Monday, May 07, 2007

Marketing New Zealand music to the world

A good look at government support of the New Zealand music industry and whether it is worth the effort. The justification in doing so is that there are far more potential customers outside New Zealand than within the country.

New Zealand's source for entertainment news, gossip & music, movie & book reviews on Stuff.co.nz - Printable: " This year taxpayer funded NZ on Air will spend $2.15 million helping musicians make videos and recordings. The Music Industry Commission will spend $500,000 helping artists market their products overseas. ...

So far the commission has helped 42 artists with overseas marketing costs through its Outward Sound programme, now 14 months into a three year pilot. Its annual budget of $500,000 is small, but by matching artists' contributions dollar for dollar it gets more leverage.

The difficulty for New Zealand exporters, as ever, is distance from markets. A German artist seeking exposure in Britain can travel back and forth relatively easily. For New Zealand artists, particularly big bands like Phoenix Foundation, the cost and logistics are a huge problem."

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