Call for Expressions of Interest: Policy Brief on “Revenue distribution and transformation in the digital cultural value chain”

Call for Expressions of Interest: Policy Brief “Revenue distribution and transformation in the digital cultural value chain”

This call is for institutions or legal entities (i.e. for-profit or not-for-profit organisations)

Closing Date of Applications:  20 August 2021

Introduction

This call for expressions of interest is for a consultant company or institution to author the third edition of a “Policy Briefs” series that will be published digitally by UNESCO’s Diversity of Cultural Expressions Entity. This edition will focus on revenue distribution and transformation in the digital cultural value chain.

Background

Before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the cultural and creative industries were among the fastest growing sectors in the world. Generating annual revenues of US$ 2,250 billion and nearly 30 million jobs worldwide, they employed more people aged 15 to 29 than any other sector. Over the last decade, it has become clear that cultural and creative industries are drivers for inclusive economic growth, reducing inequalities and achieving the goals set out in the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

As the only United Nations agency with a mandate in the field of culture, UNESCO is committed to harnessing the power of cultural and creative industries for sustainable development. The 2005 Convention for the Protection and the Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions and the 1980 Recommendation concerning the Status of the Artist are the Organization’s main normative instruments to shape the design and implementation of policies and measures that support the creation, production, distribution of and access to cultural goods and services around the world.

Since the entry into force of the 2005 Convention fifteen years ago, its Parties have been at the forefront of emerging trends and issues that affect the cultural and creative sectors. From preferential treatment for cultural goods and services to the impact of digital technologies on the creative sector, Parties’ decisions and resolutions have helped to create a new framework for informed, transparent and participatory systems of governance for culture.

To further nourish and inspire the discussions of Parties to the 2005 Convention, UNESCO has launched a “Policy Briefs” series, which will identify emerging trends in the culture sector, discuss recent developments in specific thematic areas, and provide an analytical overview of future perspectives for the Governing Bodies of the Convention.

In the framework of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions’ Entity’s ongoing research activities in the field of culture and creativity, the consultant company or institution will be responsible for the drafting of a Policy Brief on an emerging topic within the creative and culture sectors. Based on existing research, the consultant company or institution will provide a comprehensive, yet concise overview of a given topic based on existing quantitative and qualitative data and information, including relevant examples of policies, measures and programmes from the different regions. As far as possible, the Policy Brief should provide a balanced geographic overview of the current state of the field of the given topic.

The Policy Brief is intended to:

• provide UNESCO Member States, and particularly Parties to the 2005 Convention, an overview of emerging trends and recent developments in the culture sector;
• provide an analytical overview of future perspectives for the Governing Bodies of the 2005 Convention to help them identify priority areas of intervention over the medium and long term and plan the sequence of their future interventions.

Objective

Digital platforms increasingly concentrate several functions in the value chain by positioning themselves as producers, distributors, and broadcasters of cultural content. From regional players and niche services to international streaming giants, these platforms are disrupting and transforming the value chain of the cultural and creative industries, offering new opportunities and challenges to creators and producers alike. Recent studies have shown a systemic and growing imbalance between the significant market benefit derived by platforms from the streaming and distribution of cultural content compared to the relatively scant financial benefit received by the independent producers, authors, and performers whose content is being streamed. The imbalance created by the winner-takes-all systems of big on-demand streaming platforms has grown even more stark in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has severely limited alternative revenue streams, such as live performances.

Grassroot awareness-raising initiatives, such as the #BrokenRecords and #IRespectMusic campaigns, have helped to shed light on this issue and, in some cases, have led to concrete policy change. From mainstream on-demand platforms, which mostly remunerate artists according to a complex pro-rata system of royalties distribution, to disruptive market innovators that monetize fandom and niche services that provide artist-centric experiences or user-centered payment systems (UCPS), how is revenue being (re)distributed across the digital cultural value chain? What revenue-sharing systems benefit artists, performers, authors, and independent producers, ensuring that their work is adequately remunerated? Most importantly, how are the different revenue-sharing systems in the digital environment reshaping the cultural value chain and how are they affecting the diversity of cultural expressions?

