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Tag: EEMA

  • Government to launch centralised digital music licensing registry within two months

    Government to launch centralised digital music licensing registry within two months

    NEW DELHI:  India’s information and broadcasting ministry will roll out a centralised digital music licensing registry by October 2025, in partnership with rights societies, as part of a wider push to unlock the country’s live entertainment sector.

    The decision was sealed at the inaugural meeting of the joint working group (JWG) on promoting live events, chaired on 26 August at the National Media Centre by Sanjay Jaju, secretary in the information and broadcasting ministry.

    Officials from the ministries of culture, youth affairs and sports, skill development, finance and DPIIT joined, alongside the Sports Authority of India and state governments from Maharashtra, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka. Industry bodies Ficci, CII, Eema and Ilea sat across the table from companies including BookMyShow, Wizcraft, Saregama, District by Zomato and Touchwood Entertainment. Rights societies IPRS, PPL, RMPL and IMI Trust were also present.

    Key outcomes included integrating live-event approvals into the India Cine Hub portal to cut red tape, drafting a model policy for multi-use of stadiums and public spaces, and embedding live-entertainment skills in the national skills framework. Financial incentives—from GST rebates and blended finance to subsidies and MSME recognition—were also discussed.

    Prime minister Narendra Modi has recently described live entertainment as an engine for jobs, tourism and cultural influence. The sector was worth Rs 20,861 crore in 2024 and is growing at 15 per cent annually, buoyed by demand in tier-one and tier-two cities and a rising appetite for music tourism.

    Jaju said the government’s target is to place India among the world’s top five live-entertainment destinations by 2030, with potential to create 15–20m jobs. “The JWG will work to harness the concert economy as a driver of infrastructure growth, employment, tourism and soft power,” he said.

    The JWG was formed in July on the orders of union I&B minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. It will meet regularly to review progress and feed policy recommendations, building on the white paper India’s Live Events Economy: A Strategic Growth Imperative unveiled at the Waves 2025 summit.

  • EEMA requests govt to cover cost of salaries, refund taxes for cos impacted by COVID-19

    EEMA requests govt to cover cost of salaries, refund taxes for cos impacted by COVID-19

    MUMBAI: Around 52.91 per cent of event and entertainment companies saw 90 per cent of their business being cancelled between March-July 2020, reveals a new member survey, conducted with 170 companies by the Events and Entertainment Management Association (EEMA). The report highlights the loss of business, the revenue impacted, employers affected and the funds required in the long run to attain stability during COVID-19. The findings of this report have been shared with “The Government of India” and “Ernst & Young” team

    Recently EEMA had filed a petition appealing to the government of India to intervene with measures to support the lives of the 60 million Indians the event industry employs – directly and indirectly.

    The report also highlighted that around 107 companies have suffered from a revenue loss of up to Rs 1 crore and around seven companies envisage a 50-80 per cent retrenchment of their current workforce and 35 between 25 per cent and 50 per cent. The ideal working capital/loan expected to keep afloat for the next six months is around Rs 2-5 crore for 39 companies and Rs 1-2 crore for 118 companies. Around 97 companies will need to raise capital or debt from institutions or shareholders, VC funding etc.

    EEMA has also requested the Government of India to consider releasing, with immediately effect, all tax refunds that are due including income tax and TDS for the industry, cover the cost of salaries/ daily wages, etc., for those infected by COVID 19 and unable to return to work, collateral-free line of credit to be used for employee’s salaries and statutory dues, and a moratorium of payback on loans, interest for a period of 9-12 months

    Further, it has suggested industry-wide reconstruction measures, including paying all dues to companies who have executed work orders for the government of India, public sector and for state governments, zero or minimal-interest loans to be made available by the department of MSME for the fiscal year 2020, government-initiated projects should replace the need of bank guarantees with corporate guarantees, loans to be provided for loss-making companies against future contractual work, instruct insurance companies to insure future events and activities against COVID-19 or similar medical/ biological disasters in addition to existing natural disasters, covering the cost of salaries/ daily wages of employees laid off for a period of 90 days minimum, and reduction of GST on entertainment and cultural events to 12 per cent  and the arts and entertainment segment may be covered

    The event and entertainment industry is going through challenging times since the outbreak of the coronavirus. The economic disruption has led businesses across various sectors to see a huge downfall in their growth. The worst affected are the event industry who are witnessing a major dip in their business due to the cancellation of events worldwide. Due to which, there has been a significant spike in the number of webinars, online discussions and live chats to keep the industry active. However, the daily wage workers and the small and medium scale agencies associated with the trade are facing the brunt and need immediate support, both from the events community and the government.

