MIDEM 2012: GEMA and DMV host a sparkling wine reception

Hans-Joachim Otto, Parliamentary State Secretary, Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology, Member of the German Bundestag, gave the welcoming speech to the numerous guests at Germany's joint stand. In his speech he also pointed out the problems online piracy present in Germany: "In the meantime, consumers can access online more than 10 million titles. However, according to the industry's estimates more than 300 million songs were still illegally downloaded from the Internet in 2010. The effective enforcement of copyright law therefore, and understandably so, continues to be an important issue for the industry." Dr. Harald Heker, CEO of GEMA, referred to the new GEMA rates for ad-funded streaming services and fee-based music-on-demand products in his closing speech: "With these new rates, GEMA has created the foundation for a rate system, which practically covers all of the uses and business models in the area of music-on-demand." Dagmar Sikorski, president of DMV and a member of GEMA's Supervisory Board, emphasized how important it is to recognize music not only as a cultural asset, but also as a sector of the economy. She said, "Functional copyright laws are, however, prerequisites for economic success." Here is an overview of additional events organized by GEMA at MIDEM: Jan. 30, 2012    Panel "Lost property – the future of collective rights 
                             management in the E.U."
                             10:00 - 11:00 a.m., Auditorium J, Palais des Festivals
                             Participants:
                             Ansgar Heveling, Member of the German Bundestag (CDU)
                             Kerstin Jorna, Deputy Head of Cabinet of European
                             Commissioner Michel Barnier
                             Alfons Karabuda, Executive Chairman ECSA
                             Kenth Muldin, CEO STIM, CISAC Board of Directors
                             Dr. Harald Heker, CEO GEMA
                             Presenter: Manfred Gillig-Degrave, chief editor Musikwoche Jan. 30, 2012    Lunch at the restaurant "Plage Ondine"
                             1:00 p.m., Boulevard de la Croisette, Plage No 15
                             Speakers:
                             Dagmar Sikorski, President DMV, Board of Supervisors GEMA
                             Dr. Harald Heker, CEO GEMA
                             Hans-Joachim Otto, Parliamentary State Secretary, Federal
                             Ministry of Economics and Technology, Member of the
                             German Bundestag
                             By invitation only GEMA represents in Germany the copyrights of more than 64,000 members (composers, text authors, and music publishers), as well as over two million copyright owners from all over the world. It is one of the largest societies for authors of music works in the world. Press/media contact:
Bettina Müller, director of marketing & communication
E-mail: bmueller@gema.de, telephone: +49 89 48003 - 426