Canadian music publishers are finally getting some solid funding from the federal government, and those who meet the criteria couldn’t be happier. “I applaud Canadian Heritage for coming to the music-publishing space with a holistic, infrastructure-based funding initiative,” says ole CEO Robert Ott, a recipient of Music Entrepreneur Component (MEC) funding for a number of company initiatives. Patrick Curley, vice-president, legal affairs, for Montreal’s Third Side Music, is equally enthusiastic: “We sincerely appreciate the help from Heritage,” he says. “This program is long overdue.”

The Music Entrepreneur Component, Aid to Canadian Music Publishing Firms, was launched in 2000/2001 and rolled out late last year with first-round applications applied to funding years 2007/08 and 2008/09. Part of the Canada Music Fund, the MEC program for publishers is slated to move ahead for 2009/10, pending input from first-round recipients.

“We always have a summit where we look at the results from the past year and adjust the criteria, if necessary, for the year ahead,” says Pierre Lalonde, director of music policy and programs for Canadian Heritage. “The idea is to make the program as pertinent as possible for the clientele that is targeted.”

In its inaugural iteration, the MEC program attracted 19 applicants, of which nine were approved for funding: six from Quebec, two from Ontario and one from British Columbia. Lalonde says the geographic imbalance is down to the basic structure of Quebec’s music industry, which tilts towards domestically owned, independent operations. The English Canadian business is dominated by foreign-owned majors, which are not eligible. Program funding is available only to active Canadian-owned and controlled music-publishing firms with annual net revenues of at least $50,000 and not in excess of $20-million. Grants of up to $50,000 per publishing company were available for a range of specific company initiatives aimed at promoting Canadian music works, development of Canadian songwriters and composers, and business development.

Says Ott, “In the past, it’s been typical for funding bodies to only look at the creative aspects and not at the infrastructure that surrounds and supports the creativity. This funding program is really intelligent in that it looks at the whole publishing endeavour and acknowledges that it takes more than a great creative effort to make a creative success. This program brings a great insight as to how things really work.”

Ole’s MEC funding was targeted at international promotion, continuing a successful song-camp series and upgrading the company’s IT infrastructure, “an investment that will provide long-lasting benefits to the company and the creators we represent,” says Ott. Curley says Third Side Music used the funds for similar initiatives, including the purchase of new software and upgraded administrative capabilities: “It’s all stuff that really helps to strengthen the company.”

Of the $1-million available per year under the program, Lalonde says only $321,000 for 2007/08 and $366,000 for 2008/09 was subscribed. “Some money was left on the table,” he says. “We’re not sure the program will ever reach the $1-million mark. There are a finite number of publishers that will be able to apply, otherwise you wind up building a program for very, very small publishing firms. The eligibility criteria are not especially stringent,” he adds, “although there may be something in there that we need to review again. In terms of revenue, if you’re a $20,000-a-year publisher, you can’t expect to get $50,000 from government to develop your company – that would certainly cause people to question why this program exists.”

Moving forward, Lalonde says, “We’d certainly like to see more applicants from outside Quebec. The differences between the Quebec market and the market in the rest of Canada was a serious issue when we were setting up the program – it made it difficult to have one set of criteria that would work for both. But we think there are a few more companies in English Canada that probably meet the eligibility criteria or are very near to it.”

Applications for the next round of MEC funding will be launched in September and due Nov. 1. “We want the publishers to know in advance how much funding they are going to get for their projects and to be able to plan ahead,” says Lalonde.

For more information, visit the MEC site.

Uploaded Summer 2008

Comments? Questions? Suggestions? Send them to Rick MacMillan, Words & Music Corporate Editor, at wordsandmusic@socan.ca.