Britain Exits EU, What Does The Music Industry Have To Say?

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Music Industry speaks up on Britain’s planned exit from EU…

Last night, after 43 long years of being part of the European Union, Britain voted itself out. 52% voted to leave the EU, with the remainder voting to stay. Below are responses from trade bodies, IFPI, BPI and AIM in the music industry.

Frances Moore, CEO of International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) released a statement, which reads…

”As an international recording industry, with businesses across all 28 EU Member States, the interest of our sector was for the UK to remain in the European Union. The decision of the UK to leave the EU creates a great deal of uncertainty which could last for a considerable time. In this difficult period, IFPI will continue to work hard to ensure that our members’ interests are best represented on all the issues we deal with.”  

Geoff Taylor, Chief Executive of The British Phonographic Industry (BPI) & BRIT Awards released a statement…

“The outcome of the EU Referendum will come as a surprise to many across the music community, who will be concerned by the economic uncertainty that lies ahead and the impact this may have on business prospects.

“However, the UK public has spoken, and once the short-term political and macro-economic consequences have played out, this decision will mean new priorities for the music industry in our work with Government. We will, of course, press the Government to swiftly negotiate trade deals that will ensure unimpeded access to EU markets for our music and our touring artists. Our Government will also now have the opportunity to legislate for stronger domestic copyright rules that encourage investment here in the UK and which will protect UK creators from piracy and from tech platforms siphoning off value through copyright loopholes. We are confident that British music will remain hugely popular across Europe and we will work hard to make sure UK labels are able to capitalise on that demand.”

Alison Wenham, CEO of The Association of Independent Music (AIM) also released a statement, which  reads…

“Following today’s result on Brexit AIM will liaise closely with our members, other trade bodies and colleagues across the music industry to ensure that the strength and standing of the independent music community in the international marketplace is not diminished by these events.”

(Image by Fernando Butcher, Creative Commons, Attribution 2.0 Generic, cc by 2.0)