Trade and the Ministry of Culture can
strengthen strategies for developing trade opportunities and can facilitate
the process of an adequate clause for trade within cultural policy or film
policy documents. Out of the ‘tool kit’ presented in the Action matrix
countries can select actions for immediate implementation.
74!
4.2:
Act
ion
Pla
n –
Aud
io V
isua
l Sec
tor
actio
n on
e: D
evel
opin
g a
nd su
sta
inin
g tr
ain
ing
pro
gra
mm
es fo
r the
cor
e a
nd a
ncilla
ry a
rea
s of t
he A
V se
ctor
.
bje
ctiv
e Le
ad
ke
y ta
sks
reso
urce
s and
op
por
tuni
ties
mile
ston
es
outc
omes
1. P
ut in
pla
ce tr
ain
ing
in th
e co
re a
rea
s (p
re-p
rod
uctio
n,
pro
duc
tion
and
pos
t-p
rod
uctio
n) a
nd a
ncilla
ry
(bus
ines
s ma
nag
emen
t, en
terta
inm
ent l
aw
, etc
.) of
the
aud
iovi
sua
l sec
tor
2. D
evel
opin
g a
tra
in-th
e-tra
iner
p
rog
ram
OEC
S M
inist
ries o
f C
ultu
re,
Educ
atio
n
1.1
Linka
ge
with
reg
iona
l ed
uca
tiona
l ins
titut
es a
nd
ag
enci
es.
1.2
Esta
blis
hmen
t of
inte
rnsh
ip p
rog
ram
s in
colla
bor
atio
n w
ith p
riva
te
and
pub
lic se
ctor
a
gen
cies
(AV
or
com
mun
ica
tion
div
ision
s).
2.1
Linka
ges
with
reg
iona
l a
nd in
tern
atio
nal t
rain
ing
a
gen
cies
.
BA in
Film
at U
WI,
St.
Aug
ustin
e US
and
Eur
opea
n in
stitu
tions
A
rts a
nd C
ultu
ral
Ente
rpris
e M
ana
gem
ent (
AC
EM)
pos
t gra
dua
te
dip
lom
a o
ffere
d b
y UW
I, St
. Aug
ustin
e EU
CA
RIFO
RUM
A
V fa
cilit
ies i
n M
onts
erra
t (N
orth
ern
Ant
illes)
A
V fa
cilit
ies i
n
Gre
nad
a (S
outh
ern
Ant
illes)
A
id fo
r Tra
de
CED
A
Esta
blis
hmen
t of
mem
ora
ndum
of
und
erst
and
ing
b
etw
een
rele
vant
a
gen
cies
for t
he
pro
visio
n o
f tra
inin
g.
Dev
elop
men
t of a
hu
ma
n re
sour
ce
dev
elop
men
t pla
n (H
RD).
Esta
blis
hmen
t of
mem
ora
ndum
of
und
erst
and
ing
with
re
gio
nal a
nd
inte
rna
tiona
l ag
enci
es
for t
he p
rovi
sion
of
train
ing
.
Ca
dre
of t
rain
ed
pro
fess
iona
ls in
th
e co
re a
nd
anc
illary
are
as
of th
e A
V se
ctor
. C
ad
re o
f tra
ined
te
ach
ers i
n A
V
pro
duc
tion.
75!
actio
n tw
o: D
evel
opin
g, s
usta
inin
g a
nd e
nab
ling
infra
stru
ctur
e fo
r the
AV
sect
or
obje
ctiv
e le
ad
ke
y ta
sks
reso
urce
s and
op
por
tuni
ties
mile
ston
es
Out
com
es
3. C
rea
tion
of a
n ov
era
rchi
ng p
olic
y fra
mew
ork
for t
he
sect
or.
____
____
____
____
____
4. E
sta
blis
hmen
t of
syne
rgie
s bet
wee
n cu
ltura
l pol
icy
and
ot
her p
olic
y re
gim
es
(med
ia, t
rad
e,
educ
atio
n, to
urism
).
