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c&binet hits the headlines

Valerie | 09 Nov 2009, 16:17

It’s only been two weeks since the inaugural c&binet forum and the widespread media coverage generated in the build up, during and post event indicates that interest has certainly not died down. 

Although much of the media spotlight was on Lord Mandelson’s announcement in which he introduced tough new measures to combat persistent illegal filesharing, there were a number of other themes that also came through in the numerous pieces of print, online and blog coverage and indeed, via the live Twitterfeed, where, at one stage, #cabinetforum trended at number three in the top 10 most popular Twitter tags.

Media headlines from Government committed to upholding copyright laws to “c&binet conference: Advertising the key” and “c@binet Forum showed that the UK games industry is leading the way in creativity and in business innovation” illustrate the diversity of discussions that took place during the three days, which ranged from the IP and copyright debate to the future of TV and new business models.

There was overriding consensus on the exciting opportunities afforded by the shifting landscape in which “content is king” and “consumers are in control” in this new digital world. As the Guardian reported, Simon Fuller argued that there is still room for many players in the emerging digital media market, whilst Ariadne Capital’s Julie Meyer proclaimed that “content is the new software”, a welcome message surely for many.

The #cabinetforum twitter feed is perhaps even more revealing in understanding reaction to the event and the issues discussed from the audience and those following in cyberspace. Feedback ranged from “c&binet: looks like the place to be today” to “user/audience generated content - live. Interesting to hear” and “c&binet, an historic event, one we need 2 build on - internationalising the big challenge & big opportunity”. It was also good to hear that “Twitter was a great part of #cabinetforum” – it hopefully provided a platform for enabling open and honest discussion in addition to the live updates from the event, enabling people from as far afield as Vietnam and India to listen and participate in the event.

To quote Gamesbrief, c&binet was certainly an excellent start at getting the creative industries to talk to each other about new ways of collaborating and the lessons learned will no doubt pave the way for further discussion about the future of c&binet and its evolving agenda.

Media & blog coverage:

Two weeks until the ‘Cabinet Forum’...
Creative Times, published 15.10.09
http://www.creativetimes.co.uk/news/two-weeks-until-the-cabinet-forum

Coutts backs C&binet
Music Week, published: 20.10.09
http://www.musicweek.com/story.asp?sectioncode=1&storycode=1038969&c=1

Strike one to c&binet proposals
Music Week, published 07.11.09
http://www.musicweek.com/story.asp?sectioncode=1&storycode=1039067

c&binet conference: Advertising the key, says Highfield
Media Week, published: 27.10.09 – 1:23pm
http://www.mediaweek.co.uk/news/948573/C-binet-conference-Advertising-key-says-Highfield/

C&binet Conference: Government committed to upholding copyright laws
Media Week, published: 27.10.09 – 2:45pm
http://www.mediaweek.co.uk/News/MostEmailed/948588/C-binet-conference-Government-committed-upholding-copyright-laws/

@ c&binet: Creative Industries So Far Divided On The Way Ahead
PaidContent, published: 27.10.09 – 6.15 am
http://paidcontent.co.uk/article/419-cbinet-creative-industries-so-far-divided-on-the-way-ahead/

@c&binet: Free Content Must Pack a Paid Punch
PaidContent, published: 27.10.09 – 8:29pm
http://paidcontent.co.uk/article/419-cbinet-free-content-must-pack-a-paid-punch/

@ c&binet: Vivendi Wants UK ‘Three-Strikes’, Mandelson Announcement Due Wednesday
PaidContent, published: 27.10.09 – 2:45pm
http://paidcontent.co.uk/article/419-cabinet-vivendi-wants-uk-three-strikes-mandelson-announcement-due-wedn/

Consider charging for iPlayer, says ex-BBC executive Ashley Highfield
Guardian, published: 27.10.09 – 1:56pm
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/oct/27/charge-iplayer-ex-bbc-man

David Lammy calls for pan-European approach to copyright protection
Guardian, published: 27.10.09 – 4:50pm
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/oct/27/david-lammy-copyright-piracy-europe

EMI’s Leoni-Sceti Calls For ‘Three Strikes’ Law
Billboard, published: 27.10.09
http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/content_display/industry/e3icf13d4806aba58dec4e5c162c3a49ff1

