EAA launches Europact scheme for emerging artists
The European Arenas Association (EAA) has launched the Europact programme, introducing branded live performance spaces for showcasing European emerging talent across EAA member arenas.
The initiative is part of the EAA’s strategy to support current European Commission initiatives that aim to build and strengthen the music industry across the continent.
Europact, a self-funded programme, will first be launched as a pilot scheme across a limited number of arenas. The spaces will offer opportunities for undiscovered artists to make themselves known to EAA member audiences.
An EAA spokesperson tells IQ the space dedicated to Europact performances will depend on the arena: ” If the artist can carry it there may be opportunities for an opening mainstage exposure, otherwise the space may be in lobby or bar areas,” they say. “Other multi-day events may also offer a platform.”
“The European Union is dedicating large amounts of resources to the European music sector in recognition of its talent potential and creative capacity and we are delighted to be able to offer our infrastructure and know-how in order to support these efforts,” comments John Langford, who was named EAA president in October.
“We have created Europact in order to contribute to building a sustainable European talent pipeline”
Olivier Toth, CEO of EAA member arena Rockhal (6,500-cap.) in Luxemburg, adds, “We have created Europact in order to contribute to building a sustainable European talent pipeline and to encourage the distribution of new music across national borders. Our aim is for the initial pilot scheme to become an established and recognised industry platform able to offer opportunities to young artists for many years to come.”
The EAA’s 35-arena strong portfolio includes venues in 22 countries, which collectively host over 2,500 events annually and attract 20 million fans a year.
Live music was the driving force behind the success of European arenas in 2018, as explained in IQ’s recent European Arena Yearbook, produced in partnership with the EAA and the UK’s National Arena Association (NAA).
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EU arenas report bumper year for live music
Increased venue construction and sweeping market consolidation are the major themes emerging from IQ’s latest European Arena Yearbook (EAY), as live music further strengthens its position as the driver of European arena success.
The third edition of EAY shows that boom time for Europe’s arena business is far from slowing down, with many venues surpassing the record-breaking results exhibited in EAY 2018 thanks to an increasingly diversified entertainment space and growing demand for live music events in particular.
EAY – a standalone publication replacing IQ’s traditional European Arena Report – is produced by ILMC in partnership with the European Arenas Association (EAA) and the UK’s National Arena Association (NAA). Sixty-one European arenas, which collectively sold 37 million tickets to almost 6,000 events, contributed to latest edition.
A major theme of EAY 2019 is the increasing trend towards consolidation
Live music remains on top, making up 44% of all events taking place at the European arenas surveyed – up from 37% the year before. Concerts also attracted much larger audiences than other events, with an average of 8,116 fans per show, compared to a Europe-wide event average of 6,395.
A major theme of EAY 2019 is the increasing trend towards consolidation. “The merger of AEG Facilities and SMG to form ASM Global is the most significant example of this [consolidation] in the industry since Live Nation predecessor SFX Entertainment started rolling up promoters and venues in the late 90s,” writes IQ/EAY editor Gordon Masson.
Indeed, market consolidation was deemed “very concerning” for some respondents whose venues do not belong to one of the major global players.
As always, this year’s EAY includes six in-depth regional profiles – central and eastern Europe; France and Benelux; Germany, Switzerland and Austria (GSA); the Nordics; southern Europe; and the UK and Ireland.
“Evolution in the business has been astounding”
The south of Europe retains its crown as the busiest market, attracting an average of 10,869 fans per event – up from 8,555 last year and far higher than its closest competitor, central and eastern Europe (7,903). A record year for the Spanish live music business and plans for a mega new arena in Valencia reflect the region’s sense of buoyancy.
New venue developments are taking place all over Europe, in fact, with major new complexes set to break ground in Germany, Russia, Finland, the UK and Italy in coming years. Masson notes that “evolution in the business has been astounding, with each new year seemingly generating more venue construction than the year before.”
Major takeaways from EAY 2019 in numbers:
Stars of the future
In terms of future growth, the Nordics lead the way, with a predicted growth rate of >1% for 2021. The UK and Ireland are the only other region expecting growth, with a drop for all others, not least for central and eastern Europe, with predictions of a decline of almost 4%.
Creeping concerns
An overriding sense of positivity emerges from the arenas surveyed, but some concerns do creep in. Ticket prices, increasing production costs and the threat from competition are among the top worries for respondents, with the state of the economy and industry consolidation not far behind.
