Full speech by Ubane Uzin:
“Good evening, and welcome to this NEW edition of the Independent Music Awards,
organized once again by UFi, in the year of its tenth anniversary.
It is no coincidence that in the last two or three decades, associations such as UFi
have emerged in almost all countries that produce, have produced or aspire to
produce recordings of local music. The majors have neglected the work of
discovery and development of local and niche recording artists almost entirely,
replacing the traditional music industry with a fight for market share and control –
of media, channels of distribution and even collective management organisations –
through the tactic of eating everything in their way; first old independent catalogs,
then current, then smaller majors... A game of Pacman, which currently has three
winners. And careful; not one of them being at heart, in its soul, in its DNA, or
simply, or even primarily, a record label.
As a result, creators, composers, musicians, singers, small businesses and music
lovers, the fans, all find themselves in a different mindset. Our concerns are simply
different. In Madrid, Oviedo, Lleida, Las Palmas, Lima, London, Los Angeles or
Ludwigsberg, we are the same, but it is a distinct activity compared to that of the
market leaders.
The logical, and challenging, thing to do is to unite. We do it – all different, all
equal; we are suddenly more than an alternative, we are, already, all the
diversity. And already we all work in a market that can potentially be worldwide,
and in theory we have the opportunity to convey our ideas on a global scale, as the
means to do so are also global.
But let us ponder the moment. The dream of internet seen as a field without doors
where imagination, ideas and the music flow freely, has faded. There are two,
three companies at most, who keep the doors of internet. The Holy Trinity:
welcome to the new paradigm. And these corporations, which have almost
completely eliminated the stores that sold music only, operate with the protection
of laws that had been designed to protect small start-ups fifteen years ago, in
addition to having opaque accounting systems that confer impunity before national
financial authorities, are likewise, companies which do not have as their principal
objective, the distribution of great music to music lovers.
After fifteen years of digital revolution, we find that the new status quo has turned
out to be the law of the strongest. And the only way to protect the music and the
musicians is to unite. But even a consolidated association such as UFi cannot
defend itself alone against these giants; neither UFi, nor the American association
nor the French association. We depend on IMPALA’s coordination with the European
Union and the global brotherhood of local associations that is WIN.
Our arguments are strong. Thanks to them, we have had vital successes while
fighting concentration in the music sector, such as the case of the purchase of EMI
by Universal by the European Union or in negotiations for a fair recognition and
compensation of our rights by Apple or MTV. Together we are kept informed of
what is happening in the rest of the world, we can organise joint actions, and
ultimately we can fight to defend the rights of small labels against market
dominance or intimidation.
And now, the independent labels and artists of this world are facing yet another
challenge. The all-too-common story of a powerhouse trying to force workers to
deliver the fruits of their labor as cheaply as possible.
Today, it is difficult to imagine a stronger or a more impressive company than
Google, the by-default leader in the field of information. Google is an economic
power and a political influence, it is everywhere and its very business is us; our
concerns, our interests, our dreams and our passions.
In 2006, while Ufi was still in its infancy, Google acquired YouTube. Since then,
this platform has become the largest service in the world of music - an assertion it
would be difficult to contradict. But, unlike services such as Deezer, Spotify or
iTunes, YouTube has reached this size it has today without conducting negotiations
with the creators of music, acting under a law designed at the start of the new
millennium with the intent to protect small businesses from the demands of large
free storage providers over the creations and intellectual property; turning the Act
into a “de facto” license contract.
YouTube is not a music company, nor does it pretend to be one. Unlike those
named above, it is not a service dedicated solely to disseminating and promoting
music.
But it does want to offer a streaming music service. What it doesn’t want, perhaps
because it is unused to the process, to negotiate conditions with the creators of
the music. Yet, the YouTube strategy is always quite simple: accept their
conditions without negotiations or be locked out of the game altogether.
YouTube does not produce anything: it is the agglomerator “par excellence”, of
content created by others, often initially intended for sale or licence to other
services. From this privileged position, its only intention is to put an end to the
competing services.
Independent labels are investors who give the vast majority of all new music a
chance to be heard. Our rights as workers, as well as the rights of musicians whose
works we put at the disposal of music lovers, also include the right to say no,
without just compensation. And both IMPALA and WIN are here to help us to defend
these basic human rights.
And this is why, this year, we are awarding the Prize named after our founder,
Mario Pacheco, to these two organizations represented in this ceremony by Helen
Smith, Executive Chair of IMPALA.”