____
____
____
____
____
5. C
rea
tion
of a
su
pp
ortin
g le
gisl
ativ
e en
viro
nmen
t (ta
x ex
emp
tions
, in
vest
men
t
Gov
ernm
ents
OEC
S
Film
Com
miss
ions
AV
Sta
keho
lder
s
CA
RIC
OM
Min
istrie
s of C
ultu
re
Coa
litio
n of
Ser
vice
In
dus
tries
Gov
ernm
ent
AV
sta
keho
lder
s
Coa
litio
n of
Ser
vice
In
dus
tries
Gov
ernm
ent,
AV
St
ake
hold
ers,
Priv
ate
se
ctor
3. 1
Dev
elop
men
t of
a c
ultu
ral p
olic
y or
re
view
of e
xist
ing
p
olic
y fra
mew
ork.
3.2
Dev
elop
men
t of
syst
ems t
o m
onito
r a
nd e
valu
ate
im
ple
men
tatio
n of
p
olic
ies.
4.1
Dev
elop
men
t of
inte
r-sec
tora
l and
in
ter-r
egio
nal
com
mitt
ees o
n th
e cu
ltura
l ind
ustri
es.
5.1
Revi
ew a
nd
revi
sion
of e
xist
ing
la
ws.
5.2
Cre
atio
n of
su
pp
ort l
egisl
atio
n
EPA
CA
RIFO
RUM
EU
CA
RIC
OM
OEC
S
Coa
litio
n of
Ser
vice
In
dus
tries
WIP
O, N
atio
nal
gov
ernm
ents
, UN
IDO
, Coa
litio
n of
Se
rvic
e In
dus
tries
Ratif
ica
tion
of
com
ple
ted
cul
tura
l p
olic
y.
Ap
poi
ntm
ent o
f a c
ross
-se
ctor
al
and
inte
r-re
gio
nal t
ask
forc
e
2.2
Esta
blis
hmen
t of a
p
ublic
aw
are
ness
ca
mp
aig
n
Pass
ing
of t
he re
leva
nt
leg
isla
tion
Incr
ease
d m
ark
et
acc
ess f
or A
V
pro
duc
ts.
Imp
rove
men
t in
the
qua
lity
and
qua
ntity
of
the
AV
pro
duc
ts
rele
ase
d.
Esta
blis
hmen
t of
pro
ject
s or p
rog
ram
s b
ase
d o
n a
mul
ti-d
iscip
lina
ry
ap
pro
ach
. E.g
. re
gio
nal f
ilm fe
stiv
als,
et
c.)
Incr
ease
d
pro
duc
tion,
loca
l co
nsum
ptio
n a
nd
trad
e
Incr
ease
d
76
ince
ntiv
es, I
P p
rote
ctio
n)
____
____
____
____
____
6. E
sta
blis
hmen
t of
inst
itutio
ns o
f sup
por
t.
____
____
____
____
____
7. Im
pro
vem
ent o
f re
sea
rch
cap
aci
ty.
____
____
____
____
____
8. D
esig
n a
nd
imp
lem
enta
tion
of
eva
lua
tive
mec
hani
sms.
Gov
ernm
ent,
AV
st
ake
hold
ers,
Film
C
omm
issio
ns
not i
n ex
isten
ce
6.1A
udit
of e
xist
ing
in
stitu
tions
of s
upp
ort
2.2
Esta
blis
hmen
t of
ave
nues
for f
und
ing
.
6.3
Cre
atio
n of
su
pp
ort i
nstit
utio
ns
tha
t do
not c
urre
ntly
ex
ist.
7.1.
For
mul
atio
n of
a
rese
arc
h a
nd
dev
elop
men
t a
gen
da
.
