Shifting dance scene tops agenda at WMC.

The world's dance music community descended on Miami last week for the annual Winter Music Conference (WMC), with the focus for many UK companies in attendance being the shifting tide in US dance culture and how to benefit from its changing fortunes.

Many companies were using the event as a marketing launch for their US activities, attempting to build on the burgeoning grassroots rave scene Stateside. With dance music exploding into mainstream US culture, UK dance brands are racing to be first to establish a leading presence. Ministry Of Sound launched its Club Nation America with an event featuring Tall Paul and Sister Bliss, while other UK clubs benefited from wide exposure (see picture caption, below).

Radio One's Pete Tong -- who played at numerous events and hosted a boat party for his Essential label -- says, "America is now more in tune with what is happening in Europe. It's not just about New York, Chicago and Florida."

Although the UK's dance industry events centred around house music, the developing US scene -- as showcased at many large public-access events -- favours less credible forms of dance, with trance and drum & bass proving the two most popular. In ...