MTV-PLANET M MUSIC FORUM: DISAPPOINTING FARE

The MTV-Planet M Music Forum '99 turned out to be a disappointment. While the now annual event was well attended, its shortcomings were that it skimmed over the problems that the music and music television industries face in India. Presentations were made in reference to the annihilation threat that e-music retailers pose to the existing brick and mortar stores. The brick and mortar retailers represented by the Tower Records Asia chief retaliated by saying thank you very much but we are not in any danger of extinction; we will continue to co-exist.

Issues such as performing rights to be paid to the performing rights society were glossed over. Neither state-owned broadcaster DD nor radiocaster All India Radio have agreed to pay performing rights to the Indian society representing composers, performers, lyricists despite repeated demands. The society's representative announced that MTV had graciously agreed to pay rights for the music played at the forum. The society has been pretty unwavering in its demanding its levies from users but the negative is that it pays out very little to the ones for whose benefit it has been set up: musicians and creators of the product.

Piracy is another problem, which could have been discussed, but all that was done was the playing out of a slick video presentation made by the music industry. Close to 60% of the Indian music industry's sales is cornered by pirates, though the industry claims it is down to 40% now. The video nevertheless paid glowing tributes to the piracy busting efforts of supercop Julio Ribeiro, whom ESPN-Star Sports also roped in to fight cable TV piracy during the telecast of the World Cup Cricket tournament last April. MTV and Planet M also conferred life time contribution awards on Ribeiro and veteran Indian singer Asha Bhonsale.

While MTV needs to be lauded on its efforts to get the music industry and television channels together it would do well to try and offer a forum which adds value to the music industry rather than coming up with just another excuse for everyone to party. For example, last year's forum had heralded the coming of age of Indi-Pop; at this year's get-together, the only lament was how Indi-Pop was dying and losing out to Hindi film songs.