MIPIM: The Russians are coming

For its 20th anniversary edition, the real estate trade fair MIPIM will inaugurate a dedicated area for Russia. Nadine Castagna, Director of MIPIM, explains this new move: "The Russian Federation is a major player in global economic development and has emerged in recent years as MIPIM's 4th most represented country after the United Kingdom, France and Germany. For the event's twentieth anniversary, we are inaugurating a dedicated exhibition space, in the same way as we created single exhibition zones for London and Paris ten years ago."

Last year, an amazing 10% of participants were from Russia. MIPIM will be held March 10-13, 2009.

Hotel Martinez up for sale?

According to a report on Car Rentals.co.uk, the Hotel Martinez in Cannes is being put on sale as part of the Concorde Groupe, currently owned by Starwood Capital. The hotel is one of the key venues on the Croisette, and features strongly in all events held in Cannes. Built in the 30s, it is notable for its numerous reception rooms that host the largest parties in Cannes. At 2,500 m², it ranks second only to the Palais itself in terms of capacity.

The likely acquirer is JJW Hotels & Resorts, part of MBI International controlled by Saudi businessman, Sheik Mohamed Bin Issa Al Jaber.

Midemnet blog launches debate on file sharing

True to its role of providing debate on key issues facing the music industry, MidemNet is running a blog with comments and talking points from innovators. One of the posts concerns the group Marillion's decision to release its upcoming album "Happiness is the Road" to the web as free downloads - a rather brave initiative. As band member Mark Kelly says, "already it’s all over the internet, and file-sharing sites are offering it for download to anyone with a copy of Limewire, Bit Torrent or and any other P2P software. Normally this knowledge would make me angry or fill me with despair but not this time. We have teamed up with a new company called Music Glue in an attempt to get something back from all those people who like our music but don’t seem to want to pay for it."

The basic idea is that people can download tracks from the album in exchange for giving their e-mail address. They will then be kept informed about the band's activities and "we might rattle the honesty box in your direction sometime in the future".

MidemNet is held just before Midem (January 17-21, 2009 in Cannes). Check the MidemNet blog out here.

MIPCOM: early figures show rise in attendance

MIPCOM, the world's audiovisual content market, which closed October 9 saw increased business despite the current crises. Early figures point to almost 14,000 visitors, with an impressive 4,566 buyers, an increase of 8% over last year. Increased attendance was particularly strong from Russia and the Middle East.

MIPCOM Junior which preceded the main event, saw a 20% rise in attendance. Proof, if more was needed, that content remains king.

Midem: book now and save

Midem, the world's music community that will run its annual trade fair January 17-21, has a number of deadlines that allow participants to enjoy generous savings. The next one is Oct 15, after which the entrance fee goes from €625 to €745. If you include attendance at MidemNet, the prices are €1,115 against €1,285. Last year, some 9,000 people attended Midem, which is widely recognised as the foremost trade fair of its kind.

In other Midem news, Charles Aznavour (photo) is to receive a Lifetime Achievement Award in January. Aznavour has written more than 800 songs, many of which have been interpreted by the world’s greatest artists (Fred Astaire, Shirley Bassey, Ray Charles, Elvis Costello, Bobby Darin, Sammy Davis Junior, Juliette Gréco, Liza Minnelli, Edith Piaf and Nina Simone to name but a few). He has sold more than 100 million albums worldwide, and his career as an actor, which he began in the theatre at the age of nine, includes more than 60 films, including "The Tin Drum," winner of the Palme d’Or at the Festival de Cannes in 1979.

For details, visit Midem.com.

Milan to Nice (and then to Cannes)

I'm still getting lots of requests about getting to Cannes from Milan, so I had a quick look at the Italian railway's site and was pretty surprised to see that they are still running a promotion on the line, starting at €15. This is the same price as when I first mentioned it, back in 2006. Looks like Italian trains don't have fuel surcharges!

Having said that, I simulated a trip on January 17 (in time for Midem, for example) and got the price of €15 if I ask for the "Smart" rate or €30 "Standard" in second class. That's still a fair price. Note that you will have to buy a ticket for "Nice City" and then buy another ticket to Cannes in Nice station or via the SNCF website. The trip last about 5 hours.

So if you're still interested, visit Trenitalia. Incidentally, Eurolines also run daily buses from Naples, Rome and Venice to Nice. Times are 13, 12 and 10 hours respectively. The Milan to Nice run is 7 hours. I don't really see the point, personally. But for details, visit Eurolines.it.