In this rapidly evolving field, it is essential to identify fair and transparent remuneration models to ensure the viability and diversity of the different links in the creative value chain, in line with the provisions of the 1980 Recommendation concerning the Status of the Artist and the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, in particular its Operational Guidelines and Open Roadmap for the digital environment. The main objective of this Policy Brief is therefore to provide a critical overview of the challenges and opportunities posed by different revenue-sharing systems in the digital environment for artists, authors, performers and independent producers and to offer an analysis of their impact on the creative value chain and the diversity of cultural expressions.

In order to address this topic, the consultant company/institution will conduct a basic mapping and typology of remuneration models used by digital platforms around the world, with a focus on the music, audio-visual, and book sectors. It will identify good and innovative practices, highlight promising results and outline policies and measures that have demonstrably improved fairness and transparency in the redistribution of revenue across the digital cultural value chain and promoted the diversity of its actors. It will also provide a synthetic analysis of policies and measures that have been put in place around the world and identify common actions/steps that can serve as inspiration to protect every link of the creative value chain in the digital environment, ensure fair renumeration for artists, authors, performers, and independent producers, and promote the diversity of cultural expressions.

The Policy Brief, which is conceived as a strategic document, should be concise and written in an accessible language for an informed audience of policymakers, researchers and cultural professionals.

Scope of work

The consultant company will be responsible for:

1. Gathering primary evidence by conducting research using online resources, conducting interviews, and analysing the revenue-sharing systems of a selection of streaming platforms, with a specific focus on music, books, and audio-visual content, ensuring geographical balance of their locations and a balance of emerging and established platforms;
2. Carrying out a basic mapping and typology of the main revenue-sharing systems and remuneration models currently in use across the sector;
3. On the basis of qualitative and quantitative evidence gathered from various sources, providing a concise but thorough analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of each of the models identified, particularly with regard to the way in which they modify the value chain in the cultural and creative industries and impact the diversity of cultural expressions;
4. Offering insight regarding the outlook for this sector and identifying possible areas of intervention and collaboration for the governing bodies of the 2005 Convention.

Qualification requirements

The consultant company or institution should have relevant experience, and a good record of accomplishments in global research and analysis. Demonstrable subject expertise, including research experience and publications on digital platforms and streaming services in the field of culture would be considered an asset.

The team must be able to consult sources of information in English and French. The ability to consult information sources in additional languages, especially Arabic, Chinese and Spanish, will be considered an asset.

Proposal

The consultant company should include in its offer:

• A proposal regarding the team composition and structure with recent CVs, including a list of publications and research achievements. The requested team should have diversified skills including at least a Team Leader and a subject expert.
• A detailed presentation of the proposed approach, strategy and methodology.
• A detailed work plan for the assignment, including a precise timeline.
• A financial proposal, broken down by activity and quoted in US Dollars. If an amount is included for the purchase of data, please include the sources being considered.

Proposals should be submitted in English or French.

Deliverables

1. An annotated table of contents, including a list of relevant case studies and sources, for review by the UNESCO Secretariat
2. A full draft of the Policy Brief in English or French, for review by the UNESCO Secretariat
3. The final Policy Brief of a maximum of 15 standard UNESCO pages and an executive summary of less than one page. The Policy Brief should be written in a clear and concise way for an informed audience, avoiding jargon or specialized terminology, and include a minimum of illustrative infographics.

Timeframe

The Contractor shall submit to UNESCO, in electronic format, the following:

1. On or before 15 October 2021, the annotated table of contents
2. On or before 15 November 2021, the draft Policy Brief
3. On or before 15 January 2022, the final Policy Brief

Expressions of interest should be submitted by email, clearly indicating “Policy Brief on The redistribution of value in the digital cultural value chain” to convention2005@unesco.org.

Closing Date of Applications:  20 August 2021