SAN FRANCISCO – Some of the top names in the music, technology, law and policy will convene in San Francisco on Wednesday, February 25 to discuss the most relevant issues facing artists and record companies today, including an in-depth look at emerging technologies and their impact on the industry. Panelists and participants will meet at the second annual Music Law Summit West at Hastings College of the Law to debate whether peer-to-peer file sharing can or should be stopped, the explosive growth of online music stores, what impact activist musicians can have on political discourse, and the changing nature of artists’ contracts as music goes digital.
What:
Where: UC Hastings College of the Law
Louis B. Mayer Auditorium
198 McAllister St., First Floor
San Francisco, CA
When: Wednesday, February 25, 2004, from 9:30 AM to 6 PM
See schedule
"Each panel deals with the legal, business and content-driven issues confronting the entertainment industry," said Dave Kostiner, a Hastings law student who co-organized the event with the Future of Music Coalition, a Washington, DC-based nonprofit that explores the critical issues at the intersection of music, law, technology and policy.
"We hope that this event provides musicians, technologists, industry representatives and policymakers with an opportunity to understand the nuances of these changes, and the effects that new technologies are having on musicians and the music industry," said Kristin Thomson, an organizer with the Future of Music Coalition.
In addition the Summit welcomes two keynote speakers, California State Senator Kevin Murray and Stanford law professor Lawrence Lessig.
Senator Murray represents the 26th Senate District of California. Prior to serving in the legislature, he practiced law in the areas of entertainment, real estate, insurance, and dependency. He also provided consulting and management services to artists in the entertainment industry, and spent several years as a talent agent with the William Morris Agency. In 2003, Senator Murray introduced SB 1034, a bill that makes it a fiduciary duty for record companies to accurately account for royalties from recording contracts.
Lawrence Lessig is a cyberlaw expert and outspoken critic of internet regulation and copyright laws, and has authored several books on the subject. He also founded Creative Commons, an organization that encourages artists and authors to collaborate without having to go through complicated legal channels to gain permission. Lessig represented the plaintiff in Eldred v. Ashcroft, an unsuccessful effort on website operator Eric Eldred’s part to overturn the Copyright Term Extension Act. The case was appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which upheld the 20-year copyright extension.
Panelists include:
Michael Aczon – professor, author, attorney
Margreth Barrett – Copyright Law Professor, Hastings College of
Law
Anthony Berman – Attorney, Idell, Berman & Seitel
Josh Engel – Corporate Counsel, Napster LLC/Roxio, Inc.
Stacy Fass – Attorney, Davis Shapiro Lewit Montone Hayes
Fat Mike – Punkvoter, NOFX and Fat Wreck Chords
Thomas Goetz – Articles Editor, Wired Magazine
Jerry Harrison – musician, Talking Heads, Garageband.com
Joshua Koenig – Music for America
Jordan Kurland – Band Manager, Zeitgeist Artist Management
Dave Meinert – Band Manager and PNW Chapter of Recording Academy
Molly Neuman – Label VP, Lookout! Records and band Bratmobile
Krist Novoselic – JAMPAC/Fix Our United States
Sandy Pearlman – VP of Media Development, Multicast Technologies,
Producer
Ralph Peer II – Chairman and CEO, Peermusic
Tim Quirk – Executive Editor, Music, Real Networks and band Too
Much Joy
Andrew Ross – Senior VP Business and Legal Affairs, Sony Music
Madigan Shive – Touring Musician, Avant-Pop Composer, Bonfire Madigan
David Sutphen – Vice President, Government Relations, RIAA
Fred von Lohmann – Senior Intellectual Property Attorney, EFF
Jenny Toomey – Executive Director, Future of Music Coalition
Shoshana Samole Zisk – Attorney and Business Affairs, George Clinton
Enterprises
Brian Zisk – Technologies Director, Future of Music Coalition
The summit is sponsored by the Hastings’ Association of Communications, Sports and Entertainment Law, the Hastings Intellectual Property Organization, the COMM/ENT Law Journal, the Future of Music Coalition, and Noise Pop.
For more information or for press credentialing for the Summit, go to
Future of Music Coalition is a national non-profit education, research and advocacy organization that seeks a bright future for creators and listeners. FMC works towards this goal through continuous interaction with its primary constituency — musicians — and in collaboration with other creator/public interest groups. More