8.1A
pp
oint
men
t of
an
eva
lua
tion
com
mitt
ee
Na
tiona
l G
over
nmen
ts,
Inte
rna
tiona
l fun
din
g
ag
enci
es
Inte
rna
tiona
l fun
din
g
ag
enci
es,
CA
RIFO
RUM
EU,
Re
gio
nal u
nive
rsiti
es
Na
tiona
l g
over
nmen
ts, O
ECS,
C
ARI
CO
M, r
egio
nal
univ
ersit
ies
Ap
poi
ntm
ent o
f Boa
rds
of D
irect
ors f
or th
ese
org
ani
zatio
ns.
Sig
ning
of m
emor
and
um
of a
gre
emen
t bet
wee
n fu
ndin
g a
gen
cies
and
re
leva
nt p
arti
es.
Offi
cia
l op
enin
g o
f ve
nues
Pub
lica
tion
of re
sea
rch
Imp
lem
enta
tion
of
reco
mm
end
atio
ns a
nd
revi
sion
of p
olic
ies a
nd
pro
ced
ures
.Est
ab
lishm
ent
of p
ublic
aw
are
ness
ca
mp
aig
ns
pro
duc
tion,
ex
hib
ition
and
sale
of
loca
l AV
pro
duc
ts
Imp
rove
d q
ualit
y a
nd q
uant
ity o
f AV
p
rod
ucts
.
77!
actio
n th
ree:
Iden
tifyi
ng a
nd d
evel
opin
g c
ultu
ral d
istric
ts.
obje
ctiv
e Le
ad
ke
y ta
sks
reso
urce
s and
op
por
tuni
ties
mile
ston
es
outc
omes
9. S
trea
mlin
ing
and
b
rand
ing
of e
xist
ing
cu
ltura
l hub
s
Gov
ernm
ent,
com
mun
ities
, AV
st
ake
hold
ers,
priv
ate
se
ctor
9.1
Con
sulta
tion
for
the
stra
teg
ic
dev
elop
men
t of t
he
are
a.
Com
mun
ities
su
rroun
din
g c
ultu
ral
dist
ricts
Fest
iva
ls a
lrea
dy
in
exist
ence
Offi
cia
l la
unch
ing
a
nd b
rand
ing
of
cultu
ral d
istric
ts.
Dev
elop
men
t of a
n ur
ba
n re
new
al p
olic
y.
Incr
ease
d c
ultu
ral
act
ivity
and
co
nsum
ptio
n of
cu
ltura
l goo
ds.
Incr
ease
d
acc
essib
ility
of
info
rma
tion
and
sh
arin
g o
f res
ourc
es.
actio
n fo
ur: I
mp
rovi
ng tr
ad
e ca
pa
city
obje
ctiv
e Le
ad
ke
y ta
sks
reso
urce
s and
op
por
tuni
ties
mile
ston
es
outc
omes
10. I
ncre
asin
g
ma
nufa
ctur
ing
ca
pa
city
of A
V
pro
duc
ers.
11. I
mp
rovi
ng
bra
ndin
g, p
ack
ag
ing
a
nd d
istrib
utio
n ca
pa
city
.
Min
istrie
s of T
rad
e &
Cul
ture
AV
sta
keho
lder
s
10.1
Pro
visio
n of
a
cces
s to
tech
nica
l a
ssist
anc
e a
nd
exp
ertis
e.
11.1
. Pro
visio
n of
a
cces
s to
train
ing
in
ma
rket
ing
and
d
istrib
utio
n.
CED
A
CRN
M
Aid
for T
rad
e,
Coa
litio
n of
Ser
vice
s
ALB
A
Sig
ning
of c
o-p
rod
uctio
n a
gre
emen
ts.
Sig
ning
of d
istrib
utio
n a
gre
emen
ts.
Incr
ease
d o
utp
ut.
Imp
rove
d o
utp
ut a
nd
acc
ess t
o in
tern
atio
nal m
ark
ets.
