Court bans Vince Power from staging live music events in PRS dispute

13 August 2014 - News

FORMER FESTIVALS and multi-venues owner Vince Power has accused royalty collection body PRS for Music of being “vindictive”, after it won a High Court ruling banning him from staging live music events in the UK due to outstanding licence issues.

The not-for-profit organisation told the London court that Power had been operating without a PRS licence when holding the Hop Farm Music Festival (HFMF) in Kent from 2009 to 2012.

Mr Justice Birss ruled in PRS’s favour after Power failed to file a defence against the action. Power was ordered to pay the body’s £7,987 in legal costs and banned him from playing music in public until he brings his licences up to date. If he does not obey the ban, Power could be charged with contempt of court.

Power insists he had received no correspondence form PRS regarding the case and says he is “angry and disappointed”.

“To say that I am banned from staging live music events for the sake of £7,000 is damaging to my career. In light of the long strained relationship I have with them, I can only see this as PRS being vindictive and a means of deflection for what I see as the real problem within PRS; they have a long list of artistes that are owed money which they do not pay.

Provocatively, Power adds, “I am very happy for any artistes who have been chasing PRS unsuccessfully to contact me to see if there is a way we can group together and get the money they are owed.”

Power claims that any money owed to PRS would have been dealt with by the administrators for his Music Festivals (MF) company which collapsed in 2012 (see LIVE UK issue 153). However, the Hop Farm events were run by his Kent Festival Ltd vehicle, which went bust the same year with debts of more than £4.86 million, including more than £300,000 owed to 20-plus artistes who performed at the 50,000-capacity festival (see issue 159).

Documents released by liquidator Leonard Curtis show £667.92 was owed to PRS by Kent Festival Ltd when the firm went under.

PRS declined to respond directly to Power’s claims but a spokesperson tells LIVE UK, “I can confirm that the infringement by the public performance of musical works without a PRS licence relates to 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012.

“We can’t confirm the royalties owed, but can confirm that 31 PRS members performed at the 2009 festival, at least 10 in 2010, at least 27 in 2011 and at least 31 in 2012. They include well-known singer-songwriter musicians such as Peter Gabriel, Bryan Ferry, Morrissey, Paul Weller, Van Morrison and Joan Armatrading and bands including Echo and the Bunnymen, Florence + the Machine, The Bluetones, The Human League, Ocean Colour Scene and The Stranglers.”

PRS is entitled to collect three per cent of gross ticket revenues, so 25,000 people paying £150 per head would generate £112,500 for the composers and publishers of songs performed at the event.

This article first appeared in Live UK. Used with permission.