Factsheet for measure
HU-2020-32/1037
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Updated
– measures in Hungary
Support for music industry
Támogatás a zeneiparnak
Background information
Under the government decree 1470/2020 announced in early August, national funds were allocated for musicians to play concerts which would be streamed online. The measure is intended to help the music industry, with a special programme to be designed to focus on support for Roma musicians. The move comes after the ban on staging any concerts with an audience of more than 500 people stays in place in Hungary beyond 15 August 2020 due to the precautions on preventing a second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Content of measure
A sum of HUF 5.2 billion (€15.14m) was put aside for the purpose. The government wants to channel the funding through the Hungarian Tourism Agency (Magyar Turisztikai Ügynökség) and has also appointed an adviser to choose 100 bands (most of which were in big festival line-ups that were cancelled) who would be supported. It is not known how much support each band is getting, but there is a limit of HUF 15 million for each live act. The bands would be performing in empty halls, without an audience. The support fund for Roma music is HUF 800 million (within the HUF 5.2 billion total). There are two additional experts advising the government on support for LIVE LEGENDS and FOLK MUSIC.
Updates
The following updates to this measure have been made after it came into effect.
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30 April 2021
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In April 2021, the Music Hungary association said the government has given less support to the music industry during the coronavirus than other ailing sectors, although the number of concerts booked fell by 87% in 2020. Only HUF 200 million of the HUF 700 million lifeline was used, Music Hungary noted in a statement, adding that musicians who typically run small businesses cannot benefit from wage subsidies. The copyrights management agency EJI has distributed fast aid worth HUF 60 million (€167,000) among musicians in Hungary in two calls since the pandemic outbreak.
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10 September 2020
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The government announced support worth HUF 700 million (€1.9 million) to cancelled festivals with 500 or more attendees. The minimum amount to request is HUF 1 million and the maximum is 10% of the festival’s ticket sales revenue in 2019 (but no more than HUF 35 million per festival). The agency responsible for payment is the Hungarian Tourism Agency.
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Use of measure
The Hungarian Association of Festivals said that according to a survey, 30% of festival organisers had put forward the date of their event to after 15 August, in the hope that the ban on larger audiences would be lifted. Two-thirds of the companies organising such events work without public funding and/or are nonprofits and the Association estimates that the ban affects 37,000 jobs directly and has adverse effects indirectly on up to 370,000 workers. It is not known how many jobs could be saved by the warehouse concert funding.
Target groups
Actors and funding
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Actors
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Funding
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National government
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National funds
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Social partners
Social partners' role in
designing the measure
and form of involvement:
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Trade unions
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Employers' organisations
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Role
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No involvement
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No involvement
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Form
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Not applicable
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Not applicable
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Social partners' role in the
implementation, monitoring and assessment phase:
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No involvement
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Main level of involvement: N/A
Involvement
The Hungarian Association of Festivals (MFSZ) issued a statement with proposals for the government. The Magyar Zeneművészek és Táncművészek Szakszervezete MZTSZ - Hungarian Musicians’ and Dancers’ Union - the biggest union for musicians is formulating a statement (to be updated).
Views and reactions
The Hungarian Association of Festivals (MFSZ) issued a statement on August 3 in connection with the government decree which extended the ban on live concerts (for audiences larger than 500 people). They stated that 80% of big festivals have been cancelled which puts its toll on the cultural and tourism sectors. The MFSZ has put forward a set of proposals for the government to help prevent mass bankruptcy in the festivals sector. This includes tax cuts, wage support, support towards utility and operational costs with immediate effect. It calls for retraining programmes for people who must change careers due to losing their job in the pandemic (technicians, support workers). They call for reducing VAT on tickets to events.
Sectors and occupations
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This case is sector-specific (only private sector)
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Economic area
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Sector (NACE level 2)
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R - Arts, Entertainment And Recreation
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R90 Creative, arts and entertainment activities
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This case is occupation-specific
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Occupation (ISCO level 2)
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Legal, social and cultural professionals
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Sources
