Conference Announces First 10

The daddy of them all, the 9th AustralAsian Music Business Conference (Aug 20 to 22) has announced its first ten speakers. Over 50 will be announced for nine panels and six keynotes at Sydney’s Acer Arena, with 600 attendees projected to attend. The ten are Jon Satterley (New York based Senior VP New Media and Global Business Development for Roadrunner Records) who’s a keynote,

Shaun James (XYZ Networks), Karen Farrugia (Nokia Music). Service), Jeremy Macvean (Austereo),  Julia Davis (New World Artists booking agency), Marcus Seal (Shock),  Ken Outch (Sony), Sharon Ashworth (Vodafone), Keith Welsh (Music Network) and Georgia Hull (Roadrunner). AMBC opens for Early Bird registrations Nov 20, with registrants up for a round trip to South by Southwest). Rumour is the online awards the Onyas! and mobile music awards the Phoneys may return. See www.immedia.com.au/ambc

Fire Sale! Destra Goes Into Administration

The vultures will be circling to grab the leftover assets of digital media company Destra. Prime Media put it in voluntary administration last Thursday after negotiations with US film distributor Lionsgate to buy DVD company Magna Pacific broke down. Other buyers who thought Prime’s price for divisions as Rajon and MRA were too high, can return. Central Station Records and Payless were sold back to their managements. Destra founder Domenic Carosa bought MP3.com.au.

Young Exits One Stop Country  

Katania Young has left as manager of QLD-based One Stop Country, the country music distro label of One Stop Entertainment. She plans to start her own business offering publicity to indie country acts. She is contacted on 0409 090 104 or at

Arena Change?

The word we hear is that The Arena in Brisbane is undergoing major refurbishment over Dec-Jan, and will reopen as a 'classy' R'n'B nightclub every weekend. Live music will apparently be confined to weeknights.

Donovan Exiting AMB

After six years with Brisbane-based Australian Music Biz (the last few as its Melbourne-based rep), Laura Donovan finishes up this week due to restructuring. She is contacted at . Marc Mancini will remain the contact for all Australian Music Biz related stuff

GCMIA’s Website

The Gold Coast Music Industry Association (GCMIA) is relaunching its website www.gcmia.org.au after consultation. It will have news, details of workshops and funding, and an online directory of Gold Coast music industry reps. The GCMIA is working with the Gold Coast City Council and the Gold Coast business community and planning local festivals, music conferences and workshops.

No Sleep ‘Til SxSW

Over 40 Oz and NZ acts were invited to play South by Southwest in Texas, March 18-22. Acts who have accepted their invites include Blue King Brown (pictured), Anthony Snape, The Boat People, The Fumes, The Chevelle, Birds of Tokyo, The Drones, Infusion, Josh Pyke, Angus & Julia, The Temper Trap, Andy Bull, Naked On The Vague and Kylie Harris, and from NZ, Elemeno P and Midnight Youth. 250 acts applied from Oz/NZ; 10,000 from around the world for 1800 slots.

Blacklist.Org.Au Goes Live

www.Blacklist.org.au, a one-stop online shop for information, interaction and the music of indigenous Australia, goes live on wFriday. The site provides news and event info, downloads and history, and covers traditional, to folk, rock to hip hop. There are currently 100 artist pages, covering Archie Roach, Ruby Hunter, Kev Carmody and Dave Arden, and newies Tjimba & The Yung Warriors and Alter Egoz.

Festival for Mt. Isa

Mt Isa will host the Mount Isa Rock Festival in March, hoping to have three of the country’s biggest acts. It’s the joint initiative of the Mount Isa Show Society and the Buffs Club, and will need 3,000 punters to break even. Buffs Club manager Justin Wilkins told local media,  “This is really putting our city on the entertainment map. If they can have their Big Day Out on the Gold Coast and other larger centres then we can do it here in Mount Isa, and dare I say, do it better.”

Wanna Play UK’s Great Escape?

QMusic, Arts QLD and Trade QLD are giving two local acts the chance to play UK festival The Great Escape (May 14 to 16). You must be an original band based in Qld, have a CD out and with management and/or label. Enquiries email Deadline: 5 pm Wed 26 Nov, submit to www.qmusic.com.au/thegreatescape. It’s free for QMusic members, $11 for others.