78 !
5.1 Introduction
‘Re-imagining. Re-fashioning. Re-building: Actions for our creative eco-
systems’ has examined the current set of approaches that are employed to
develop the music and audio-visuals sectors in the nine OECS territories. The
report has echoed the findings of previous studies and reiterated the fact that
both areas constitute nascent industries in need of strategic interventions at
the local, national and regional levels. In the decade or so since OECS
governments have turned their attention to the cultural sector as a potential
vector for socio-economic growth, the regional gaze has intensified and
resulted in a plethora of activities including but not limited to, the
establishment of new institutions, the hosting of technical workshops, the
incorporation of music education at the secondary school system, the
institution of regulation in selected areas, and the building of better research
capacity. However, all of these initiatives have not resulted in the type of
gains needed to elevate the cultural sector as a whole. While there certainly
have been some individual gains, as witnessed by the much cited success of
Kevin Lyttle, Jamsey P, Michele Henderson or Mitzi Allen, these have not
translated into industry gains. In fact, the common mistake of equating
individual talent with industry success has stymied the need for more co-
ordinated approaches to the sector’s development. Successful artists, award
winning films or records do not make an industry successful.
In this regard, there has to be a major shift in the core values and approaches
that have underpinned the thinking of key industry stakeholders thus far. The
challenge lies in establishing what type of interventions are required, and
where, when and how those interventions can be positioned to effect the
best value. As a starting point, this report identifies the lack of a cogent
policy framework -underpinned by a strong philosophical base - as the main
cause for stasis in the OECS cultural industry domain. As such, it focuses on
the establishment of a robust policy regime as the critical component in
ameliorating the threats and weaknesses affecting the two sectors. The
methodology endorsed here draws from the body of work that espouses a
systems approach to policy making whereby full recognition is given to the
79!
entire value creating ecology, and where interventions are positioned along
both the horizontal and vertical value chains. More importantly, this action
plan is predicated on the notion that the formulation of cultural industry
development policies (CIDP) can act as the fillip to facilitate the ‘joining up’
of the other policy domains (i.e. trade & industry, tourism, enterprise
development, education and community development) that are implicated
in the cultural industry domain.
The cultural industry development policy (CIDP) framework suggested here
seeks to redress the imbalance that has continuously plagued approaches to
the sectors’ development, namely the emphasis on cultural production. This
action plan while continuing support for the creation of musical and audio-
visual products also focuses on the consumption side of the equation by
supporting efforts to market and distribute. In this regard, CIDP systems must
be flexible enough to move through the entire value creating ecology with
the view to giving better support to already existing networks/clusters of
cultural activity (horizontal), while helping to identify and build routes to
market for cultural producers by supporting distribution and delivery platforms
(vertical) first within the locale and then in the wider global community.
Instead of targeting individual organisations and emphasizing cultural
production, the CIDP systems approach is directed towards recognising and
supporting a viable infrastructure wherein creativity can thrive. Examples of
this approach are delineated below.
Setting up or supporting joint marketing initiatives among cultural enterprises.Setting up or supporting alternative distribution networks (i.e. independent record labels for the music industry)Setting up or supporting training networks and programmesSubsidising local venues or infrastructure (i.e. providing physical space to showcase local films, or to put on live music shows, subsidising a recording studio).Providing sources of capital via grants, venture capital and educating investors about the ROI from intangible assets.Documenting and exploring the systems within which firms operate, in terms of facilities, resources and connections other sectors
5.2 SummaryThe application of this model to the OECS is only possible if there is co-
operation between the various regional development agencies, the
80!
respective national governments, and industry stakeholders with the view to
developing a more co-ordinated approach to the sectors’ growth. This
method will also assist in minimising the duplication of effort and expending of
scarce resources that characterises the current practice. This action plan is
predicated on the construction of relevant industry infrastructure/architecture
and employs the metaphor of constructing a house (see page 83) as its point
of reference, and also specifies perspective roles for the various stakeholders
as follows.
i. The foundation – this represents the core values and philosophy on
developing the cultural industries. Clarity and consensus on this issue
are fundamental, and form the basic platform for the sectors’ growth.