    The 170 member survey represents over a 1,00,000 of companies that were affected by this pandemic and EEMA urges the government to consider some steps  like the immediate payout of all income tax refunds, which have been due for a while, and the due payment from the central and state governments to event companies for work done or work-in-progress.

    EEMA president Sanjoy K Roy said, “The COVID-19 pandemic will impact the entire business community, and our team is focused on ensuring the health and safety of our employees. Industries have already faced an interlocking set of financial challenges for which we filed a petition to the government of India. The sectors are getting into a financial crisis which might soon result in increasing unemployment ratios. We hope that the Government takes the required decision which can help the country to survive with the results of the pandemic.”

  • Laqshya’s Event Capital wins EEMAX global award

    Laqshya’s Event Capital wins EEMAX global award

    MUMBAI: Event Capital (a Laqshya Media company) has won the award for the ‘Best New IP’ and for the‘Best Integrated Marketing Communications for an IP’ for its intellectual property Bollywood Music Project (BMP).

    BMP curates experimental Bollywood music through Bollywood’s biggest headliners for South Asian Hindi-speaking digital audience, globally.

    In its debut season, BMP took place in Mumbai and Delhi on 30 September and 1 October, 2016, and 25 and 26 March 2017 respectively where over 100 of the biggest names in Bollywood music including Arijit Singh, Amit Trivedi, Vishal and Shekhar, Rekha Bharadwaj, Badshah, Raftaar, Neeti Mohan and Sachin Jigar, along with over 400 musicians performed to a crowd of over 50,000 in a multi-stage, multi-genre format.

    Digitally, BMP has engaged over 80 million fans in Season 1.

    The Event and Entertainment Management Association (EEMA) is an autonomous and non-profit registered body of companies, institutions and professionals operating within the events and experiential marketing industry of India.

    The award in the ‘Best New IP’ category was received by Swaroop Banerjee (CEO, Event Capital), Deepak Choudhary (founder and director, Event Capital) and Tarsame Mittal (founder, TM Talent Management). The award for the latter was accepted by Megha Ghosh (vice president, Branded IP and Content and head of digital initiatives at Event Capital), Sahil Gupta (vice president and business head at Event Capital) and Alaap Gosher (entertainment consultant, TM Talent Management).

  • Licence fee payable to copyright owners; HC ‘no’ to vacate injunction

    Licence fee payable to copyright owners; HC ‘no’ to vacate injunction

    NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court vacation judge Justice Najmi Waziri has declined to vacate the injunction obtained by Event and Entertainment Management Association (EEMA) from the court earlier this month against collection of licence fees by the Indian Performing Rights Society, the Phonographic Performance Ltd and Novex.

    However, the court gave directions whereby a complete list of performances would be kept for which payments are claimed and these will be subject to the final outcome of the petition by EEMA.

    Earlier, on 23 December 2016, Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva had accepted that IPRS, PPL, and Novex were not registered copyright societies under section 33 of the Copyright Act, and had therefore restrained them from collecting any licence fee from performers or performing societies. He listed the matter for further hearing on 24 April 2017.

    EEMA had filed caveats in the event of these bodies seeking to challenge the restraint order and were therefore present in court when the challenge came up before the vacation bench.

    The vacation bench said for the interim period, EEMA members / the event organizer will provide PPL/IPRS/Novex a list of songs that they intend to play before an event on mail. PPL / IPRS / Novex will thereafter need to confirm in writing if they own the tracks.

    The event organisers will pay the amount before the event as per mutual negotiation with the copyright owner. The License issuing company/entity shall provide proof by way of legal agreements within seven days of the invoice, to the satisfaction of the event organiser. In case the event organiser is not satisfied by the proof provided, a refund can be claimed through the courts. The money will not be appropriated till such time that the matter is mutually resolved  

    Thus, copyright licence fees can only be collected under Section 30 which is reserved for owners of the copyright with the clear proviso that, when called upon to do so, they need to prove their ownership.