Ticket prices: the eternal bugbear?
Although ticket prices remain at the top of industry concerns for 2018, deemed as ‘worrying’ or ‘extremely worrying’ by 22% of respondents, the average ticket price across all events fell slightly compared to the previous year (from €44.34 to €43.49). Music events, which continue to be the most expensive, also experienced a dip, from €54.88 to €53.23.
For more insights, read IQ’s European Arena Yearbook 2019 here.
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EAY 2018: Protecting the events sector
“Many years ago, security for concerts and music events was quite simple,” reflects Reg Walker, director of Iridium Consultancy, which works with a number of UK venues and festivals. “It was either, ‘Yes, you can come in’, ‘No, you can’t come in’, or, ‘Sorry, you’re misbehaving, you’ll have to leave’. That was effectively it.
“If you fast-forward to now, security staff are expected to be cognisant in crowd safety and crowd management. Be able to secure evidence. Be welfare officers. We expect them to take part in counterterrorism security measures, be search experts, first aiders, carry out drug detection and deal with organised crime groups and pick pockets. The list goes on and on. The demands on security staff, and their roles, have changed so dramatically that they’re almost unrecognisable from what they were 20 or 30 years ago.”
Driving those changes has been a constant and ongoing focus on improving crowd safety and, in turn, the customer experience. Top of the agenda for many security professionals today is combating the heightened threat of terrorism – a historic danger that became tragic reality following the Bataclan and Paris attacks of 2015, and last year’s Manchester Arena bombing, which killed 22 people, many of them children, and injured hundreds more.
“In the last 12 months, there’s been a massive improvement in standards, with a total revision of how live music venues and sporting venues – or basically, any crowded space – are secured,” says Walker. He cites a “mass uplift in the training of staff and personnel,” extra police patrols, and infrastructural modifications to deter vehicle attacks, as just some of the ways that the sector has adapted and modified to meet the threat.
The demands from touring artists and productions have similarly increased, says Eventsec’s Andrew Murphy, who looks after security at Belfast’s 11,000-capacity Odyssey Arena. “Certainly, since what happened in Manchester there’s been a big surge from touring artists for increased security precautions, extra searches and backstage sweeps taking place,” he explains.
“The demands on security staff have changed so dramatically they’re almost unrecognisable from 20 or 30 years ago”
Costs and the number of security staff employed at the arena have increased as a result, he says, although in his venue’s case the impact has been moderate. “Coming from Belfast, where we’ve had these issues for many years, we’ve always been mindful that the threat exists, and have always had a high level of security at our venues. In light of what happened [in Manchester], we reviewed our security procedures and we continue to constantly review and change things, so that we’re not predictable and make it difficult for someone who has the intention to cause harm.”
“The Manchester attack was a big wake-up call for how we should view events, but what we have tended to do in the past is throw out our carefully prepared plans, [and] it is often not the plans that are wrong. It is just that areas need constant review to make them fit for purpose as threats change,” advises security professional Chris Kemp of Mind Over Matter Consultancy. He advocates a “measured and proportionate” approach that continually evaluates weaknesses and adapts to meet the threat, “so that it destabilises the aggressor and enables us to continue to think carefully about how we make our venues and events as secure as possible during a time of changing terrorist attack methodologies.
“After Bataclan and Manchester, security became very high on the agenda but if we relegate other elements that are just as important, such as crowd management, we are only shifting the problem and not tackling it,” he warns.
“What we’re getting better at is identifying what to do before, during and after an attack. But we all know that it’s not if, but when and where, the next attack will take place.”
Continue reading this feature in the digital edition of EAY 2018, or subscribe to IQ here
EAY 2018: 10 tech tips for arena bosses
Arena concert productions have become increasingly spectacular in recent years, but that is not where the use of cutting-edge technology in arenas need end – an array of remarkable tech solutions has been created that can not only enhance the concertgoing experience for fans, but can drive revenue, increase security and minimise the environmental footprint for venue operators.
Here are ten of the best, as seen in the European Arena Yearbook 2018, the second edition of IQ’s comprehensive guide to Europe’s arenas business…
1. Mercedes-Benz Arena goes green
The 17,000-cap. Mercedes-Benz Arena in Berlin has taken a series of innovative measures to ensure that it is one of the most environmentally friendly venues in the world.
