Regulating for creativity and cultural diversity: the case of collective management organisations and the music industry

This paper explores the role of intermediary institutions in promoting creativity and cultural diversity in the music industry, and the impact of cultural policy on the performance of those intermediaries. It reviews some of the existing literature on the relationship between economic conditions and innovation in music, and argues that too little attention has been paid to intermediaries. Focusing on collective management organisations (CMOs) as one example of overlooked intermediaries, we illustrate, by way of comparison, the different priorities and incentives that drive CMO practice. These variations, we suggest, are important to appreciating how CMOs operate as intermediaries in different territories. We then turn our attention to recent attempts by the EU to reform CMO practice as part of its Digital Single Market project. The fact that the CMO has been an object of reform is indicative of its importance. However, there is more at stake here: the reforms themselves, in seeking to change the role and behaviour of CMOs will, we suggest, have profound consequences for the market in music in Europe, and for creativity and cultural diversity within that market.     

Vestiges and Witnesses: Archaeological Finds from the Nazi Euthanasia Institution of Hartheim as Objects of Research and Education

In Hartheim Castle, more than 30,000 people became victims of National Socialist euthanasia programs. In the course of building the memorial at the end of the 1990s, numerous structural remnants of the killing institution were found. In 2001 several pits with structural elements, some human remains, as well as belongings of people murdered were found by chance in the former castle garden. This contribution establishes the meaning these items have for research, as well as considerations and discussions about the possibilities of presenting the vestiges in museum form and how to use the latter for teaching projects.     

Immigrants and savers: A rich new database on the Irish in 1850s New York

A new dataset created from the first 18,000 savings accounts opened (from 1850 to 1858) at the Emigrant Industrial Savings Bank in New York City is described. The bank was founded by Irish Americans, and most of its depositors in its first decade of operations were recent Irish immigrants. The data offer a unique window on both savings behavior by the poor and not-so-poor in antebellum New York and on how emigrants who came primarily from rural parts of Ireland adapted to urban life. They also contain much that is new on the regional origins of mid-nineteenth century Irish immigrants and on their settlement patterns in New York.     

Florence baptistery: chemical and mineralogical investigation of glass mosaic tesserae

A recent restoration of the mosaics of the Baptistery in Florence enabled the collection and analysis of a group of glass tesserae. Twenty-three tesserae, dated between the end of the 13th century and the first half of the 14th century, showing different colors were sampled and analyzed to identify the raw materials, colorants and opacifiers employed in their production.     

Theatre Elicitation: developing a potentially child-friendly method with children aged 8–12

ABSTRACT

This article discusses the growing body of literature published in Children Geographies on the importance of involving children in research processes. Inspired by participatory creative methods such as photo elicitation and popular/forum theatre, we have developed a potentially child-friendly tool referred to as Theatre Elicitation (TE). The objective of TE is to use theatre forms as a means of data collection in the context of a negotiated research process. In a pilot project in which we explore TE, children shared their perceptions of happiness. This was inspired by a UNICEF Report [2007. Child Poverty in Perspective: An Overview of Child Well-being in Rich Countries. Innocenti Report Card 7. Florence: UNICEF Innocenti Research Centre] that listed ‘Dutch children’ as the happiest of the world. The focus of this article is the development of TE as an interactive research tool. Insights were gained into the meaning of ‘child-friendly’ research, shifting power relations between children, peers and adults, and how children’s own positioning in lived experiences contextualized concepts such as ‘Dutch children’.     

Where to draw the line: the difference between a fan and a pirate in Japan

ABSTRACT

This article examines the gap between the public discourse favoured by right holders and politicians for strict copyright enforcement and industry practice where infringement is tolerated and sometimes even facilitated by the same right holders. Drawing on the Japanese contents sector surrounding Manga, Anime and video games, the interaction between strict copyright provisions, positive and negative market impact and broader considerations such as reputation and pay-offs are contextualised. It is demonstrated that right holders do not see infringing behaviour as such as a cause of action nor does it dominate how right holders want users to interact with their products. Instead, it is the wider context which determines if copyright will be enforced or not. Based on an analysis of copyright law, stakeholder interviews and observations at industry and stakeholder events, this paper clarifies where right holders draw the line between a pirate and a fan, especially the limited influence copyright law has in practice.