Government calls on Europe to clear up copyright
Music Week, published: 27.10.09 - 10:10am
http://www.musicweek.com/story.asp?sectioncode=1&storycode=1039020&c=1

The promise of Creative Britain
Wired UK, published: 27.10.09
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2009-10/27/the-promise-of-creative-britain.aspx

Vivendi head calls for ‘three-strikes’ rule to tackle UK filesharers
Guardian,published: 27.10.09 - 12:07pm
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/oct/27/vivendi-file-sharing-levy

Vivendi CEO says IPO an option for NBC Universal
Reuters, published: 27.10.09 – 7:19pm BJT
http://cn.reuters.com/article/companyNewsEng/idCNLR40433320091027

c&binet conference: Mandelson reveals ‘three strikes’ rule on illegal downloading
Media Week, published: 28.10.09
http://www.mediaweek.co.uk/News/MostEmailed/948962/C-binet-conference-Mandelson-reveals-three-strikes-rule-illegal-downloading/

Cabinet Forum showed that the UK games industry is leading the way in creativity and in business innovation
Games Brief, published: 28.10.09
http://www.gamesbrief.com/2009/10/cabinet-forum-showed-that-the-uk-games-industry-is-leading-the-way-in-creativity-and-particularly-in-business-innovation/

Content is king in digital age, says Simon Fuller
Guardian, published: 28.10.09 – 07:21 am
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/oct/28/simon-fuller

Costs would exceed savings on Mandelson plan, ISPs say - and streaming companies not eager either
Guardian – Technology Blog, published: 28.10.09
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2009/oct/28/costs-piracy-filesharing-mandelson

Julie Meyer: “Content is the New Software”
Real Business, published: 28.10.09
http://www.realbusiness.co.uk/news/finance-and-banking/5711591/julie-meyer-content-is-the-new-software.thtml

Mandelson puts ‘three strikes’ internet plan in motion
ZD Net, published: 28.10.09 – 05:38 pm
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/internet/0,1000000097,39843951,00.htm

Music boss: Mandelson is wrong on internet pirates
Times Online, published: 28.10.09
http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article6894090.ece

Net Pirates to be ‘disconnected’
BBC, published: 28.10.09
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8328820.stm

TV of the future ‘will predict what you want to watch’
Telegraph, published: 28.10.09 – 8:00 am
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/microsoft/6447391/TV-of-the-future-will-predict-what-you-want-to-watch.html

UK Will Urge EC To Legalise Mashups, Format-Shifting, Content Sharing
PaidContent, published: 28.10.09 – 12.48 pm
http://paidcontent.co.uk/article/419-uk-will-urge-ec-to-legalise-mashups-format-shifting-content-sharing/

Cost of Mandelson plan would come to more than savings
Broadband Expert, published: 29.10.09
http://www.broadband-expert.co.uk/blog/broadband-news/cost-of-mandelson-plan-would-come-to-more-than-savings/775021

Government to protect ‘creative’ contractors
Brookson, published: 29.10.09
http://www.brookson.co.uk/news-and-press/19432518/government-to-protect-creative-contractors.aspx

Illegal downloaders face web ban
Press Association, published: 29.10.09
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5iKGD0NALk_5SbufCB4iVJZ7ItQaQ

Is the internet heading for a midlife crisis as it hits its 40th birthday?SC Magazine
SC Magazine, published: 29.10.09
http://www.scmagazineuk.com/Is-the-internet-heading-for-a-midlife-crisis-as-it-hits-its-40th-birthday/article/156440/

JP Rangaswami on Lord Mandelson’s piracy plans
Telegraph, published: 29.10.09
http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/technology/shanerichmond/100004091/jp-rangaswami-on-lord-mandelsons-piracy-plans/

Mandelson delivers on three-strikes warning. But will it make Pirates pay, or drive them underground?
Daily Mail, published: 29.10.09
http://www.pocket-lint.com/news/28333/mandelson-delivers-three-strikes-warning

Peter Mandelson goes to war on web pirates
Daily Mail, published: 29.10.09
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1223718/Peter-Mandelson-goes-war-web-pirates.html

Saving local journalism: some thoughts ahead of C&binet
Onlinejournalism Blog, published: 29.10.09
http://onlinejournalismblog.com/2009/10/29/saving-local-journalism-some-thoughts-ahead-of-cbinet/

