Music Startup Academy: Strategies, Tactics and Operations // BUSINESS 473

Various Instructors

First session on Thursday, April 14th from 6:00 pm to 7:30 pm. Classes meet every other Thursday at 6:00 pm for 5 more sessions. Price: $150 for the entire 6-session course, or $30 for this session only.

This course is a series of classes designed to educate entrepreneurs on the benefits, strategies and pitfalls of building a business in the music space. The course will cover topics including the structure of the music industry, publishing basics, piracy and operations.

The series is presented by NARM, the non-profit music business association, and General Assembly, the urban campus for entrepreneurs, and coordinated by Bill Wilson, NARM’s VP of Digital Strategy & Business Development, and Nikke Slight, Founder of Act III Digital, each class will be taught by industry experts that know the ins and outs of technology, start-ups and the music industry.

Specific class topics include:

Session I (4/14): Can it Be More Confusing? The Anatomy Of The Music Business
Discuss the fundamentals, structure and economics - who the major players are, who controls which rights, the org chart of the business, and how each silo interoperates.

Session II (4/28): Label and Publishing Basics for Entrepreneurs
A deeper dive into the economics of the music industry, including performance rights, including understanding the various rights for master recordings and songwriting. We will also go over the various legal issues surrounding music product development.

Session III (5/19):Music Industry Content Acquisition and Business Development
Want Lady Gaga for your music service? A cool product isn't enough. What are the do's and dont's in licensing vast libraries of major content. Learn the third rails and how to manage navigating around the barriers to entry.

Session IV (5/26): Avast! The High Seas of Music Piracy and the Law
A lively debate on what constitutes privacy and fair use and implications on entrepreneurs.

Session V (6/9): Getting Under The Hood: Music Operations For CTO's and Developers
Once a deal is done on the legal side, technical teams need to work out content delivery and royalty reporting mechanisms. This course will discuss industry XML standards for content delivery, and royalty reporting, metadata, best practices, and troubleshooting.

Session VI (6/23): Tales from the Trenches
Tales from the front lines on the good, the bad, the ugly. Real, practical lessons from veterans on the reality of life in a music start-up.

Can't make it? Sign up at http://generalassemb.ly to stay in the loop on future events and classes.