Moving

Hi Everyone,

I have set up a new blog at insideppl.blogspot.com as this one didn't seem appropriate anymore. I've also set up a new email addy for you to use if you want to get in touch with me. It is markkellyppl@gmail.com.

Thanks!

Mark

We Won!

Hi Everyone,

To all of you who voted for me - Thank You! I could not have done it without you.

A big thank you also needs to go to Nigel Parker for all his years of hard work on the Performer Board.

Now that I've been elected, I'll certainly be doing a lot of listening and learning. I'm new to this sort of role and really excited about getting stuck in.

Thanks again!

Mark

Election Today

Hi Everyone,

We'll, it's election day. I wanted to send out a big thank you to everyone who has written with their support. Thanks as well to all of you who sent in proxy forms!

No matter the result, this has been a good experience.

Thanks again and I'll let you know how it goes today at Abbey Road. For those of you who will be there, I'll see you later today!

Mark

I've had some very positive feedback from a number of people; artists saying they intend to vote for me and managers supporting my cause by asking their acts to vote for me. If you haven't already sent in your proxy form please do it this weekend. There are only a few days left before proxy voting is closed.

thanks

Mark

If you are not going to be able to attend the Annual Performer Meeting on November 19th, eligible voters can still vote by proxy. Eligible voters should have received their proxy voting form last month, but if you don't have one, write to me at electmarkkelly@yahoo.com and we will send one to you.

Below is what it looks like (here I've added the name of the person I've asked to be the proxy for those voting for me)

Please send your proxy forms back to us either by fax to +44 (0)207 734 2455 or scan them and email them to us at electmarkkelly@yahoo.com. We'll then send the part of the form to PPL as required. The other part will be given to Matthew Brown.

You will need to know your Performer ID (PID) number to vote. If you don't know what this is or where to find it, you can phone PPL's Performer Services to get the number. They can be reached on +44 (0)207 534 1234.

The deadline for us to receive forms if November 17th at mid-day. If you have any questions at all, please get in touch with us at electmarkkelly@yahoo.com.

Thanks!

Mark

Statement from Mark

Many of you will know me as the keyboard player for Marillion, a band that I have been part of since 1981. Throughout this time I have also been heavily involved in Marillion’s artist-to-fan model of selling recordings – a model that some have called ‘ground breaking’.

I am very concerned that featured performers receive fair remuneration when their recordings are made available to the public. I also see the internet more as an opportunity for performers rather than a threat to their copyrights. That said, we need to put in place a regulatory framework which is consumer friendly, but at the same time ensures an income stream to the performers, studio producers and record companies who together provide recordings to the public.

In regard to PPL I aim to vigorously defend the rights of performers and ensure that they get their fair share of PPL income.

I am unhappy that PPL collect broadcast and public performance income on behalf of non-qualifying performers and pay the performers share of such income to the record companies. This money (mainly generated by US performers who are regarded as non-qualifying) should go to some kind of performer fund for the benefit of UK performers rather than to the record companies.

I fully support the legislation that is currently going through Congress in USA which will, for the first time, provide public performance revenue from terrestrial radio. This new revenue stream will mean that US performers will finally get paid and that UK performers will enjoy a new income stream when their recordings are played on US terrestrial radio.

My concerns also extend to the fact that the PPL Board has more record company members than performer members. As an organisation that deals with a right that provides ‘equitable remuneration’, PPL’s board should be one that reflects the nature of this right – i.e. a board structure of equal numbers of performer and record company representatives.

I am also concerned that the obligation to provide performer line-up information for each track is the responsibility of record companies rather than the performers on the track. Some record companies do a poor job at providing accurate performer information in a timely manner. This has a negative impact on performers’ remuneration and is a practice that must be minimised. I understand that PPL are addressing this issue but there need to be penalties for record companies who perform poorly in this area.

I see PPL as a well managed collecting society that has made significant progress in recent years. No doubt there is much more work to do. I was very disappointed with the recent Copyright Tribunal judgement that refused PPL the right to charge similar licensing fees as PRS when music is played in such places as pubs, clubs, shops and factories. PPL has my full support in their appeal of this decision.

In closing, I sincerely hope that I will be elected as a Featured Artists performer representative. I look forward to the prospect of serving the performer community.

Many thanks,

Mark Kelly

About Mark:

Mark Kelly is the keyboardist of the band, Marillion. He joined the band in 1981, Kelly has appeared on every Marillion studio and live album with sales totaling over 10 million units.

He also appeared on John Wesley's album Under the Red and White Sky in 1994 and on Jump's album Myth of Independence in 1995 on production and keyboards. He has also played keyboards with Travis for their headlining set at the Isle of Wight Festival (10-12 June, 2005) and at the Live8 set in Edinburgh (6 July, 2005).

Campaign Launch

Welcome to the Elect Mark Kelly Blog. This page has been set up as a central point of contact for information related to the campaign to elect Mark Kelly to the PPL Performer and Main Boards.

Watch this space for ways that you can help!

Thanks,

Elect Mark Kelly Admin