As part of AEG’s environmental sustainability programme, AEG 1Earth, the venue recently began purchasing renewable energy credits (RECs) to offset 100% of the carbon emissions associated with its purchases of electric power. The arena’s energy is sourced through hydroelectric plants in northern Europe and is certified with the RenewablePLUS label issued by the strict TÜV Rheinland certification programme.
A block-heating power plant installed on the roof of the arena generates energy from natural gas and captures waste heat for use in the arena, thereby reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Emissions caused by natural gas consumption are offset with ÖkoPLUS credits to support a hydroelectricity project in Malana, India.
Other measures include providing parking space for 400 cycles, biodegradable cups made from cornstarch and food sourced from local or regional producers.
The venue’s general manager, Michael Hapka, says that in partnership with energy supplier GASAG, the arena has found a way to be carbon neutral without increasing energy costs. “It was a very big step forward to 100% neutralise the carbon footprint of the arena, which we achieved in January. We don’t advertise it to the public but we have noticed that artists have taken a real interest in the environmental efficiency of the arena.”
“Artists have taken a real interest in the environmental efficiency of the arena”
2. Livestyled
Launched in 2014 by CEO Adam Goodyer, LiveStyled specialises in creating mobile apps and interactive technology designed to enhance the experience of concertgoers while boosting revenue for venue operators. “Our vision is to be the glue that binds the physical and digital concertgoing experience together,” says Goodyer.
Among the core digital functionality offered by LiveStyled, which can be embedded in a white-label app, a venue’s website or its Facebook pages, are access control and loyalty rewards, through to helping customers navigate their way around an arena. “It not only enables users to pre-order and quickly collect food and beverages – they can also easily digitally share tickets they have purchased with friends, which we are then able to pick up the data about their friendship group,” says Goodyer.
LiveStyled’s many clients include AEG, O2 and Live Nation, with the technology currently being used at 55 venues around the world, including London’s O2 Arena and SSE Arena Belfast. It also recently signed a three-year deal with AEG’s promotion division, AEG Presents, starting with All Points East and British Summer Time festivals.
Goodyer says the results speak for themselves: “It was used to run a promotion at the SSE Arena Belfast, where users were encouraged to spend more on food and beverages by being rewarded with a small digital wallet credit. That small incentive to encourage them to spend a little more resulted in a 16% increased in overall food and beverage expenditure in the arena.”
The LiveStyled boss says the next step for the technology is its integration into venue IPTV systems so that content can be personalised on every single screen around a building to reflect the known interests and tastes of the individuals gathered near each of them.
“Our vision is to be the glue that binds the physical and digital concertgoing experience together”
3. Hypervsn
Award-winning British company Kino-mo, which is backed by investors including Richard Branson and Mark Cuban, has launched an innovative advertising solution that generates 3D images that appear to float in mid-air.
The system’s 3D images can not only be used to promote upcoming shows, food and beverage product lines or to draw attention to a retail outlet, but can be used by artists during a show as on-stage visuals.
The Hypervsn product, which is able to produce 3D holographic advertising visuals of up to three metres high, is made up of multiple modular units that look like propellers, with each of the arms containing programmable LEDs. The unit’s processor sends signals to each of the LEDs and instructs them when to turn on and off. As the lights change, the whole device spins and the eye perceives the light emitted as a hologram, much like those featured in the film Blade Runner 2049.
Kino-mo can create custom 3D content for clients but also offers a content creation tool that enables them to transform their existing 2D assets into 3D visuals suitable for Hypervsn. Images or videos can be uploaded and displayed using a cloud-based management platform.
Designed for commercial use at sites such as entertainment venues and retail outlets, the system is simple to install and relocate, with accessories available that make it possible to mount devices to ceilings, walls and shelves.
Kino-mo caused a major stir in January when it launched Hypervsn at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, and an equally warm reception when it was showcased at ILMC in London. Among the brands already using Hypervsn are Apple, McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble and Pernod Ricard.
“Hypervsn has already proven itself to be a powerful technological solution to create immersive experiences, drive advocacy, and articulate the value of a brand,” says Kino-mo co-founder Kiryl Chykeyuk.
Continue reading this feature in the digital edition of EAY 2018, or subscribe to IQ here
EAY 2017: GSA arenas reap benefit of strong economies
It’s boom time for arenas in Germany, Switzerland and Austria (GSA), with stable, growing economies and consumers willing to pay the highest average ticket prices in Europe meaning the region is attracting more international shows than ever before, reveals IQ’s European Arena Yearbook 2017.
