– 2014 Rethink Music Venture Day to be held at The Factory in Berlin on October 24
– Final call for entries to win “business start-up package” worth over $10,000
– Paul Hitchman, MD of Kobalt Label Services, to keynote event

Boston/Paris/Madrid, September 17, 2014 – Berklee College of Music, Midem, and IE Business School are to host the second annual Rethink Music Venture Day in Berlin on Friday October 24, 2014 at the newly launched and widely acclaimed start-up and technology campus: The Factory, in the heart of the German city. Providing a global networking forum with workshops and discussions for international music business start-ups, entrepreneurs, brands and investors, the 2014 Rethink Music Venture Day will welcome Keynote Speaker, Paul Hitchman, Managing Director of Kobalt Label Services as well as other guest speakers.

The Berlin Venture Day will also provide the stage for the final in Rethink Music’s search for 2014’s “next music business entrepreneur”. Entrepreneurs and businesses have until September 29, 2014 to submit their start-up project for the chance to win a “business start-up package” worth over $10,000. Projects must be «investor ready» with a committed team and tested business model. Criteria for assessment will include innovation, team, growth potential, and scalability. A short-list of 12 start-up projects will be selected to pitch their ventures to a panel of judges made up of experienced music executives and investors at the event. Finalists will be notified by October 6, 2014.

The winner will be awarded a ‘business start-up package” comprising $10,000 in legal services through an in-kind donation from Duane Morris, LLP, space in Berklee’s music incubator in Boston, enrolment in an online certificate program from Berkleeonline.com; complimentary registration for Midem 2015; as well as access to investors and capital to launch their new music start-up. Winners of the 2013 Rethink Music Berlin music entrepreneur competition, Berlin start-up company, Nagual Sounds – who also won the Midem Lab 2014 competition – will be presenting and performing at this year’s event, sharing their experiences and exploits since their success at the inaugural 2013 Rethink Music Berlin Venture Day.

“We are excited about returning to Berlin for our second Rethink Music Venture Day and the search for this year’s next generation music business entrepreneur,” commented Allen Bargfrede, executive director of Rethink Music for Berklee College of Music. “We had over 300 start-ups and guests from leading international music and creative companies attending last year – with over 50 entries into our start-up competition – and we expect to grow these numbers this year.”

“Music entrepreneurs and business start-ups have a key role to play in furthering the music industry, not least in delivering new original services to positively impact the ecosystem,” explained Bruno Crolot, Director of Midem & Music Markets. “Our annual Rethink Music Venture Day is designed to provide the forum – and the tools – to assist these entrepreneurs in developing their ideas and ventures into the successful music businesses of tomorrow – and what better place to host this year’s event than The Factory.. a bespoke start-up and technology campus designed to enable entrepreneurs and innovators!”

“With today’s new music industry business models, a Venture Day for startups in music provides a great networking opportunity for music entrepreneurs, brands and investors alike,” said Paris de L’Etraz, Director of the IE Venture Lab. “We are delighted to be partnering with Berklee and Midem once again to merge Rethink Music’s experience in fostering positive change for the future of the music industry with our Venture Day format for the event.” Admission to the Rethink Music 2014 Berlin Venture Day is free with registration.

For further information, please contact:

Rethink Music:

Corinne Norris

Blink Creative

Tel: +34 916 571 249

Mob: +34 697 917 415

E-mail: corinne@blinkcreative.biz

Berklee College of Music:

Allen Bush

Director of Media Relations

Tel: +1 617 747 2658

Mob:+1 617 529 7303

E-mail: abush@berklee.edu

Midem:

Jane Garton

Press Director

Tel: +33 (0)1 79 71 94 39

SwitchB: +33 (0)1 79 71 90 00

E-mail:Jane.GARTON@reedmidem.com

IE Business School:

Juncal Sánchez

Associate Director

Tel: +34 915 688 2624

E-mail. juncal.sanchez@ie.edu

About Rethink Music:

Created by Berklee College of Music and Midem, Rethink Music began in 2010 and has hosted major conferences in Boston, as well as global private working group events and public workshops, including 2013 projects at Midem, Berklee’s campus in Valencia, and at Sónar in Barcelona. Centered around transforming the music industry, Rethink Music projects are designed to bring music stakeholders together to discuss business models for the future, examine copyright challenges in the digital era, and analyse technological innovation in music and its distribution with a focus on fostering positive change for the future of the music industry.

More information can be found at www.rethink-music.com

About Berklee College of Music

Berklee College of Music was founded on the revolutionary principle that the best way to prepare students for careers in music is through the study and practice of contemporary music. For more than 65 years, the college has evolved to reflect the state of the art of music and the music business, leading the way with the world’s first baccalaureate studies in jazz, rock, electric guitar, film scoring, songwriting, turntables, electronic production, and more than a dozen other genres and fields of study.  Berklee serves distance learners worldwide through its award-winning online extension school, Berklee Online.  The college’s national after school music program for underserved teens, the Berklee City Music Network, is in 30 cities and counting. A new campus in Spain, Berklee in Valencia, began hosting the college’s first graduate programs in the fall of 2012.  With a diverse and talented student body representing nearly 100 countries, and alumni and faculty that have collectively won more than 305 Grammys and Latin Grammys, Berklee is the world’s premier learning lab for the music of today—and tomorrow.

More information can be found atwww.berklee.edu

About Midem:

Midem is the annual international b2b event dedicated to the new music ecosystem, with a tradeshow, conferences, competitions, networking events and live performances. It’s the place where music makers, cutting-edge technologies, brands & talents come together to enrich the passionate relationship between people & music, transform audience engagement and form new business connections.

More information can be found at www.midem.com

About IE Business School:

IE Business School shapes leaders that promote innovation and change in organisations, equipping directors with an entrepreneurial mindset that generates employment, wealth and social wellbeing. Recognised as one of the world’s leading business schools, IE Business School has an urban campus in Madrid and a faculty of more than 400 professors who teach students from 93 countries on its master, PhD and executive education programs. IE students use innovative online and presential learning formats, including the IE Communities platform where they exchange knowledge and experiences with 40,000 IE graduates that currently hold management positions in some 100 countries.

More information can be found at www.ie.edu