1. Economic assessment of Covid-19

Having a realistic and reliable forecast of the impact of Covid-19 will enable members to update their budgets to better serve the creators they represent.

Although publisher losses will mostly fall at the end of 2020, with negative impacts running into 2021, we can already see exactly where Covid-19 is affecting businesses.

• Shows and tours have been cancelled with a subsequent loss in performance for approximately the next six months
• Live performances for musicians are virtually non-existent
• Productions have stopped
• There is significantly less synch in commercials
• Streaming rights in TV shows have dramatically dropped
• Radio and TV broadcast have been immediately hitIMPF will provide members with a granular report on the outlook of impact from Covid-19. 

2. Enhancing member collaboration

Smaller, independent businesses need to work together to compete with larger companies. Collaboration is key, and even more so during this period of great change and uncertainty. One of the consequences of Covid-19 is an aversion to global business and globalisation by some governments. It is crucial for our members to continue investing and develop business worldwide.

The IMPF website will drive traffic to individual member sites. We have set up a “Company of the Week” initiative on the site, where visitors can explore an individual company and browse their offering of genres and artists. The ‘Company of the Week’ focus will be supported across all our social-digital channels.

3. Resource Education

IMPF will provide members with information on the resources available to deal with the impact of Covid-19, including what other organisations are doing worldwide.  The IMPF website will promote best practices among members by informing you of steps taken by others in dealing with the crisis and showing examples of measures that can be adopted and adapted.

4. The Opportunities

The dangers and negative impacts of this pandemic are very real and very concerning. However, within a crisis are the seeds of opportunity. The cancellation of live performances and the worldwide lockdown have led to fresh licensing opportunities. DJ sets, the use of master recordings on live streaming, the increasing use of services such as Zoom and other platforms for entertainment purposes, off-site ticketing and subscriptions where the offering is music content (live or recorded), making the most of the advertising revenue on those licensed platforms now offering more and more online entertainment, will all be considered. IMPF will engage with industry bodies to discuss potential new and mutually beneficial approaches to licensing models.

5. Indie publishers and composer supports

IMPF will continue to coordinate and support projects relevant to composers and music publishers. During the Covid-19 crisis this will be achieved by offering the opportunity to conduct a series of online concerts to promote bands and groups, similar to what is currently being done in the US with the ‘Roadless Concerts’ concept.

In addition, IMPF has set up an ‘ideas bank’ where all members can contribute, with topics being chosen to organise a series of meeting roundtables via webinar. The ‘ideas bank’ will also offer the opportunity for members to contact the Covid-19 Taskforce on any concerns or questions about global, national, or business-related issues during this time of crisis.