TalkTalk Threatens Legal Action Over Mandelson’s File-Sharing Strategy
eWeek Europe, published: 29.10.09
http://www.eweekeurope.co.uk/news/talktalk-threatens-legal-action-over-mandelson-s-file-sharing-strategy-2272

C&binet fever
Nameless Freerange Creatives, published: 26.10.09
http://blog.nameless.co.uk/

C&binet Commentary
Nameless Freerange Creatives, published: 26.10.09
http://blog.nameless.co.uk/

C&binet Creative Infrastructure Thoughts
Nameless Freerange Creatives, published: 26.10.09
http://blog.nameless.co.uk/

Disruption and curiosity: #outofthecloset unconference
Pervasive Media Studio, published: 28.10.09
http://www.pmstudio.co.uk/news/2009/10/28/disruption-and-curiosity-outofthecloset-unconference

A c&binet unconference
Nameless Freerange Creatives, published: 29.10.09
http://blog.nameless.co.uk/

c&binet forum - summary of discussions from the first morning

C&binet | 27 Oct 2009, 13:39

A call to unleash the full extent of Europe’s creative potential ended this morning’s session – one that began by addressing as unproductive the ‘deafness and shouting’ around piracy that has dominated discussion up to now.

Creative Industries minister Siôn Simon, Dame Gail Rebuck of Random House and Chris Clarke of Sapient Nitro debated the shades of grey between the polarised opinion, with a consensus emerging on the necessity of moving forward on a range of fronts – new business models, acceptance of consumer’s mindsets, and proportionate action to protect rights holders.

Vivendi’s Jean-Bernard Levy, interviewed by Amanda Andrews, set out how his company is successfully straddling the content production and distribution worlds, declared the album not dead and dropped a teaser for things to come – gaming guitar heroes exchanging virtual axes for virtual decks with DJ Hero.

Wired’s David Rowan then drew out visions for the near future from the Creative Infrastructure panel – all-seeing, all-knowing TV that responds like a Wii, protective walls around creative businesses coming crashing down, and sexed-up meta data.

The rights issue returned, with Ashley Highfield contrasting the easy march of technological progress against the complexity of liberating content for future exploitation. That before David Rowan asked if piracy isn’t dead in the face of the opportunities opening up for creative leaders prepared to take risks and sail into choppy waters.

As a curtain-raiser for Lord Mandelson’s speech tomorrow, intellectual property minister David Lammy had a dream of a clear, fair and reasonable future where ‘freedom of access is not the same as access for free.’

Odile Quintin, the EU Director General for Education and Culture closed this morning’s session with a call for greater partnerships between the creative industries and educators to unleash the full extent of Europe’s creative potential.

The response so far to the event from the online community has been tremendous, with #cabinetforum trending at one point during the session.

Many thanks. Stay with us for Elio Leoni-Scetifrom EMI Music restarting proceedings before discussions on Free Content and Scale, Risk and Investment.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown welcome message to c&binet forum

C&binet | 26 Oct 2009, 20:16

The Prime Minister welcomes delegates and the online community to c&binet forum:

Creative Industries lead Iceland recovery

Valerie | 25 Sep 2009, 13:55

Iceland’s creative industries are vital to re-building the country’s economy, Iceland’s minister for Industry has told delegates in a welcome address at the country’s You Are In Control conference.

Now in its third year, YAIC explores the latest digital business developments and investment available in music, media and the arts, focusing on new business models, the impact of the digital revolution on in the creative industries and how today’s creatives can work together – all key areas that will be addressed at the c&binet forum next month.

According to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OLED) Iceland’s economy is set for a slow but nascent recovery early next year. The OLED projects Iceland’s economic contraction at around 7 percent this year and has forecast a 0.8 percent contraction in GDP for 2010.

Having faced its deepest recession in decades and the complete collapse of its banking system, it is welcome news and demonstrates the economic potential of creative industries both in Iceland and in countries such as China and the UK, where creative sectors have become engines for regional economic development.

Iceland has long been famed for its natural beauty and in recent years its unusual landscape has attracted Hollywood movies and seen its profile grow in the international film industry, aided by films such as Stardust, Batman Begins and James Bond: Die Another Day, whilst the achievements of Björk and Sigur Ros have put Iceland firmly on the map of International Music.