“This is a healthy, strong market, offering a lot of product,” says Michael Brill of König-Pilsener Arena (12,700-cap.) in Oberhausen, Germany. “People are much more prepared to spend money on leisure than they were ten years ago, and if you have the right product, you can command very good ticket prices.”
The arenas surveyed in these three countries sold a total of 7,355,076 tickets, worth more than €380 million, in 2016 – although it’s family shows, rather than concerts, doing the bulk of the heavy lifting.
According to the 2017 Yearbook, family events make up 15% of schedules, but when they are booked appear to be the most popular among ticket buyers, drawing 23% of total attendance and average audiences of 8,059 people. This is well over the survey average for this genre (5,157), and above the overall average turnout for Germany, Austria and Switzerland (5,373).
“This is a healthy, strong market, offering a lot of product”
Music events draw the second largest average audiences in this part of Europe. Average attendance is 7,421 compared with a survey average of 7,359, and this genre makes up 32% of the total programme. It attracts 44% of attendance compared with other genres.
Sports is third (33% of programming/24% attendance), followed by comedy (6% of programming) and miscellaneous events.
The arenas sector’s rude health is being borne out in record results at Hamburg’s 16,000-cap. Barclaycard Arena, where general manager Steve Schwenkglenks says that, financially, 2016 was the best year the arena has ever had.
He comments: “2017 looks impressive, too, despite the fact we have now lost both home sports teams. We’ve filled those gaps with new content, such as esports and a major increase in concerts. This year we’ll have 22 artists who’ve never played the arena before.”
Read the full feature in the digital edition of the European Arena Yearbook 2017:
EAY 2017: France, Benelux sales rebound after difficult start
Venues in France and the Benelux countries are turning a corner after a difficult start to 2016, when the terrorist attacks in Paris and Belgium hurt the usually booming arenas business.
That’s according to IQ’s European Arena Yearbook 2017, which reveals that the industry is now bouncing back from a challenging start to the year – when ticket and hospitality sales both suffered amid considerable consumer nervousness – with results for the latter half of 2016 and the first half of 2017 expected to largely exceed previous years.
The arenas surveyed, which include the leading venues in France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg, hosted 425 events in 2016, selling just under 3.7m tickets.
Unlike in central and eastern Europe, where sport is strongest, music dominates the programmes of French and Benelux arenas, responsible for 2.1m tickets in 2016 – 56% of total sales and making up 47% of total events hosted.
“The current season is seeing a real revival in ticket sales. We believe it could be a reaction to the effects of the attacks”
There was an average of 71 performances per venue.
Come the end of the current season (to August 2017), director-general Julien Collette says AccorHotels Arena (20,000-cap.) in Paris will have increased its ticket sales to 1.5m, up from 1.1m in 2015–16 – while the outlook is similarly positive in Belgium, where the Sportpaleis Group, which operates Sportpaleis (23,000-cap.), Lotto Arena (8,050-cap.), Forest National (8,000-cap.) and Ethias Arena (18,000-cap.), similarly reporting strong growth.
“Last season, we suffered as a result of the terrorist attacks,” says Sportpaleis’s Jan Van Esbroeck. “However, the current season is seeing a real revival in ticket sales. We believe it could be some kind of reaction to the effects of the attacks. We are set to have a better-than-average season by the end of the year.”
In Luxembourg, meanwhile, Rockhal (6,500-cap.) had its best year to date, says CEO Olivier Toth.
Read the full feature in the digital edition of the European Arena Yearbook 2017:
EAY 2017: CEE arenas shrug off post-crash gloom
A majority of central and eastern European (CEE) arenas reported strong growth in 2016, boosted by growing demand and increased consumer confidence, IQ’s European Arena Yearbook 2017 reveals.
Almost all the arenas surveyed in eight CEE countries – Croatia, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Serbia – recorded positive results last year, with some even recording their most successful year to date, as they shrugged off the last remnants of the global financial crisis, which hit central and eastern Europe particularly hard.
While GDP is still not as high as in western Europe, demand is strong, consumer confidence has returned to the market and average audience figures are higher than some of the more affluent nations: the arenas surveyed sold 4,368,253 tickets to 882 events, generating €130.5 million.
Sport dominates the calendars at arenas across the region, accounting for 56% of programmes. Music makes up 26%, while family shows and miscellaneous events make-up 9% and 6%, respectively. Only 11 comedy shows took place in these arenas last year, an average of one per arena.
