PRS for Music at Brighton Music Conference

PRS for Music will be hosting two exclusive panels at Brighton Music Conference (BMC) this year with both sessions taking place on Thursday the 14th of April.

'Publishing and Collecting Societies Explained’ and ‘PRS for Music in Conversation’ caption the panel sessions with the latter ranking highly within dance music circles as PRS provides insight on some of the major issues affecting the world of electronic dance music.

Hosted at BMC’s Professional Theatre, ‘PRS for Music in Conversation’ session will tell all on their 2015/2016 ventures which saw SoundCloud litigated and licensed, a bespoke Anti-Piracy system launched and the exploration into sound recognition tech for accurate and transparent royalties.

The panel titled in full: ‘PRS for Music in Conversation: The role of audio recognition tech in royalty calculation, copyright protection and the approach to SoundCloud’, will be chaired by PRS for Music’s Dance Music Manager, Ashley Howard, with other speakers from PRS including; Simon Bourn (Head of Litigation, Enforcement & Anti-Piracy); Tim Arber (Head of Membership Support); and from the Association for Electronic Music, Greg Marshall (Head of Membership).

Both panels at BMC will really get into how PRS interacts with dance and electronic music, but will also cover the nitty-gritty of collection societies and music publishing in a broader context. The ‘PRS in Conversation’ panel will be particularly interesting for the audiences at BMC as it gives PRS a unique opportunity to discuss some of our activities that are especially relevant to those operating within the sphere of dance music. Not one to miss!

The session will delve into specifics around the various projects and initiatives PRS for Music is working on, all towards fairer more beneficial systems to combat issues faced by the publishers and creators of dance music.

For further information on BMC, its programme and how to get tickets to attend the PRS for Music panel sessions, please visit brightonmusicconference.co.uk

Panellist biographies

Ashley Howard (Chair)

Ash has recently been recruited by PRS for Music as their new dance music manager, overseeing the company's relationship with dance music members and overseeing dance-related processes. This includes the Amplify initiative which aims to raise awareness of PRS for Music and its service within the electronic and dance music community. His introduction to the music industry was at music distributor SRD as a sales rep for over 100 UK music retailers before spending nearly ten years in a variety of roles at Hospital Records predominantly as Head of Publishing.

Simon Bourn (PRS for Music)

Simon leads on litigation, enforcement and anti-piracy matters affecting the PRS for Music business. He advises on licensing matters, including disputes over licence terms, contract enforcement, audits and copyright infringement matters. He also advises on enforcement policy issues and has overall responsibility for the PRS for Music Anti-Piracy Unit. In 2015, Simon led the litigation brought by PRS against SoundCloud, and co-chaired the litigation team of UK Music in the successful judicial review brought against the UK Government in relation to newly introduced copyright legislation. In 2016, he is behind the launch of ‘MAPS’, PRS for Music’s Member Anti-Piracy System.

Tim Arber (PRS for Music)

As the Head of Membership Support at PRS for Music Tim is responsible for a dedicated team within the Membership department who:

• Develop proposals to the Board for ways in which we can update and improve the way we calculate our members’ royalties
• Provide the business with analysis and insight into the membership of the society and
• Provide project support for new membership initiatives

Greg Marshall (AFEM)

Currently the Head of Membership at the Association for Electronic Music following a 20 year route through the industry as a drummer, producer, DJ with extensive experience within record shops, independent labels, music rights & royalties organisations.

Sebastian Spring (Head of Publishing, SUISA)

Sebastian Spring graduated with a law degree from the University of Bern in Switzerland. With a historically keen interest in electronic music, he has directed his career into licensing. Following a stint in Germany, where he licensed corporate sound for the music agency HearDis!, Sebastian moved on to the legal department of the Swiss Collection Society, SUISA, where he has been heading up the publishing members team for more than four years. His current focus is on the development of SUISA’s pan-European licensing of digital rights. Sebastian also runs a small independent record label, Bonzzaj Recordings, and is a DJ, producer and promoter.

Hannah Simmonds (Head of Business Affairs, Toolroom)

After a decade in the music industry, Toolroom is well known internationally as one of the most innovative independent labels in dance music. As Head of Business Affairs & Rights Management Hannah oversees Toolroom Publishing and represents the rights for a collection of renowned writers and artists, aligned with the flagship label Toolroom and sub labels Toolroom Trax, ZeroThree & Love & Other.

Alex Banks (Producer)

Buckinghamshire-born and Brighton-based producer Alex Banks has progressed from being an in-demand remixer and Solid Steel ‘Mix of the Year’-winning DJ to that and so much more today. From touring Europe with Moderat to DJing in Tokyo for Red Bull Music Academy’s EMAF, via countless live performances at continental festivals including Germany’s legendary Melt, he’s raised his own bar.

About PRS for Music

PRS for Music is a world-leading music collective management organisation representing the rights of more than 165,000 talented songwriters, composers and music publishers around the globe. Headquartered in the UK, it works diligently on behalf of its members to grow and protect the value of their rights. With a focus on innovation and integrity, PRS for Music is redefining the global standard for music royalties to ensure creators are paid whenever their musical compositions and songs are streamed, downloaded, broadcast, performed and played in public. In 2022, PRS for Music collected £964m and paid out £836.2m in royalties. prsformusic.com