5-8 June 2018, Palais des Festivals, Cannes PRESS RELEASE RHAPSODY INT’L-NAPSTER’S BILL PATRIZIO TO GIVE FIRST KEYNOTE AT MIDEM 2018 HOW STREAMING IS REGENERATING THE MUSIC INDUSTRY GLOBALLY AT HEART OF DISCUSSIONS DURING MIDEM Paris, 5 April 2018 – Bill Patrizio, newly-appointed President and CEO of Rhapsody Int’l– Napster, is to deliver a keynote at Midem 2018, part of an enhanced focus this year on streaming. Home of the global music community, Midem takes place in Cannes, France, from 5-8 June. Rhapsody Int’l-Napster has been reported in 2017 as the top streaming payout service for artists. At Midem, Bill Patrizio will unveil his strategy and vision on where the real value of music lies in today’s digital era. Rhapsody Int’l is a pioneer in digital music and a leading provider of music streaming technologies and services for businesses, including some of the world’s most recognised and respected consumer services companies. Rhapsody operates the Napster platform in 35 countries with a premium subscription service giving millions of subscribers unlimited ad-free access to music anywhere, anytime, on any device, online or offline. Napster combines the iconic history of one of the most recognisable music brands in the world with the vast experience and technological platform of Rhapsody International, the industry's first subscription streaming service provider. Bill Patrizio was appointed President and CEO of Rhapsody Int’l in February 2018, having served as interim CEO since May 2017, a role in which he led the restructuring and repositioning of the company to drive a new chapter of growth as a global leader in streaming music services. Prior to joining Rhapsody, Patrizio was President of Consumer Media at RealNetworks Inc., where he led the strategy and management of the company’s media products and services and the video compression IP business. He was previously Founder and Managing Director of Opaka Partners, and was CEO of Red Bee Media, a digital media software and broadcast services company based in the UK. At a time when fans are paying for music again, yet nobody seems to be making quite enough money from the digital ecosystem, Midem 2018 is hosting an expanded day-long Streaming Summit to explore the future of the sector. “For his very first keynote interview as President and CEO of Rhapsody Int’l-Napster, we are thrilled to welcome Bill Patrizio to Midem. Streaming has changed how people discover and consume music and has regenerated the recorded music industry after years of decline, in part driven by the gradual adoption of paid streaming in certain international markets. Via an exclusive keynote and the launch of a full day dedicated to streaming topics, Midem will explore the main challenges and key trends to come,” said Alexandre Deniot, Director of Midem. The Midem Streaming Summit will feature discussions on the most pressing current and forthcoming challenges faced by streaming and the music industry: • What are the new opportunities behind the boom of smart speakers? • How to cut through the noise on streaming platforms among millions of tracks available. • Why is mastering metadata more critical than ever? • Are streamers now competing with traditional A&Rs for music discovery? Additionally, a series of case studies will highlight one of the most exciting opportunities in today’s streaming era: the rise from local to global success, which will be illustrated by French artist Petit Biscuit’s international breakthrough and a focus on the launch of China’s Tencent in Africa. Speakers so far confirmed for the Streaming Summit include Alexander Holland, Chief Content and Product Officer, Deezer (France); Thabiet Allie, CCO - Music, Tencent Africa (South Africa); Brian Ringer, CTO and EVP of Operations, Napster (USA); Scott Cohen, Founder & VP International, The Orchard (UK); Denis Ladegaillerie, Founder & President, Believe Digital (France); Pete Downton, Deputy CEO, 7digital (UK); Pieter Van Rijn, CEO, FUGA (Netherlands); David Weiszfeld, Petit Biscuit Manager, Founder & CEO, Soundcharts (France); Rami Zeidan, VP Partnerships, Anghami (United Arab Emirates); and Awa Girard, Founder & CEO, Deedo (France). Other heavyweights in the streaming sector already confirmed as attending Midem 2018 include Amazon, Soundcloud, Qobuz, Beatport, TuneCore, and Mdundo. About Midem – Home of the Global Music Community, Midem is the world’s leading music event which brings together, connects, serves and supports the global music community to exchange, create, play, forge relationships and shape the future of music. With a rich 4-day programme of conferences, competitions, networking events and live performances, music makers, cutting-edge technology companies, brands & talent come together to enrich the passionate relationship between people & music, transform audience engagement and form new business connections. Midem is part of Reed MIDEM, a global leader in the organisation of international professional markets in music, television and digital content industries (MIPTV, MIPDOC, MIPCOM, MIPJUNIOR, MIP China and MIP Cancun) and real estate sectors (MIPIM, MIPIM PropTech and MAPIC). Reed MIDEM is a subsidiary of Reed Exhibitions, the world's leading events organiser, with over 500 events in 39 countries. In 2017 Reed brought together over seven million event participants from around the world generating billions of dollars in business. Today Reed events are held throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and Africa and organised by 38 fully staffed offices. Reed Exhibitions serves 43 industry sectors with trade and consumer events. It is part of RELX Group, a global provider of information and analytics for professional and business customers across industries. www.reedexpo.com REED MIDEM PRESS CONTACTS Jane GARTON, Entertainment Press Director: +33 1 79 71 94 39 > [email protected] Philippe LE GALL, Press Manager: +33 1 79 71 96 48 > [email protected] Yassia FEKIR, Press Officer: +33 1 79 71 95 82 > [email protected] Edith YAHIAOUI, Press Officer: +33 1 79 71 94 34 > [email protected] .