Latest Live 8 Updates
55,000 more tickets for Live 8
Sir Bob Geldof yesterday proclaimed that the Live 8 concert in London would be the biggest ticket event ever in the UK, after thrashing out a deal with council authorities to allow another 55,000 people into Hyde Park to watch the action on big screens.
The royal parks, Westminster city council and the Metropolitan police had initially been concerned that Geldof’s plan would add to overcrowding and transport problems. But yesterday a compromise was announced by the organisers of Live 8, eight concerts taking place in Hyde Park and elsewhere around the world on Saturday to publicise the aims of the Make Poverty History campaign before next week’s G8 summit in Gleneagles.
Some 55,000 additional free tickets will be available from 3pm tomorrow at a number of locations around the UK. Pairs of tickets will be issued on a first come, first served basis, giving access to an area of Hyde Park near the Serpentine, where the stage action will be relayed on 12 giant screens.
The screens, the largest concentration ever at a European outdoor event, will also have live link-ups to the other Live 8 concerts around the world. “This is going to be the biggest event in Hyde Park’s history and the biggest ticket event ever in the UK. The park will be filled to the brim… It will be one of those defining moments that come around once in a generation,” said Geldof, who at the weekend appeared onstage at the Glastonbury festival to rally support.
The organisers of the concert have also negotiated a later finish, 9.30pm rather than 8pm. They told those attending to “plan accordingly”, warning it could also take up to an hour to get into the park. Those without tickets were advised to stay away and watch on one of 14 other big screens provided by the BBC around the country.
Tickets will be available from 3pm tomorrow from four London venues (Carling Hammersmith Apollo, Stargreen Tickets, the Victoria Apollo, and the Dominion Theatre) and in Birmingham (Alexandra Theatre), Bristol (Hippodrome), Cardiff (International Arena), Manchester (Palace Theatre), Oxford (New Theatre), and Southampton (Guild Hall).
From The Guardian
EMI wins rights to Live 8 DVD
EMI has secured the rights to release DVDs of the Live 8 concerts in a number of major world markets, and will produce different versions of the DVD tailored to different countries.
EMI confirmed it has acquired the DVD rights in the United States, Britain, Canada, France, Germany and Italy. The Live 8 DVD is expected to be a big seller, given the success of the Rolling Stones SARS concert DVD and the recent 20th-anniversary, four-disc video of the original Live Aid event. Both of those were released on Warner Music.
Money from the sale of the Live 8 DVD rights has gone into actually staging the free concerts, in the same way that the sale of broadcast rights was a key component in helping to pay for the events. After EMI recoups its costs, it will pay an additional, “pretty substantial” royalty to Live 8, Cameron said. Effectively, this will be a donation to the anti-poverty campaign.
“I hope this will be the biggest-selling DVD of all time. It deserves to be,” said singer Bob Geldof, Live 8’s central organizer.
There’s no guarantee that EMI will make back its money, Cameron said half-jokingly, “because it was a substantial bid to get this. But obviously we’re very optimistic because there’s a tremendous lineup of artists around the world.” This includes Coldplay, Paul McCartney, U2, Madonna, REM, Stevie Wonder, Pink Floyd, Green Day, Jay-Z and many others playing the various Live 8 concerts around the globe.
The Live 8 DVDs are expected to come out in November 2005.
From The Globe and Mail
EMI Wins World Rights For Live 8 DVDs
EMI has secured the worldwide DVD rights to July 2 Live 8 concerts in the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, France, Germany and Italy. The British record company has concluded what it describes as “a unique agreement” with the Live 8 organization, by which it provided Live 8 with “a major financial contribution” in return for the worldwide DVD rights.
Sources said EMI provided Live 8 with a multi-million dollar advance, which will contribute to offset the production costs of the various concerts.In a statement, Live 8 organizer Bob Geldof said, “We are very grateful to EMI for their financial contribution which helped to make the July 2 concerts happen everywhere on the planet and thus nudge the world a little closer towards our shared aim.”
It is understood that the deal has been negotiated at the highest level at EMI, with the involvement of EMI Music chairman/CEO of Alain Levy, EMI Music U.K. and Ireland chairman/CEO Tony Wadsworth and EMI Continental Europe chairman/CEO Jean-Francois Cecillon.
The DVDs will be released around the world in November, with a series of locally-tailored DVDs featuring live footage from the concerts.
From Billboard.com