The country visits revealed that a fair amount of ambivalence still exists
with regard to this issue. Efforts to mitigate this situation should be
ongoing, and addressed by national governments.
ii. Level One (ground floor) - represents the full range of research
activities including but not limited to mapping exercises, market
research, impact assessments, studies on product integration,
programme monitoring and evaluation. This knowledge can then be
used to inform policy formulation. Regional organisations such as the
OECS and CEDA play a pivotal role in this regard.
iii. Framework – represents the policy regime that structures and directs
activities in the entire sector. The regime is fore-grounded by cultural
industry policy, but encompasses the full range of policies that affect
the sector, including trade and industry, competition, broadcast &
media, community development, tourism and enterprise
development. International and regional and development
organisations can provide technical support for national governments
to formulate and monitor their policy environments.
iv. Level Two – represents the full range of planning and programmatic
tools required to activate policies. These include strategic, marketing,
business and operational plans along with programmes aimed at
training stakeholders, marketing products or obtaining investment.
81!
National member states can take the lead in deploying these activities
with technical assistance from external agencies.
v. Level Three – represents the actual products and services that
emanate from the sector. It is envisaged that the marketing and
distribution of the products and services would have benefited from
evidence-based policies and planning. Networks of artists, enterprises,
industry associations along with national and regional government
agencies are implicated in this activity.
vi. Roof – represents the legislative and regulatory framework for the
sectors. This regime serves as the covering or protection for the various
industry stakeholders, and includes but is not limited to laws related to
intellectual property protection, tax and incentives, customs,
broadcast and media. National governments can take the lead in this
area with technical assistance from external agencies and
consultation with industry stakeholders.
vii. Windows and doors – represent the avenues through which
stakeholders access provisions, programmes, and other types of
resources to develop their products and access markets.
viii. Fence – represents both the physical and intangible borders that
control the content and channels that enter or leave a country. This
relates to trade, broadcast and media regimes that affect the
exchange of cultural products. Regional development agencies such
as the OTN can take the lead in area, supported by input from
national governments.
The preceding discussion has underscored the quantity and complexity of
interventions that are required to fulfil the vision of a robust cultural industry
sector. The systems approach outlined above seeks to provide some clarity
with regards to the type of infrastructure that must be constructed along with
suggestions about the best points of entry. It is hoped that a well-organised
re-imagining, re-fashioning and re-building of practical and strategic
alternatives can flow from an understanding of these issues. However, as
always the burning challenge remains whether the will, the knowledge, and
82
the resources required to perform these tasks exist in sufficient quantities to
make a difference.
!
83!
5.3 The Architecture for the Plan
1. Foundation - Core Values and philosophy2. Level One (ground �oor) - Knowledge and research3. Framework - Policy regime 4. Level Two - Planning & Programming5. Level Three - Products and Services6. Roof - Legislative and Regulative regime7. Windows - Institutions of support8. Fence (Border control) - Export and Access (control of content; channels that enter and leave a territory).
1. Foundation
4. Level Two
7. Windows
5. Level Three
6. Roof
8. Fence (Border control)
3. Framework
84 !
Appendices
1. Sample Questionnaire – Government
Date:_______________ Location:____________________
Identify the current state policies aimed at developing the music and audio-visual sectors?
1. a. Is there a cultural policy? If so, how is it being resourced and activated?
b. If not, what plans are being developed to formulate one?
2. What is the main focus of the state’s current programmatic framework (education, fiscal incentives, infrastructure development)?
3. How were these areas arrived at as priorities?
4. What are some of the issues that hinder or facilitate these state interventions?
5. a. What efforts are being pursued by government to develop human capital in the two sectors?
a. How successful are they and how are they evaluated?