    Additionally, PPL/IPRS/Novex were asked to put up a detailed list on their website listing all songs they own, including the names of the authors / producers they have acquired them from along with the dates of validity of the contract till 31 March 2016.

    In addition to this, the licensing companies have to upload the valid legal agreements by which they claim ownership of these tracks by 31 December 2016.

    In the order that came after hearing EEMA counsel Ramji Srinivasan and Ashwani Kumar for the respondents, the Court instructed PPL/IPRS/Novex to set up an online payment gateway within one month of this hearing wherein we will be able to easily obtain permissions online.

    In a statement issued later, EEMA described the order as ‘very positive’ in the direction of transparency and accountability that EEMA and the creative fraternity across the music industry has been fighting for.

    The statement added that EEMA believes that copyright fees should be paid to the rightful creators and owners of copyright in a transparent and reasonable manner so that the rightful owners should receive their due and the rates being charged are logical and reasonable.

    Also Read:

    Court orders stay on music licensing societies from collecting royalties ahead of New Year

     

  • Licence fee payable to copyright owners; HC ‘no’ to vacate injunction

    Licence fee payable to copyright owners; HC ‘no’ to vacate injunction

    NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court vacation judge Justice Najmi Waziri has declined to vacate the injunction obtained by Event and Entertainment Management Association (EEMA) from the court earlier this month against collection of licence fees by the Indian Performing Rights Society, the Phonographic Performance Ltd and Novex.

    However, the court gave directions whereby a complete list of performances would be kept for which payments are claimed and these will be subject to the final outcome of the petition by EEMA.

    Earlier, on 23 December 2016, Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva had accepted that IPRS, PPL, and Novex were not registered copyright societies under section 33 of the Copyright Act, and had therefore restrained them from collecting any licence fee from performers or performing societies. He listed the matter for further hearing on 24 April 2017.

    EEMA had filed caveats in the event of these bodies seeking to challenge the restraint order and were therefore present in court when the challenge came up before the vacation bench.

    The vacation bench said for the interim period, EEMA members / the event organizer will provide PPL/IPRS/Novex a list of songs that they intend to play before an event on mail. PPL / IPRS / Novex will thereafter need to confirm in writing if they own the tracks.

    The event organisers will pay the amount before the event as per mutual negotiation with the copyright owner. The License issuing company/entity shall provide proof by way of legal agreements within seven days of the invoice, to the satisfaction of the event organiser. In case the event organiser is not satisfied by the proof provided, a refund can be claimed through the courts. The money will not be appropriated till such time that the matter is mutually resolved  

    Thus, copyright licence fees can only be collected under Section 30 which is reserved for owners of the copyright with the clear proviso that, when called upon to do so, they need to prove their ownership.

    Additionally, PPL/IPRS/Novex were asked to put up a detailed list on their website listing all songs they own, including the names of the authors / producers they have acquired them from along with the dates of validity of the contract till 31 March 2016.

    In addition to this, the licensing companies have to upload the valid legal agreements by which they claim ownership of these tracks by 31 December 2016.

    In the order that came after hearing EEMA counsel Ramji Srinivasan and Ashwani Kumar for the respondents, the Court instructed PPL/IPRS/Novex to set up an online payment gateway within one month of this hearing wherein we will be able to easily obtain permissions online.

    In a statement issued later, EEMA described the order as ‘very positive’ in the direction of transparency and accountability that EEMA and the creative fraternity across the music industry has been fighting for.

    The statement added that EEMA believes that copyright fees should be paid to the rightful creators and owners of copyright in a transparent and reasonable manner so that the rightful owners should receive their due and the rates being charged are logical and reasonable.

    Also Read:

    Court orders stay on music licensing societies from collecting royalties ahead of New Year

     

  • India’s AdEx revised to Rs 62,483 cr. by EEMA; includes ‘experiential’ with 13.6 per cent share

    India’s AdEx revised to Rs 62,483 cr. by EEMA; includes ‘experiential’ with 13.6 per cent share

    MUMBAI: ‘Experiential Marketing’ or the concept of creating a bond between the consumer and the brand beyond ‘buying and selling’ by immersing them in an experience, is an underrated and underrepresented form of marketing, several marketers guiltily admit.

