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AEG Presents partners with Germany’s MCT Agentur

AEG Presents has formed a strategic partnership with German-based MCT Agentur, intended to expand the reach of both firms in Europe and beyond.

MCT was founded as an independent promoter in 1984 in Herne, North Rhine-Westphalia, by entrepreneur Scumeck Sabottka and two friends.

Since relocating to Berlin in 1999, it has nurtured both international and domestic artists from club to arena and stadium level.

Clients have included Rammstein, Lou Reed, Radiohead, Pearl Jam, Tom Waits, New Order, Marilyn Manson, Kraftwerk, Robbie Williams, Florence and the Machine, LCD Soundsystem, Massive Attack, Björk, Four Tet, Katy Perry, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Tamino, Sigur Ros, Janelle Monae, Blur and Moby, among others.

“Scumeck has built a business that’s an enviable one, and he built it from the ground up,” says Jay Marciano, AEG president and CEO. “AEG Presents has historically been a home for entrepreneurs who have a keen eye towards scaling their businesses while maintaining what’s unique and critical to their success.

“You need a teammate you can trust and Jay and I trust each other. It’s as simple as that”

“I’ve always loved working with Scumeck and MCT whenever our companies have the chance to do business together; I’m so excited that we will have the chance to do so in a more meaningful way on an ongoing basis. I’m thrilled to welcome MCT to the family.”

Sabottka explains his friendship with Marciano stretches back a number of years.

“We would meet for coffee during my yearly trips to Los Angeles, and during one of those meetings we began talking about a way we could work together,” he says. “I wanted a partner who shared my vision of how our business should run and could provide some extra muscle in my corner when needed.

“Concert promotion is still a gamble – that’s what makes it fun – but it’s a full-contact sport at times. You need a teammate you can trust and Jay and I trust each other. It’s as simple as that.”

 


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Indie Champs 2024: Mercury Concerts, Move Concerts & more

To celebrate the hard work of the numerous independent operators that make the live entertainment industry such a vibrant – and growing – business worldwide, IQ is publishing its inaugural Indie Champions list.

Our shortlist of 20 companies were chosen by the IQ readership and have headquarters across 11 different nations but service live events the world over, thanks to their various satellite offices and the artists and partners they work with.

The Indie Champions will become an annual staple of IQ, so if your company did not make it onto this year’s debut list, fear not, as you have a full ten months to prove your credentials to friends, colleagues, and business partners ahead of next year’s nomination process.

IQ will continue to publish entries across all categories over the coming days, and you can find the whole cohort in the latest edition of IQ here. Find part one here and part two here.

 


LS Events (UK)
Launched in 2004 by Jim King and later joined by Dave Grindle, Loud Sound made its name in the UK festival industry. In 2016, it welcomed Steve Reynolds to the business and has since been able to diversify across a wide range of sectors. Now a 40-strong team with a freelance network of 1,500, the company delivers event excellence across core sectors of live entertainment, sports, public sector, and major ceremonies.

“Our foundations continue to inform a culture of development and personal growth that empowers our employees to thrive,” says co-CEO Grindle. “We have taken time to think about the way that we operate to ensure that our systems and policies are meaningful. We continuously evaluate the ways in which we can support our teams, both professionally and personally. This commitment to looking after our greatest asset – our people – enables us to be adaptable to the ever-changing landscape of events.

The LS client list includes AEG Presents, UEFA, The Greater London Authority, Formula E, LIV Golf, and Pride in London

“Drawing on our expertise, we have refined our creative/operational processes to offer clients unmatched insight when curating, producing, and delivering their event stories. Our commitment to excellence is underpinned by extensive ISO accreditations, which not only hold us accountable to continual improvement but also ensure that we operate to the highest possible standards.”

The LS client list includes AEG Presents, UEFA, The Greater London Authority, Formula E, LIV Golf, and Pride in London.


Marauder (US)
Rev. Moose and his partners formed Marauder in 2015 “to work with people in music who fell between the cracks of the existing American industry.” These were people primarily based outside the US and had needs American companies weren’t set up to handle.

“So many Americans focus on one specific need rather than addressing a project’s overall goals,” notes Moose. “With Marauder, we’re set up to process what each client wants to achieve and create a complete marketing campaign based on what will actually advance a project.”

“What separates Marauder from other companies with similar services is our intention to build through service”

Since its inception, Marauder has worked to give a voice to those supporting their own music ecosystems. This mentality was the catalyst for bringing Independent Venue Week to the US in 2015, which became integral in creating the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA).

Marauder’s core work revolves around building marketing strategies for companies and programmes and executing those ideas in a way that meets their goals. “What separates Marauder from other companies with similar services is our intention to build through service,” says Moose.

“All of our clients, in one way or another, are working to better their communities. We have the market knowledge and professional connections to create meaningful programmes for our clients while focusing on everyone’s core business needs.”


