Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/949290
maltatoday SUNDAY 4 MARCH 2018 Opinion 24 O n Friday March 16, I will be organising an event aimed at providing creative people, artists, musicians and performers in Malta with an inspiring experience through opportunities and tools on how to find their voice in the digital age. This is a relatively new event concept locally, addressing a new way of life for millions of persons today, including Maltese. Businesses and consumers transact online in a way that has changed demand for goods and services as well as consumption of cultural content. In Europe the ICT sector generates 25% of total business R&D; the ICT sector and investment in ICT are responsible for 50 % of productivity growth in the continent. It is also in this context that I have been harping fervently on public service media which has an irreplaceable role for media pluralism. It reflects cultural, linguistic, social and political diversity. As legislators we are seeing how, for example, we can help publishers enforce their existing rights without causing massive disruption to start-ups, consumers and the internet; to empower them with a presumption of ownership. In a report I am co-authoring on behalf of the EPP Group I recommended that Member States should also provide proportionate and stable funding for public service media towards an inclusive society. Moreover, I submitted an amendment obliging Member States and respective media organisations to ensure fair working conditions, promoting gender equality, co-regulatory mechanisms and internal codes of conduct; all directed to safeguard and nurture media pluralism. Which brings me to digitalisation and how online distribution have altered revenue streams, reshaped business models and led to new consumption patterns. If we take music as an example, we download music online more than ever, every day. Record companies and their distribution partners have been instrumental towards this, licensing more than 40 million tracks to hundreds of digital services worldwide and developing the high-performance systems that allow music to be accessed around the world. In this sense, our attempt as legislators is to address 'the value gap', or more simply put, to ensure that the creators of music and of other works in the performing or visual arts sector receive their fair share out of the profits generated through the distribution, even on digital platforms, of what they what have created and produced. Bottom line, we want to address value gap through an evidence-based approach which is proportionate, and which doesn't harm the start-up ecosystem, or consumer rights. Easier said than done one might say. Yet, we are currently seeing how artists and creators should benefit from a fair share in return to the cultural and creative content they compile and publish. With almost half of European consumers using AdBlock technology, social media influencers are the new way to reach target audiences and build relationships with consumers. In the social media age, word-of- mouth can travel fast, very fast. The scale, speed and real-time nature of the social web and the increased possibilities for people to share and express themselves play a crucial role in this. The rising success and the increasing attention from marketers has a lot to do with the emergence of the digital media, and in particular social media. They are the carriers of people's voices, brand and product messages and viral marketing efforts. To get "carried", all you need are the right stories. Originating 13 years ago, YouTube, with whom I am organising this training, is the 2nd largest search engine in the world, with more than one billion active monthly users and 500 hours of video uploaded on the platform every minute. Opportunities for creative minds on their famous social media platform are immense; from musicians, bands, singers to cooking, science, sport, and travel experts. There are people out there with an urge for this source of content and I want creative Maltese minders to get empowered and find their voice in the digital age by experiencing first hand from the experts the dimension of their potential. That is why on Friday, March 13, I will bring together artists, inventive minds and tech innovators together with YouTube experts to explore how technology is changing the way we make and enjoy art as well as how digital art can be used to drive social change, which is badly needed. It is an event which I am organising with the support and collaboration of the EPP Group of which I form part in the European Parliament. The rise of social media platforms can help to forge communities and promote opportunities for collaborations between like-minded individuals against ego-centric mindsets. As a country we have generally embraced digital innovation. Now we want to take this to the next level. All generations, and society indistinctively should have the chance to grasp the opportunities that digital tools have to offer. Francis Zammit Dimech is a Nationalist MEP Finding your voice in the digital age Francis Zammit Dimech MINISTRY FOR FINANCE The Ministry for Finance is committed to promote and improve its administrative operations by simplifying the processes and deliver within the stipulated timeframes. The Ministry is seeking to recruit individuals who are ready to join a dynamic team and thus also offering an opportunity to those individuals who would like to start a career within the Public Service. The Ministry is receiving applications for the positions of: Procurement Manager Procurement Manager Operations Procurement Officer Procurement Support Officer Applications together with a curriculum vitae will be received by the Recruitment Section in the Ministry for Finance 158, Cavalier House, Old Mint Street, Valletta, or through the Online Government Recruitment Portal on http://recruitment.gov.mt by not later than noon (CET) of Friday 9 th March 2018. Further details may be obtained from the Government Gazette, number 19,953 dated 23.02.2018: https://gov.mt/en/Government/Government%20Gazette/Page s/Gazzette-Repository.aspx or by sending an e-mail to the Recruitment Section on recruitment.mfin@gov.mt. Application forms may be downloaded from: https://publicservice.gov.mt/en/people/Pages/PeopleResourci ngandCompliance/FormsandTemplates.aspx Ministry for Finance, 158, Cavalier House, Old Mint Street, Valletta Tel No:25998431 Email: recruitment.mfin@gov.mt