    Historically they have shied away from accepting experiential as a separate media to spend on, due to the dearth of representative figures, measurement challenges  and studies done on the subject.

    Off-late things have changed and experts observe that experiential marketing is increasingly becoming part of the popular marketing conversation, thanks to the acceptance of digital and the advent of several new technologies.

    This has led to several industry bodies to sit up and take notice, and do a quantitative evaluation of the sector.  In fact a recent report on the sector released at the EEMAX Conclave 2016 has raised India’s estimated total adex for 2016-2017 to Rs 62,483 cr by including an additional ad ex of Rs 8,483 cr represented by experiential marketing.  

    As per a report compiled by Business World and Tstratoo, in partnership with Event and Entertainment Management Association (EEMA),  between 2014 and 2016 the experiential marketing industry has seen an estimated 16 to 17 per cent growth.

    The EY-EEMA report for 2014-2015 assessed the experiential marketing industry size to be worth Rs 6250 cr in terms of revenue out of which Rs 3750 cr represented the organised sector and Rs 2500, the unorganised sector. Estimates for its 2015-2016 report pegs the industry at Rs 7281 cr, showing a growing increase in the representation of the organised sector. It amounted to Rs 4,369 of the total worth in 15-16 financial year.

    EY-EEMA predicts sector’s growth

    Identifying ‘experiential’ as a whole new media segment in which marketers are investing their media budget, the study further provides an advertisement expenditure break-up.

    FICCI-KPMG report predicts India’s total AdEx to reach Rs 54000 cr in the year 2016.  Citing that advertising spend in the experiential marketing sector doesn’t feature in the major industry reports like FICCI-KPMG, GroupM’s TYNY and Pitch Madison, the report takes the liberty to include the estimated Rs 8,483 in the total adex, increasing it to Rs 62,483.

    public://chart.jpg

    Upon consulting the report with marketing expert and Maxus experiential marketing national direct Vidur Patney, he said, “It is a disorganised and fragmented sector. Not many firms have a process or are part of larger groups to ensure that the quoted figures are spot on to be used in such researches. While I trust EY, the numbers are what companies say, and are seldom validated.”

     

  • India’s AdEx revised to Rs 62,483 cr. by EEMA; includes ‘experiential’ with 13.6 per cent share

    India’s AdEx revised to Rs 62,483 cr. by EEMA; includes ‘experiential’ with 13.6 per cent share

    MUMBAI: ‘Experiential Marketing’ or the concept of creating a bond between the consumer and the brand beyond ‘buying and selling’ by immersing them in an experience, is an underrated and underrepresented form of marketing, several marketers guiltily admit.

    Historically they have shied away from accepting experiential as a separate media to spend on, due to the dearth of representative figures, measurement challenges  and studies done on the subject.

    Off-late things have changed and experts observe that experiential marketing is increasingly becoming part of the popular marketing conversation, thanks to the acceptance of digital and the advent of several new technologies.

    This has led to several industry bodies to sit up and take notice, and do a quantitative evaluation of the sector.  In fact a recent report on the sector released at the EEMAX Conclave 2016 has raised India’s estimated total adex for 2016-2017 to Rs 62,483 cr by including an additional ad ex of Rs 8,483 cr represented by experiential marketing.  

    As per a report compiled by Business World and Tstratoo, in partnership with Event and Entertainment Management Association (EEMA),  between 2014 and 2016 the experiential marketing industry has seen an estimated 16 to 17 per cent growth.

    The EY-EEMA report for 2014-2015 assessed the experiential marketing industry size to be worth Rs 6250 cr in terms of revenue out of which Rs 3750 cr represented the organised sector and Rs 2500, the unorganised sector. Estimates for its 2015-2016 report pegs the industry at Rs 7281 cr, showing a growing increase in the representation of the organised sector. It amounted to Rs 4,369 of the total worth in 15-16 financial year.

    EY-EEMA predicts sector’s growth

    Identifying ‘experiential’ as a whole new media segment in which marketers are investing their media budget, the study further provides an advertisement expenditure break-up.