The largest attraction for people is clearly music events, which draw the highest average attendance: 7,761 (survey average attendance: 4,953).
“They used to regard it as very important to be seen as having significant and cool cultural festivals, but that’s changing”
‘Miscellaneous events’ are the next biggest draw, pulling an average crowd of 6,946 to corporate events and exhibitions.
Family and sports events attract average audiences of 4,300 (survey average: 5,157) and 3,610 (4,662) each.
Promoter Nick Hobbs, who books acts at all levels across central and eastern Europe, the Balkans and Turkey, says there’s starting to be a trend of people moving away from festivals and towards arena shows. “The festival market doesn’t seem to be doing as well as it was, but arenas are doing better,” he says. “That’s because sponsorship – which is essential for festivals, but not usually part of the P&L [profit and loss] of an arena show – is struggling, as companies shift their focus away from music.
“In some countries, such as Poland, municipalities are shifting their marketing spend away from cultural events due to the political climate. They used to regard it as very important to be seen as having significant and cool cultural festivals, but that’s changing due to a much more culturally conservative government.”
With the economic situation in many countries improving, arenas are seeing steady growth.
Read the full feature in the digital edition of the European Arena Yearbook 2017:
Special report: Spotlight on arena security
Music arenas have long been prepared for the possibility of a terrorist attack, but it was the tragic events of 22 May – when UK-born Salman Abedi detonated a homemade bomb outside the 21,000-capacity Manchester Arena following an Ariana Grande concert, killing 22 people, many of them children, and injuring over 200 more – that confirmed the worst fears about the stark realities now facing venue owners and operators.
“It happened in Manchester, but we all consider ourselves equally at risk,” says Neil Walker, general manager of the SSE Arena, Belfast. “Security and the health and safety of everyone who comes to our building has always been the number-one priority in everything we do, from making sure a production is rolled in safely, to making sure the public are well looked after when they’re here,” he adds, “but it’s been elevated to an even higher focus now.”
“What happened in Manchester brought it brutally home to everyone in the industry that this can happen anywhere,” agrees Reg Walker, director of Iridium Consultancy, which works with a number of UK venues and festivals on security matters. He says that the attack reinforced the need for a “seamless security operation and security in depth” both inside and outside concert arenas, extending to transport hubs servicing venues. “We can’t be complacent over this,” he warns. “The problem with a Manchester-style atrocity is that you see adequate resourcing in the immediate aftermath, but then what happens is the bean-counters kick in and start applying pressure to curtail costs. That is something that must be resisted by venue operators at this time.”
Upping the anti
Thankfully, the general consensus throughout the industry is in favour of enhanced safety provisions, with the majority of European arenas already at a heightened level of security following 2015’s Bataclan and Paris terror attacks. “For 18 months now, everyone who wants to enter the arena is checked twice: first time outside the arena with a preliminary security screening, and a second time at each entrance of the building with a full body search,” explains Julien Collette, general manager of AccorHotels Arena in Paris.
“The problem is that you see adequate resourcing in the immediate aftermath, but then the bean-counters kick in and start applying pressure to curtail costs”
Other protocols introduced at AccorHotels Arena since 2015 include permanent guarding of the venue and its surroundings by specialised firms, and security screening of all external personnel (production teams and service providers) with bag checks and body searches by qualified agents. In addition, on show days, Rue de Bercy, opposite the venue’s main entrance, is closed to road traffic, while armed police and dog handlers regularly patrol the perimeter.
Exact details vary, but the story is the same at many venues throughout Europe, where strict security procedures have fast become the norm. “What we have sometimes been criticised for in the past has now become our advantage,” says Stanislava Doubravová, head of sales and events at Prague’s O2 Arena, which has had airport-style X-ray baggage scanners and security gates since opening in 2004. Those measures “are now highly appreciated by event promoters,” she says.
“In the last few years, we’ve invested a lot of money and time in our security and safety measures,” agrees Barclaycard Arena Hamburg’s general manager, Steve Schwenkglenks. He points to the installation of walk-through metal detectors, coupled with physical pat-downs of audience members, as just one aspect of the venue’s upgraded security detail. “At first, we were a little worried about the public reaction to these stringent measures,” he says. “Now it’s not even a discussion.”
