Six Ways The Australian Music Industry Plans To Secure Its Future

The local music industry will pursue six key strategies to bolster the global presence and performance of Australian works as part of its newly launched National Contemporary Music Plan (NCMP), it has been announced.

The NCMP is the product of this year's Contemporary Music Roundtable, facilitated by Music Australia, and will see 14 renowned industry bodies including ARIA, APRA AMCOS, AMPAL, AMIN, AIR, the Live Music Office, Country Music Association Of Australia and more banding together under a unified voice and vision for the national music community at large. The plan has its roots in 2015's inaugural roundtable, where it was designated as a key commitment from attendees, with the launch going ahead at today's event in Sydney.

The NCMP's six key strategies were informed by global trends and changes across the industry, largely driven by a surge in digital uptake, particularly in the streaming sector, and an overall drop in global market share for locally created music. As a result, the plan looks to:

• Increase Australia’s music exports and international market share of music;
• Ensure there is a robust and effective copyright framework as the foundation of industry growth and prosperity;
• Increase consumer demand for both recorded and live music through audience development, public engagement and promotion;
• Foster industry skills and business development to build capability and competitiveness;
• Strengthen artist development to deliver a more secure vocational livelihood for musicians and a more globally competitive industry; and
• Deliver best practice regulatory environments, effect regulatory reform, and implement targeted investment incentives.

Bolstered by its six core strategies, according to Music Australia, the plan "paints a realistic and optimistic pathway to the future" for the local industry, whichi remains an important source of revenue for the national economy, accounting for somewhere in the vicinity of $4 billion to $6 billion annually, in addition to providing tens of thousands of jobs.

"Music is not just part of our identity as Australians, it’s a key part of the Australia’s economic balance sheet," chairman Michael Smellie said in a statement. "Despite this, Australia’s recorded music sector has dropped from third to sixth in the IFPI global export list and copyright exports have halved over the last decade.

"We know that Australians still value music, so it’s time for the industry and government to make a stand together to secure the value chain for our culture. It is an important time and to have all of the major players in our industry speaking with one voice. The National Contemporary Music Plan is the first step on our way to taking Australian music back to the top of the charts."

Find out more about the National Contemporary Music Plan at Music Australia's website.