    FICCI-KPMG report predicts India’s total AdEx to reach Rs 54000 cr in the year 2016.  Citing that advertising spend in the experiential marketing sector doesn’t feature in the major industry reports like FICCI-KPMG, GroupM’s TYNY and Pitch Madison, the report takes the liberty to include the estimated Rs 8,483 in the total adex, increasing it to Rs 62,483.

    public://chart.jpg

    Upon consulting the report with marketing expert and Maxus experiential marketing national direct Vidur Patney, he said, “It is a disorganised and fragmented sector. Not many firms have a process or are part of larger groups to ensure that the quoted figures are spot on to be used in such researches. While I trust EY, the numbers are what companies say, and are seldom validated.”

     

  • Delhi govt approves online entertainment tax application for ticketed events

    Delhi govt approves online entertainment tax application for ticketed events

    MUMBAI: The Delhi Govt approved the first online application for Entertainment Tax on 23 September, 2015 based on a post-event settlement, which is a major breakthrough for the events and entertainment industry.

     

    The approval was done online in a record time of two hours, where previously the same could take several months.

     

    In August this year, The Event and Entertainment Management Association (EEMA) in collaboration with the Govt. of Delhi and the Police department of Delhi took several steps to simplify licensing for events and eliminate red tape and touts. A process was put into place whereby EEMA member companies can do ticketed events in the national capital without paying entertainment tax before the event. The first achievement in this direction is the online approval for the soon-to-be-held Zubin Mehta concert in Delhi.

     

    The development entails a single-window approval system, which is online for all non-ticketed events. Large ticketed events are likely to make their way back to the capital as the partnership between EEMA and the Delhi government has led to an online approval system for ticketed events too with elimination of pre-payment of tax, pre-event stamping of tickets and blockage of funds for tax payments.

     

    EEMA president and Wizcraft International founder director Sabbas Joseph said, “We are delighted to see our enduring efforts come to life and turn into reality. This is just one door open and still a major step ahead. Alongside the path breaking steps by the Delhi government, the Maharashtra Chief Minister Mr Devendra Fadnavis too has announced that venues would have pre-approved licenses and a single–window clearance system would be implemented shortly. We hope that the efforts of the CMs  from Delhi and Maharashtra pave the way for similar moves across the country.”

     

    The first ticketed show under this new licensing regime would be a concert by maestro Zubin Mehta performing live in Delhi after 15 years. The approvals were given online in less than two hours on 23 September, 2015.

     

    The show will be produced by Showtime Events. “I could not have imagined this speed of action in my wildest dreams! It seems the Commissioner means business and is determined to change the face of entertainment in Delhi,” said Showtime Events managing director Michael Menezes. 

     

    Due to antiquated tax rules and strangulating licensing norms in Delhi, companies were loathe to hold events and shows in the city and instead preferred Gurgaon or Noida as locations for the event staging.

     

    Earlier this year, The Delhi Government was forthcoming and eager to make Delhi India’s event-friendly capital city. Following a detailed EEMA representation and persistent efforts, the Delhi government moved at a rapid pace in streamlining the licensing process in Delhi and yielding promising results for the event industry. The Delhi Govt. also appointed antiquated tax rules and strangulating licensing norms commissioner Sanjay Kumar as the nodal officer for creation of the single-window licensing process, with an eye on ease-of-doing-business.

     

    What’s more, the complimentary ticket scenario has also got a thumbs down. Leading the way, Kejriwal publicly declared that no minister or MLA of his party will ever ask for free tickets to any event or movie.

  • EEMA & NCT Government to simplify licensing events in Delhi; talks on with Maharashtra

    EEMA & NCT Government to simplify licensing events in Delhi; talks on with Maharashtra

    NEW DELHI: The Delhi Government has appointed a nodal officer for creation of a single-window licensing process for entertainment programmes.

     

    This has come after prolonged negotiations between the Event and Entertainment Management Association (EEMA) with the Delhi Government. 

     

    The aim was to create a conducive process for license acquisition for events in the nation’s capital.

     

    The State Government has also agreed that EEMA member companies can do ticketed events in Delhi without paying entertainment tax in advance.

     

    The decision was preceded by a series of meetings between the National Executive Committee of EEMA and the Delhi government led by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and Tourism Minister Kapil Mishra. 