“At first, we were a little worried about the public reaction to these stringent measures. Now it’s not even a discussion”
At London’s The O2, permanent search arches were installed at the main entrances late last year, while anyone revisiting the venue over the past ten months will have noticed a “very much enhanced security posture,” says the venue’s head of security, Richard Latham, who was brought in to strengthen the venue’s already considerable operations in 2016, having previously been director of security at the House of Commons (which forms part of the UK’s Houses of Parliament).
“Some of our measures are visible and others are not so obvious,” states Latham, citing an increase in both overt and covert security staff inside and outside the venue, coupled with extra police patrols, including, “when appropriate”, an armed presence. The use of search dogs “for varying roles” provides another highly visible deterrent. Following the Manchester bomb attack, The O2 was also one of many European arenas to ban people from bringing rucksacks and large bags inside the venue, with all visitors to the site having to go through airport-style security and baggage scanners before gaining entry to the concourse, where they can utilise a bag-drop facility.
“The industry has changed from one where no one got searched at all, to one where it was mostly theatrical deterrent searching, to now – at least at The O2 – proper, audited counterterrorism searching,” says Latham. He believes that response helps elevate the live music industry above many other sectors in tackling the increased threat of terrorism.
Read the rest of this feature in the digital edition of IQ’s definitive guide to the European arena market, the European Arena Yearbook 2017:
Arena tech: The groundbreakers
The global live music business is in a state of technological flux, with innovations such as virtual and augmented reality, live streaming, blockchain and bots all being touted as potential new sources of revenue for an increasingly mature industry.
But while the monetisation of live-streamed concerts is, by most estimates, still some way off, a handful of pioneers in the arena space are already delivering concrete results through clever tech to some of the world’s leading entertainment venues.
Meet Digifood, Archaio, Rukkus, Verteda, Clair Global, LiveStyled, Cast, Bottoms Up, Kontakt.io, Yondr and Hurdl: eleven innovators working behind the scenes to make large entertainment venues smarter, more connected and more profitable than ever before…
Read the rest of this feature in the digital edition of IQ’s definitive guide to the European arena market, the European Arena Yearbook 2017:
Music worth €870m to European arenas in challenging 2016
The European arenas business generated over €1.4 billion last year – with live music accounting for more than 60% of that total – despite the challenges posed by sluggish economies and a dearth of touring artists, reveals the inaugural European Arena Yearbook (EAY).
EAY, a standalone publication which replaces IQ’s annual European Arena Report, is produced by ILMC in partnership with the European Arenas Association (EEA) and the UK’s National Arena Association (NAA). Sixty-nine European arenas contributed to the first edition, which tracked more more than 5,500 performances across the continent.
Divided into six regional focuses – central and eastern Europe; France and Benelux; Germany, Switzerland and Austria; the Nordics; southern Europe; and Britain and Ireland – the first EAY also includes a big-picture overview of the European industry and in-depth features on venue security and new technology.
Across Europe as a whole, several promoters told EAY that 2016 was a difficult year due to the lack of international acts out touring, and music’s share of overall venue usage slipped slightly (-1% YoY) to 39%, losing ground to sporting and family events. However, many are already reporting a “significant boost” in concert bookings for 2017, and it is expected that music will rebound above the 40% mark in next year’s survey.
“The European arena sector is a multibillion-euro concern, employing thousands of people and having favourable economic impact on towns and cities from Aberdeen to Zagreb”
Other key takeaways from EAY 2017 include:
Total spend on music topped €868.5m
Revenues from live music accounted for a whopping 60.5% of the pot, with total attendance reaching more than 16m
Southern Europe set to drive future growth
There is a “tangible feeling of optimism” in the Mediterranean, with huge potential for growth and Italians, Spaniards and Portuguese seeing more shows than the European average
Artist fees are still a cause for concern
Spiralling artist fees remain the no1 concern among European venues, with their respective nations’ economies in close second. (It should be noted, however, that at the time of survey completion the Manchester Arena bombing had not yet happened)
Music ticket prices continue to rise
And while live music is still the biggest draw throughout Europe, sport is eating into its share of venue usage
“The headlines across this first EAY are that our reporting arenas brought in more than €1.4bn in revenues in 2016, entertaining more than 32m people in the process, across more than 5,500 performances,” writes IQ/EAY editor Gordon Masson, “underlining the fact that the European arena sector is a multibillion-euro concern, employing thousands of people and having favourable economic impact on towns and cities from Aberdeen to Zagreb.”
Dive into the European Arena Yearbook 2017 below:
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