Lawrence Blau joins iFn as Tax Manager
With downloaded music sales nearing $2.5 billion dollars annually, royalties are out and the music world has new complex problems of “revenue sharing.” The indieFINANCIALnetwork(TM) launched by musician and financial services veteran, Rick Kennell, will be “lifting the music world.” Kennell said, “Digital download accounting is like the wild, wild west. There is no file format or reporting standard for aggregating, monitoring and managing statements for revenue partners. The iFn will help musicians and industry execs get back to doing what they do best.”
These days, music distribution and music delivery are evolving and becoming more complex every day. With fewer CD’s to press and ship, accounting is suddenly a different task. On the surface, it would seem like it should be easier, but reconciling and accounting to revenue partners based on statements from several different download houses, with hundreds, maybe thousands of transactions, complex royalty splits and non-standardized reporting, can be a recipe for disaster.
The indieFINANCIALnetwork(TM) is a business management organization, dedicated exclusively to providing financial solutions to the diverse needs of the global music community. The iFn moves beyond the idea of being a conventional financial services or accounting firm. The iFn is responding to the current challenges in the music industry by providing full-service “back office” infrastructure.
Peter Casperson, President of the UFO Music Group, comments, “Rick and his accounting and financial planning partners, now becoming indieFINANCIALnetwork(TM), offer their collection of systems and cutting-edge technologies to all entrepreneurs in need of turn-key financial solutions. The iFn becomes the de-facto CFO/Finance Department for the global music industry.”
The iFn handles all the basics such as preparing and managing budgets and cash flow, income collection, payroll and related taxes, tax planning and preparation. Additionally, the iFn provides customized services in the areas of entity formation, trademarks, copyrights, revenue sharing, royalty accounting, audit examinations, internet and conventional performing rights and risk management. The iFn also offers services to non-U.S. labels, by acting as a financial clearinghouse for their digital aggregation, mail order, stage sales, and brick and mortar efforts in the U.S. The iFn specializes in managing and directing the worldwide finances of a U.S. or a non-U.S. touring act.
Founder and Director of the iFn, Rick Kennell, is a musician and producer who has been involved with all aspects of the music industry, including artist management. For the last fifteen years, Kennell has focused entirely on business management in the music industry. He has been chosen to be a panelist this fall at the prestigious 2006 CMJ Music Marathon in New York City for the panel “License to Thrive: How to Maximize Label Advances and Royalties.” More than 100,000 music professionals, artists and fans attend the Marathon to see performances and hear discussions covering critical issues affecting all aspects of emerging music and the music industry.
Certified Financial Planner, Lawrence Blau joins the iFn as tax manager. Blau has an MBA in taxation and over 30 years of tax management experience, offering custom services including investment advice, portfolio review plus estate and retirement planning. Another strategic partner, Paul Barretta, a royalty and revenue sharing specialist, brings his proprietary software to the mix which helps handle complex revenue sharing and royalty split scenarios.
The iFn has the ability and experience to seamlessly handle all of the complex financial aspects and transactions of a global music company. Currently, the iFn is providing services for record labels, artist management companies and music publishing companies.