Guy Hands has parted company with the chief operating officer at EMI in a review of the business which includes plans to create closer ties between the record label and his chain of Odeon and UCI cinemas.

 

Ian Hanson, who was only promoted to COO in January last year and reported directly to EMI's former chief executive, Eric Nicoli, left the company just before Christmas.

 

The clear-out of senior managers is gathering pace in advance of mid-January, when Hands will announce his vision for rescuing Britain's ailing music major. Chief information officer James Anderson, who oversees IT, is due to leave shortly. Jo McCollum, who headed human resources, quit last year.

 

It is understood that Hands will continue as executive chairman, with no appointment yet of a chief executive. Mike Clasper and former Northern Foods boss Pat O'Driscoll, who is heading a personnel review, will stay on for the time being.

 

Hands is also looking for synergies between EMI and the cinema business owned by his Terra Firma private equity vehicle. Odeon and UCI, which together form the largest operator outside North America with hundreds of screens across Europe, will be used to host live events for EMI artists. Concerts are increasingly overtaking record sales as the major source of income for bands, and hosting events in cinemas could give Hands a share of this lucrative revenue stream.

 

Coldplay, the Spice Girls and other performers signed to the EMI label will be given the option of broadcasting a live concert to screens in dozens of cities. The format would be used to launch new albums, with fans, media and music executives invited to the screenings and given the option of picking up the CD or film of the concert on their way out of the cinema.

 

A spokesman for EMI confirmed the plans, adding: "This is part of the process of transforming EMI from a record company to a music group."

 

David Bowie was one of the first to pioneer the format in 2003, when he previewed a new album at a secret gig in Hammersmith, west London, which was broadcast to cinemas around the world.

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2008/01/06/cnemi106.xml

That.. would be awesome! =D But.. will it really work? A little part of me feels I would rather watch a streamed concert on my own computer rather than in the cinema.. My 2 cents though. It's a great idea, nonetheless =)

It wouldn't be the first time a band has screened a concert on the large screen of a cinema. Take That and Genesis are 2 bands which come to mind.

cool

That's... actually a pretty good idea for once, as long as it's handled well.

 

One of the theatres here has started doing it with opera shows happening in New York, I think. It's a great idea for people like me who live too far away from normal concert hot spots to travel to big shows more than once every few years.

 

Just as long as they realise it's not the same as a real live concert and never could be.

I think is a very good idea!

and this sounds to me like a "Live preformance on big screen for Live Earth"

 

maybe?

just a thought

i think this is a good idea as long as its not just, like, LA and new york and london and just the big cities. i think if they could get enough places to screen it so a large number of people could see it, it would be worth it. i'm not saying every movie theater in the world; i'm just talking like more than 10 cities. i think it should be streamed online as well for the people that live in the middle of nowhere or who can't get to one of the locations. i wouldnt even mind if they charged money for the online viewings.

This would be super mint...

why would they do that if they don't even want to release a DVD. I mean I'm sure they prefer to perform their new songs live so fans can really enjoy it... for me it'd be a real cold and frustrating way to promote a new album.

But hey, I would go to the theatre anyway.

Sounds good, it reminds me of the anticipated U2 3D movie... but since people may be taking their copies home, wouldn´t it be just like a DVD broadcast? In the other hand if maybe people wouldn´t be allowed to take anything exclusive home (for example, if it´s possible only to buy the band´s album, not the audio from that performance) wouldn´t it be better to broadcast it on the internet and make it available to everyone everywhere in the world?

 

If this is a try to start using video as a way to restrict access to the band, I don´t support it at all! I mean if they launch the album in a live show and decide to broadcast it, it´d be amazing to make it available to all over the world, not only to some cities.

It'd be like their X&Y Live Leak on MTV, only we'd have to pay for it. I agree with cephaus, i rather wait for it at home. Im very patient. :smug:

if it plays in new york and philidelphia, then i can go. but i'm not really concerned about me--i just think it would be much more benefical to the fans for them to stream the footage online. i know i'd be terribly upset if i couldnt see the album promotion simply because of my geographical location, and i'm thinking of all the people that love coldplay just as much as i do that dont have the means of going to one of 10 or so cities in the world to watch a film which could EASILY be broadcast online at probably very little expense.

 

but if this promotional film replaces music videos or touring or whatever, than i dont think they should do it at all. if it's an additional, new way of promotion, then sure, but i dont think its really promotion unless you're promoting it to the general public, not just the people that live near most populous cities in the world.

unless they want to film it way ahead of time and release it to all movie theaters...but thats not likely :D

HUH?I dont get this,so when igo watch a film at the cinema ill see a Coldplay concert????

 

A spokesman for EMI confirmed the plans, adding: "This is part of the process of transforming EMI from a record company to a music group."

 

 

Well EMI better try something big after losing Radiohead and Paul McCartney and Coldplay threatening to follow suit after their 5th album.:laugh3:

I think is a very good idea!

and this sounds to me like a "Live preformance on big screen for Live Earth"

 

maybe?

just a thought

 

 

they're talking about that concert.

don't ya worry :smug:

i am interested in the concert then!

I'd rather see it online too, because I don't think many fans would get to see it play in certain theaters or areas.