MCT Agentur (DE)
MCT was formed in 1984 by Die Toten Hosen manager Jochen Hülder, Rough Trade Booking Germany chief Dietrich Eggert, and tour manager Scumeck Sabottka. The trio decided to start their own company so that they could not only promote the acts they liked but also “make some real money.”

Sabottka tells IQ, “We were naive and signed deals with experienced agents in the UK that meant we only saw the downside, so in 1986, Dietrich left the company, and we nearly went broke. But I found new partners, parted ways with Jochen, and got new cash into the company.”

However, Sabottka later relied on other independent promoters to keep MCT running. “In the early 1990s, I contacted Marcel Avram through Gary Kurfirst (manager of the Ramones, who we promoted), and he sent his bagman, Bruce Glatman, who brokered for MAMA Concerts and Rau to become majority partners in MCT. I moved to Munich, and we started to make money. So, in early 2000, I bought the shares back from Marcel and Fritz [Rau] and have been independent since.”

“I bought the shares back and have been independent since”

In addition to being concert and tour promoters, MCT (which is now based in Berlin), acts as an agency, as well as managing a number of acts. The company promotes Rammstein in the European Union and Robbie Williams in Germany; it manages Yasmine Hamdan and Die Antwoord; and it is the EU agent for Marilyn Manson, Gus Gus, Hatari, and VÖK.

Its promoting roster also includes Björk, Massive Attack, Moby, New Order, Radiohead, Florence and the Machine, Pearl Jam, Janelle Monae, Four Tet, Beth Gibbons, Okay Kaya, Charlotte Day Wilson, L ́Impératrice, Trentemøller, Gorillaz, Tom Waits, and Tamino.

This year, MCT’s team of 20 full-time staff promoted around 30 Rammstein stadium shows, selling 1.3m tickets in the process. It also sold out shows for Beth Gibbons in Berlin, a Die Antwoord European tour, and sold out Marilyn Manson’s European tour in February 2025.


Mercury Concerts (BR)
Following T4F’s IPO in 2011, Jose Muniz ended his 12-year tenure at the business and went on to join XYZ Live, a company owned by media empire ABC group, which seemed to be a
good project with lots of potential. However, after one year, it tanked, and he decided it was time to bring back Mercury Concerts – a company he founded in 1980 before selling to OCESA in 2000.

After the Mercury relaunch in 2014, the first tour saw Guns N’ Roses playing 14 dates across South America. Other acts promoted by the company include KISS, Aerosmith, Rush, Ozzy Osbourne, Bon Jovi, David Gilmour, Deep Purple, Scorpions, Judas Priest, Megadeth, and Pearl Jam.

Mercury’s Monsters of Rock festival will celebrate its 30th anniversary next year

Unsurprisingly, given that roster of talent, Mercury is also the owner of Monsters Of Rock in the region, which has now expanded to Argentina, Chile, Colombia, and Mexico, and will celebrate its 30th anniversary next year.

With 15 personnel running operations between Orlando and Brazil, Mercury also relies on business with similar infrastructure in other countries, meaning it can offer clients a full team on the road, from day one till the last show of the run, making sure the artists are comfortable with the same level of production in every city of the tour.


Move Concerts (US)

Move Concerts was formed ten years ago in what was essentially a rebranding and restructuring of promoter Phil Rodriguez’s various enterprises, Water Brother Productions, Evenpro Group, and XYZ.

Move has five verticals: concert promotions, artist management, record label, publishing, and an Argentine ticketing company, Livepass. “The artist management, label, and publishing were born during the Covid years, when the live touring business shut down and many of us looked at what else we could do with our resources,” explains Rodriguez. “These were a new challenge for us, but all three are growing at a relatively fast clip, and we have a licensing deal with Warner Latin that is very strong and healthy and will allow our label and management to grow faster.”

On the concerts side, Move works with numerous artists, including Ed Sheeran and Iron Maiden, who have strong fanbases in Latin America, thanks to longstanding relationships with Rodriguez and his company.

Move Concerts will end 2024 with more than 1.1m tickets sold

With offices throughout Latin America and a HQ in Miami, Move Concerts has 53 full-time staff and will end 2024 with more than 1.1m tickets sold.

Noting 2024 tours with Iron Maiden, Paul McCartney, and Karol G, Rodriguez adds, “We had a chance to work with Ne-Yo for the first time this year, and his show is amazing. We’re also doing the LatAm leg for Keane, who are celebrating the 20th anniversary of their debut album, Hopes and Fears, and they’re selling stronger than ever – we had arena dates sell out on the on-sale.”

 


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MCT Agentur unveils expanded management team

German independent promoter MCT Agentur has announced two key appointments as it unveils a significant expansion of its management team.