Wanna Work At Heapsaflash?

Brisbane’s Heapsaflash music media management needs a print media manager with extensive experience in music and event publicity (particularly print media) and within both the general PR and music industry fields. Journalism or public relation degrees a plus. Forward resumes and application materials to . Specific details available upon application.

Feedback On Music Biz Courses

The music industry has an opportunity to comment on the way training happens. The Music Industry Training Package used by TAFEs and private training organisations nationwide is currently in review. Comments from music industry execs and those who have been through the music, technical production or business courses are required to help make the courses relevant. Deadline for comment is Nov 29; go to www.cisc.com.au.

Labels v. Distribution workshops

Q Music’s free workshop on label and distribution (physical and digital) is held this week, Speakers are Graham Ashton (Dew Process), Craig Spann from (Sugarrush), Pete Collins (Mere Noise /Vegas Kings) and Sarah Hamilton (Musicadium). They’re at the Troubadour Tuesday Nov 18 (6-8pm), Barry Jones Auditorium Ipswich Wednesday Nov 19 (6-8pm) and Ellways at Underwood Saturday Nov 22 (2-4pm), To register, email or call 3257 0013.

Boat People Catch Next Wave

The invitation for The Boat People (pictured) to play SxSW in March is a timely one: they are hoping to get a record deal. Their songs are being played on 14 radio stations across America. Shows in the US and UK and positive reviews for their Chandeliers album has already scored the Boaties a co-manager in Paul Brown of New York’s Red Hat 22 (alongside Brisbane-based Rick Chazan), an agent in Ian Fintak of the Agency Group’s LA office, and a publisher in Chrysalis Music.

LifeLines

Marrying: Kelly Osbourne is planning a secret Elvis-themed wedding in Las Vegas next year to model Luke Worrell.

Hospitalised:  Kaiser Chiefs' keyboardist Peanut, in Brazil, having come down with a bout of appendicitis in Sao Paulo.

Assaulted: a 28 year old Winconsin man sang Dio’s Holy Diver so badly at a karaoke bar that a crowd member beat him up.

In Court: off-duty bouncer Phillip Gerrard Smith, 24, will not face further court action over the death of 19-year-old Brett Leake outside the Bank nightclub in Townsville in May 2005. Leake had been thrown out of the Bank and was scuffling with security; he punched Smith who hit back, forcing Leake to hit his head on the road.

In Court: Harvard Law School professor Charles R. Nesson filed a counterclaim against the Recording Industry Association of America, saying its charging Boston University student Joel Tenenbaum with downloading seven songs from a file-sharing network was unconstitutional and “an instance of a private organization is allowed to take a huge chunk of government power and impose its will upon millions of people.”

Died:  South African legend Miriam Makeba, 76. She mixed jazz and African traditional folk and was a symbol of the anti-apartheid movement.

Died: drummer Mitch Mitchell, 61, in US hotel room, natural causes. He is the last survivor of the Jimi Hendrix Experience.

Died: a 2006 American Idol contestant obsessed with judge Paula Abdul reportedly killed herself outside the singer’s house in LA.

Died: Peter Ikin, one time managing director at Warner Music Australia, after a fall in his apartment in Paris. He was 62.

Austrade Masterclass: A&R In The Us

Austrade’s latest interactive masterclass looks at the state of A&R in the United States, who’s doing deal, how to be on the radar of the key decision makers, a look at 360 degree deals, what labels look for and whether artists need labels any more. They’ve got US-based execs from labels, managers and attorneys on Wed 26 November (cost $50) at the Austrade office. See www.australianmusicoffice.com

Rock Band Creators Earn $300m+

When Alex Rigopulos and Eran Egozy — the ones behind megahit games Guitar Hero and later, Rock Band — sold their company Harmonix to MTV parent Viacom for US$175 million in 2006, the deal didn’t stop there. There was an earnout agreement if Rock Band did well. It sold 7 million units last year at $190. As a result, the pair got a $150 million bonus this year and a larger one in 2009.

Contact

News, submissions and industry scuttlebutt for consideration in this column should be sent to no later than 5pm Fridays.

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