Creators in music, literature, the audiovisual sector and visual arts could experience corona-related losses of up to NOK 35 billion in 2020 compared to the previous year.
/ 01/12/2020 / Willy MartinsenCovid-19 is hitting creators hard around the world. TONO estimates the loss of income at around 80 million kroner in 2020 alone. 43,2 million of this comes from Norwegian rights. The losses in the creator economy around the world are astronomical.
CISAC, the global umbrella organization for collective management societies in music, the audiovisual sector, literature and the visual arts, annually prepares a report presenting the revenues of its 232 member organizations from 121 countries.
This year's report, "COVID-19: Crisis, Resilience, Recovery", presents the revenues for 2019, but also analyses how the Covid-19 pandemic is causing dramatic drops in revenues in the creator economy worldwide. It also presents "case studies" on how CISAC's member organizations have worked to reduce the damage of the pandemic - including TONO's establishment of a special corona tariff to facilitate live online concerts.
The report shows that the author economy is expected to decline by somewhere between NOK 20 and 35 billion from 2019, which corresponds to a drop of approximately 20 and 35 percent. Most of CISAC's member organizations estimate losses of between 10 and 40 percent compared to 2019.
The biggest losses come from the live sector and background music, where the revenue drop is expected to be between 60-80 percent. Within the broadcasting sector (TV and radio), a drop of up to 20 percent is expected. There is growth within the digital area, but nowhere near at a level that compensates for the drop in revenue in other areas.
– The uncertainty for the future of creators is worse today than when the pandemic first began. Millions of creators are losing their livelihoods. We were the first industry to be affected, and we will be the last to get back on our feet. Creators are creative and resilient, but building a way out of this crisis requires assistance from governments around the world, states CISAC President Björn Ulvaeus.
He is supported by TONO's CEO Cato Strøm:
– TONO is hearing from our sister societies around the world that they are being hit hard by Covid-19. There is no doubt that the virus will have devastating consequences for artists around the world in the years to come. For TONO, the decline in our sister societies' income will also negatively affect TONO's foreign income in the years to come, as they collect fees on TONO's behalf when our members' music is used publicly in other countries, says TONO CEO, Cato Strøm.