Concluding his address, Katrín Júlíusdóttir, the Minister of Industry, Energy and Tourism said:

“We must get the message across that we are more than geysers, volcanos, waterfalls - and now fallen banks. Here you will also find creative people, culture and modern industries.
“... the government hopes (to) join forces with creative industries, the tourist industry and other important players to reshape the way we approach international marketing of Iceland as the source of culture, goods and services, as a destination and as a country to operate and invest in.”

Augmented reality: reality only better

Valerie | 18 Sep 2009, 08:56

Imagine a world where clouds of information—Facebook statuses, business cards, Twitter posts—float above your head as you walk down the street. It might sound like something straight out of the Matrix but if its plaudits would have it, Augmented Reality is set to transform our lives.

As Business Week and many others have reported, the concept of Augmented Reality, or overlaying the real world with text or images seen via a mobile phone’s camera or a Web cam on a PC, has gained a lot of attention in recent months.

Car manufacturers such as BMW and Toyota have used the technique to show off their latest models, whilst games developers have embedded it in their programming, creating Hidden Park for example, an iPhone app that uses the phone’s camera, accelerometer and GPS to create a fantasy game set in real locations: local parks. With tech companies from IBM to Microsoft and Nokia developing mobile-phone software and services in this space, the hype has continued to gain momentum.

As the Economist points out, AR has in fact, been around for a few years, but with the global release last August of a significantly expanded version of an AR application called Layar - dubbed the world’s first augmented reality browser – the field has been energised by the ability to implement AR using mobile smartphones.

And with virtual reality never really living up to hype, AR is being touted as the next big thing for advertisers, gamers and tech geeks alike.

According to this FT article, with the advertising sector facing cyclical and structural upheavals, advertisers are currently rethinking their business models as they try to keep pace with consumer appetite for digital and social media experimentation.

Unsurprisingly, advertisers are viewing AR as the latest new tool for brands to engage with their consumers, with its endless possibilities for direct, personal interaction.

Ian Pearson, a futurologist with Futurizon envisages an age in which everyone “views the world through the prism of enhanced reality”, which will not only draw on data about the world around us, but also combine this with our personal interests and preferences, enabling advertisers for example to target discounts and offers specifically as part of your personalised, augmented reality.

We have clearly just seen the beginning of what AR apps can do. As the dividing lines between the real and digital worlds continue to blur, its potential will undoubtedly become even more compelling.

AR Apps

E-week’s list of “10 Augmented Reality Apps you need to know about”
Urban friendly AR apps
Marketers pick their favourite AR apps

Google book deal prompts EU copyright law overhaul

Valerie | 09 Sep 2009, 19:08

Google’s controversial plan to digitise the world’s leading libraries took on a European dimension this week when Brussels announced a campaign to overhaul copyright law in the European Union’s 27 countries admist fears of trailing the US in digitising culture.

European commissioners Viviane Reding and Charlie McCreevey acknowledged the need to adapt Europe’s fragmented copyright legislation in a joint statement:

“If we don’t reform our European copyright rules on orphan works and libraries swiftly, digitisation and the development of attractive content offers won’t take place in Europe, but on the other side of the Atlantic.”

Although a 2005 class-action lawsuit by authors and publishers against Google led to $125m settlement and agreement on profit sharing, the agreement still needs US court approval. The long running battle has seen fierce opposition from Amazon, Microsoft, Yahoo and the German and French governments, as well as authors and their heirs, including the estates of Philip K Dick and John Steinbeck.

Microsoft warned today that the deal would give Google a stranglehold on the nascent digital book market:

“The proposed settlement confers on Google a new monopoly by authorising Google (and Google alone) to engage in the wholesale commercial exploitation of entire copyrighted books.“

Writing for the Huffington Post, David Balto, a senior Fellow at think-tank American Progress, believes that the benefits far outweigh the negatives – in this case, the anti-trust issue:

“Just as Google search (and other search engines) have revolutionised access to information, the Books project will serve as a democratising force across socioeconomic and geographic” he writes.

The ongoing battle undoubtedly brings the European copyright system into sharp focus. And as Google awaits a court ruling next month, the copyright landscape in Europe remains complex, with 27 different copyright regimes within the EU.

“We need to take a hard look at the copyright system we have today in Europe,“ the commissioners said. “Is the present framework still fit for the digital age? Will the current set of rules give consumers across Europe access to digitised books? Will it guarantee fair remuneration for authors? Will it ensure a level playing field for digitisation across Europe, or is there still too much fragmentation following national borders?“