     

    Following a detailed EEMA representation, the Chief Minister appointed a nodal officer to engage with EEMA and find solutions in the shortest possible time.

     

    Commenting on the achievement, EEMA president Sabbas Joseph said, “Through the proactive approach of the Delhi government and EEMA, positive results with regards to licensing have started to show yielding a win – win situation for the entire events and experiential marketing industry. This is a big step towards making Delhi an event-friendly city.”

     

    EEMA treasurer Rajeev Jain added, “This is indeed a big bold step by the Delhi Govt. & Dept. of Entertainment Tax. Change in the Entertainment Tax depositing framework for EEMA members is certainly a big gift to the industry and number of ticketed & corporate events in the city will see an increase. This directive is a first step to make Delhi an event-friendly city and reinforces the role of the Event Industry as a major stakeholder in the city’s growth.”

     

    Through regular interactions with the Delhi Government and Commissioner – Excise, Entertainment & Luxury Tax, the following directives have been issued:

     

    Ticketed Events in Delhi

     

    ?  EEMA members will now be able to organize their ticketed events in Delhi without submitting any entertainment tax before the event.

     

    ?  Tax as per the ticket sale can be deposited after the completion of the event. Earlier this was to be done prior to ticket selling permissions being given.

     

    ?  To facilitate this arrangement, EEMA shall enter into an MOU with the Department of Entertainment Tax.

     

    ?  EEMA similarly would formulate guidelines for its members availing of this facility.

     

    ?  EEMA will also be submitting a Bank Guarantee of a stipulated amount as a surety on behalf of its members.

     

    Licensed Auditoriums under single window clearance

     

    ?  23 auditoriums in the city have been issued a permanent license for holding an event. More such venues are under consideration.

     

    Single Window Clearance: Reducing Licensing Hurdles

     

    ?  The government is in the process of bringing Entertainment Tax, Fire, Municipal authorities and Electricity under the purview of a single-window clearance.

     

    EEMA seeks to bring together the country’s leading event, sports management and brand activation companies, MICE and wedding planners, experiential marketers, entertainment professionals, artist management companies and international counterparts on the same platform.

     

    EEMA along with its key constituents is also engaged in similar discussions with the Maharashtra government and several other states with a view on easing the business processes and thereby generating growth in events featuring culture, music, dance, cinema and art.

  • Phase 1 all set to start operations in Mumbai

    Phase 1 all set to start operations in Mumbai

    MUMBAI: Phase 1, an experiential marketing agency based out of Bangalore has announced the launch of their full-fledged Mumbai operations. This office will be a hub to expand the company’s reach to the western region of India and offer clients the Phase 1 trademark expertise.

     

    Phase 1 founder and managing director Oum Pradutt said, “Phase 1’s expansion to Mumbai is a result of the path-breaking projects that the company has executed for niche brands.  In Mumbai, the company has seen exponential growth in the past years and has conceptualised and executed some memorable events. We would like to extend this expertise to our Mumbai clientele.”

     

    Phase 1 brings with it over 18 years of expertise in event and experiential solutions, executed both in India and internationally.

     

    The company headed by Pradutt, who is also vice president south for event and entertainment management association (EEMA) and member of the national executive committee (NEC), EEMA, has grown strength to strength since inception and is constantly diversifying into niche businesses and international markets.

     

    “Phase 1’s operations are not restricted to events alone, though that is the core area of expertise. In keeping with the global economic and business trends we have diversified our portfolio to include MICE (meetings incentives, conferences, exhibitions) and IP (Intellectual Property),” informed Pradutt.

     

    The MICE sector in 2010 was valued at a phenomenal US $5.7 trillion, and with India’s strategic position as one of the top growing economies in the world,  MICE is the new dimension in events and experiential marketing programs, catering to high end clientele.

     

    “Phase 1 has in its portfolio an eclectic mix of both lifestyle and numerous corporate events, as we diversify into niche sectors, like MICE and IP. In the coming years Phase 1 will focus on expanding its international business portfolio. The fact that we have established and expanded our base in two years, speaks volumes of the region’s potential and growing demand for quality agencies with creative edge,” he added. “We are excited at the prospects and are here for the long run. We firmly believe that experiential marketing programs are very powerful media for marketing brands,” Pradutt informed.