Expanding London Calling takes 360-degree approach.

Influential industry figures to speak at June's music trade show

A number of the most influential figures in the ever-changing music industry are set to take to the stage at this year's London Calling, with Blackberry head of music strategy Gareth Currie, eMusic European managing director Madeleine Milne and A2IM president Rich Bengloff among the speakers at the event.

The 2008 trade show, which takes place on June 19 to 20 at Earls Court in London, is dubbed "a 360-degree event for a 360-degree industry", with more than 50 speakers taking part in total.

The event aims to examine the new models currently at play in the industry, the new players that have entered the market from brands to social networks and the emerging markets, as well as "traditional" music industry sectors such as labels and publishing.

Panels include Live And Dangerous, examining the blurring boundaries between promoters, live agents and labels; Odds Of 360:1, which will look at the role that venture capital investment can play in the music industry; The Future Of Mobile Music and Around The World In 360 Degrees - The International View: China, which will ask whether Western acts will be able to succeed in China.

"The London Calling panels not only offer highbrow debate and discussion but also practical workable advice on growing your business now," says event director David Conway. "If you go to a panel on the live industry in the US they will be talking about the top 10 people in the territory to approach.

"Alongside this there are advanced panels on the immediate future of the industry and the many slices of the 360-degree pie - management, recorded, mobile, digital, merchandising, syncing, live, brands, international, publishing, legals and many more.