Montane CEO Says Creatives Need to Own and Control Their Intellectual Capital.
BRISBANE, Queensland — March 14, 2016 — Today at a meeting of media leaders in Sydney, Montane CEO Craig O’Hara says the first priority for creatives must be owning their intellectual capital.
Intellectual Capital is a term for assets or property that come from the mind. Montane CEO and founder, Craig O’Hara today announced in a meeting of media industry leaders that the only way for creatives, makers and thinkers to survive in the future will be through maintaining control and ownership of their intellectual capital.
O’Hara says the stories of the poverty-stricken artist or the clever but broke intellectual “no longer fly” in the contemporary space of new media technologies.
“New tech gives individuals the opportunity to reach broad markets, create loyal pipelines and expand their own messages.” He says the traditional model where an artist, scholar or maker gives over power and control of their work to a publisher, record company or even a university isn’t working.
“As someone who makes songs or books or contributes in really meaningful ways to the shaping of society, you deserve and are entitled to be rewarded. By holding onto and harnessing intellectual capital through licensing and co-partnerships, creators and their families can have financial independence.”
O’Hara added that the narrative of the poor but virtuous artist who isn’t “in it for the money” is problematic.
He says every individual needs a source of income, “There’s the virtuous writer who says I’m not in it for the money but who ultimately relies on some source for food and shelter. It might be a spouse, a bookstore chain or the State.”
O’Hara says he’d rather see artists, makers and thinkers rely on the artifacts they create for their incomes. He suggests there are all sorts of avenues for using the work in ethical ways to leverage income, form legacies and create broad platforms.
“All the tools are there. How will you use them?” was O’Hara’s final challenge to his audience.
If O’Hara’s sentiments are anything to go by, the stage is set for creatives and thinkers to take back control of their work from big business and institutions.
Montane Group provides branding, legacy and legal tools to branded lifestyle creatives. For more information, visit www.montanestore.com/brandcloud.
Press contact:
Naomi Stekelenburg
Montane Legal
naomi@montanelegal.com.au
+61 7 3067 7550
+61 7 3067 7550
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