The Berlin-based firm, which also operates agency and management divisions, has appointed Asita Sadeghian and Kristin Schulz as additional MDs, working alongside MCT founder and owner Scumeck Sabottka.

Sadeghian and Schulz are both credited with playing crucial roles in the company’s success for more than two decades.

“This appointment represents a significant milestone in the company’s development”

“Their many years of expertise and commitment promise fresh impetus and new ideas for the future of the MCT agency,” says a statement by the firm. “This appointment represents a significant milestone in the company’s development and demonstrates MCT Agentur’s commitment to further expanding its leading position in the industry.”

MCT, which promotes the likes of Rammstein and Robbie Williams, was founded in 1984 and celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. It has upcoming tours with artists such as Moby, Nadine Shah and Trentemøller.

Sabottka is also a founder and director of FEAT (Face-value European Alliance for Ticketing), an organisation dedicated to the promotion of face-value ticket resale across the continent.

Subscribers can read our market report on Germany, which was published in the latest edition of IQ, here.

 


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Court backs Rammstein on secondary ticketing

Rammstein and European promoter MCT Agentur have won a further court ruling in Germany, compelling resale sites to abide by legal rules in the marketplace.

CTS Eventim is the exclusive authorised ticket provider for the rock band’s German shows, with tickets permitted to be resold only via its fanSALE platform, which caps prices at 10% above face value.

The group and MCT previously obtained an interim injunction against Viagogo regarding the band’s 2023 European stadium tour. Although the ruling was contested by the platform, it has since been upheld by the Hamburg Regional Court.

The judgement was delivered last month, and obliges Viagogo to comply with the relevant legal rules “when distributing all concert tickets in Germany”. The company was also fined €20,000 by the court, along with an additional €250 per day if it fails to pay up. The court adds that Viagogo appears to have “not taken any notice of the preliminary injunction” so far.

The case marked the second time the Hamburg Regional Court had legally prohibited the Switzerland-headquartered company from reselling Rammstein tickets, following an identical injunction in 2019.

The most recent court order, which is not yet legally binding, is based on consumer protection regulations that were newly defined in May 2022. Rammstein and MCT also obtained interim injunctions against secondary ticketing companies StubHub and Gigsberg in November 2023.

“All decisions confirm the opinion of Rammstein and the MCT Agency”

“All decisions confirm the opinion of Rammstein and the MCT Agency, the tour promoter of the European shows, that Viagogo AG, StubHub, Inc. and Gigsberg Services OÜ are violating consumer protection regulations,” says a statement from Berlin-based MCT.

Rammstein are celebrating their 30th anniversary with a 2024 European stadium tour, launching in Prague, Czechia on 11 May and wrapping up with five nights at Gelsenkirchen’s Veltins-Arena in the group’s native Germany from 26-31 July. Ticket prices for the German gigs range between €70-131.

In an effort to clamp down on the excesses of the resale market, tickets for the concerts will have the full name of the buyer printed on them. The ticket holder will be required to present their ID to gain access entry to the stadium, along with the rest of their party.

“There are strict entry controls at all concerts,” stresses MCT. “If a ticket is not personalised to the person requesting entry, they will not be allowed entry. Any returns of tickets (e.g. due to prevention, illness, etc.) in accordance with the general terms and conditions of the tour operator MCT Agency can only be processed via the CTS Eventim platform ‘fanSALE’.

“All other providers who offer Rammstein tickets are unauthorised dealers. Rammstein tickets purchased there do not entitle you to enter a show. This applies in particular to all Rammstein tickets that are offered through providers of the so-called secondary ticket market.”

 


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Pitchfork Music Festival goes to Berlin

US-based magazine Pitchfork is launching the first-ever Berlin edition of its music festival, the publication’s editor announced at Reeperbahn Festival, Germany, yesterday (19 September).

The festival is set to take place from 8 to 9 May 2020 at Berlin’s 3,500-capacity Tempodrom, featuring a mix of established artists and emerging musicians.

The event will be promoted by Scumeck Sabottka’s MCT Agentur, the longtime promoter of German metal band Rammstein.

The Pitchfork Music Festival launched in 2006 in Union Park, Chicago. The 20,000-capacity 2019 festival, which took place from 19 to 21 July, featured headliners Robyn, Haim and the Isley Brothers.

In 2011, the festival’s first spin-off event took place in Paris at the 15,000-capacity Grande Halle de la Villette. The 2019 edition, which takes place from 31 October to 2 November, will see performances from Skepta, Chromatics and Belle and Sebastian. Pitchfork Music Festival Paris is promoted by Parisian booking and events agency Super!.

Tickets for the upcoming Pitchfork Paris, priced at €50 for a one-day ticket and €120 for a three-day pass, are available here.

More updates on the upcoming Berlin festival can be found on Pitchfork Berlin’s Instagram, Facebook and Twitter pages.

 


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