6. a. What efforts are currently in place or being considered to boost the infrastructure of the music and audio-visual sectors? (venue, research & development, tax incentives).
b. How effective are they and how are they evaluated?
85!
7. Best practices in cultural industries development policies emphasize the impact of ‘cultural districts and clustering’. Can you point to such areas here, and what if any interventions can come from the state to further their development?
8. How is the government positioning itself to utilize the opportunities and mitigate the difficulties enshrined in various trade agreements?
a. European Partnership Agreement
b. Bilateral with Canada
c. Caribbean Single Market and Economy
9. Identify 3 key areas where state action can be the most effective in making a positive difference to these sectors.
b. Give reasons for your answer?
10. What initiatives can the cultural practitioners take for themselves that might improve industry conditions?
86
2. Sample Questionnaire – Music Sector
Date:_________________________ Location:_________________________
1. What has the government done to develop the music sector in the following areas?
a. Creating and recording (i.e. tax incentives for importation of equipment & instruments, IP legislation)
b. Distribution and marketing (i.e. attendance at trade shows, sponsorship of events, broadcast quotas)
c. Live performances and consumption patterns? (venue development, training of artist and event managers etc)
2. How effective have these programmes and interventions been?
3. What are the institutions of support for your sector (collection agencies, film commissions, trade associations)?
a. How effective are they?
b. What challenges have they faced in fulfilling their mandate?
4. How effective have private and public sector initiatives at education & training been in developing your sector?
87!
5. How is the music sector positioning itself to mitigate the difficulties and/or benefits from opportunities offered in the trade agreements?
a. European Partnership Agreement
b. Caribbean Single Market and Economy
6. Identify 2 key areas where action by the government, private sector, and members of the music sector can make the most difference to the development of the music sector.
a. Government
b. Private sector
c. Members of the music sector
7. On a scale of 1 to 5 (1 being lowest and 5 being the highest), rate the effectiveness of this workshop.
1 2 3 4 5
8. What is the most effective thing that you have learnt?
88
3. Sample Questionnaire – Audio Visual Sector !
Date:________________________ Location:______________________
1. Describe and rate the government interventions that have been developed to facilitate growth in the film sector in the following areas (tax incentives, attendance at Trade shows, funding, training)
a. Location Development (infrastructure including venues for shooting
and venues for showcasing)
b. Production of indigenous content
c. Distribution and Marketing locally and abroad
2. How effective have these interventions been and how are they evaluated?
3. Identify and describe the institutions of support for your sectors (both
formal and informal: film commissions, trade associations, training programs)
4. What initiatives/programs have been conducted to deal with industry
challenges?
a. What impact have these programs had?
b. What challenges have these programs faced?
5. What aspect of the film sector is most underdeveloped and what action is
required to address the situation?
a. What best practices should be adopted in your local and regional
film sector ?
89!
6. What types of organisations have you collaborated with in producing and distributing film and how?
a. How have these collaborations benefited you/your company and the industry?
b. What types of regional and extra regional collaborations do you
think would be beneficial to your company and the industry?
7. How effective have educational initiatives been in developing your
sector?
8. What education option do you think is most suitable to the film industry in
your country and why?
a. Travelling educators who visit monthly. Course material is also administered online
b. Quarterly symposiums and meetings open to the general public c. Train the Trainer programs which serve to prepare individuals to
teach at Primary Schools, High Schools and Community Centers d. Visiting lecturers on location for 3-6 months annually
9. Describe the most suitable action/framework for practitioners to mitigate the difficulties and or benefits offered in the trade agreements
a. European Partnership Agreement
b. Caribbean Single Market and Economy
10. Identify 3 key areas where state action can be most effective in
affecting the sector positively.
11. Describe 3 ways in which film-related enterprises and business units external to the sector assist in the development of the industry
90
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