Gig Gadgetry from the Frontline...
MoSART Guides Licensing Decisions Taking a revolutionary outlook on licensing decisions, the Dutch municipality of Groningen is using a new app to gauge residential and visitor approval for concerts and other events in and around the city. As the host city of Eurosonic Noorderslag, Groningen’s officials have first-hand experience of the benefits that live music shows can bring, so the council implemented smart-
phone app MoSART (Mobile Soundscape Appraisal and Recording Technology), during three festivals in the last year, in order to measure and understand the effects of festivals on city neighbourhoods. Instead of focussing only on official noise complaints and the minimal requirements dictated by current legislation (namely decibel thresholds), MoSART allows for crowd
Second Screen Fresh from showcasing their abilities at ILMC’s tech panel, Second Screen is rolling out a number of new features this year, with the boast that it can now turn around a new app build in under one week. CEO Niall Green explains that one significant development for 2017 is the integration of a native advertising platform that will allow brands to tap into apps. “It means that the app owner can target specific brands, such as local breweries
Event Protect With so many events last summer being cancelled or rescheduled because of factors such as the weather, terror threats and civil unrest, ticketing insurance specialist Event Protect has developed a unique scheme that allows refunds to be processed directly with fans. Ticketing agents can use API to connect, in real time, to Event Protect’s system,
which has been designed so that whenever an event is cancelled, rescheduled or curtailed, the insurer provides a full refund directly to ticket holders, including any packaged extras, such as VIP, processing fees, transport, etc. The company is hoping it can become a consumer champion brand, similar to ABTA or ATOL in the travel industry. “There are a few key differences between what we
sourced sampling of actual personal experiences from visitors and local citizens. A measurement of MoSART consists of a short audio recording, combined with a scientific validated questionnaire on soundscape appraisal. The gathered data is processed in real time, allowing the festival or municipality to monitor the impact of an event as it devel-
ops, and intervene if necessary. That way, the balance between a lively party and a liveable environment can be optimised. “Ultimately, MoSART helps to establish and maintain a positive relationship between the neighbourhood, the festival, and the municipality, contributing to the social sustainability of music events,” comments Kirsten van den Bosch, CEO of MoSART developers, SoundAppraisal.
soundappraisal.eu
or cheese makers who might not be able to afford a £10,000 advertising campaign, whereas a highly targeted customer base at the likes of a festival can be reached within their budget,” says Green. “From the brands’ point of view, they will be advertising in a closed network where we can provide them with data about where the fans live, how far they have travelled, how they got to the festival, etc – all useful information that brands really want.” The advertising element provides app clients, such as fes-
tivals, artists or venues, with a new revenue stream that they can either split 50/50 with Second Screen (when the developer acquires the advertiser), or if the client brings in the advertiser, the split is 70/30 in their favour. Current Second Screen clients include Horizon, Isle of Wight, Love Supreme, Sundown and the new, month-long East London Fringe Festival. But with a live-streaming channel making its debut this summer, the portfolio of clients relying on Second Screen for their apps is only set to expand. secondscreenldn.com
do and traditional insurance companies,” says Event Protect business development manager, Marcus Worsley. “For instance: we don’t require detailed risk assessments, as the risk is spread across our portfolio of events; there’s no lump sum premium payable upfront, as the cost is paid for when ticket sales are made; we manage the claim on our clients’ behalf in the case of an event cancellation, thus securing the funds from
the underwriter and paying this directly to ticket holders within about two weeks; and there is also scope for our members to generate revenues from this, as the cost can be passed onto the customer at a mark-up.” Worsley says the product is already gaining traction among ticket agents that advance money to event organisers, white-label ticketing, and event organisers who self-ticket. eventprotect.co
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IQ Magazine May 2017