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BVA, Industry Trust join forces

July 17, 2014

By Colin Mann

Pro-copyright consumer education body the Industry Trust for IP Awareness and the British Video Association (BVA) have announced plans to restructure, integrating key functions to focus greater resource on shared challenges. Following an extensive consultation process with their respective members and stakeholders, the change is intended to keep both well-respected organisations on a sustainable path in a rapidly-changing market.

Each organisation will retain its core remits, with the Industry Trust for IP Awareness continuing to serve the wider film sector including theatrical, home entertainment and retail, delivering education and marketing communications to consumers, inspiring audiences to pay for legal content and promoting FindAnyFilm.com.

The BVA will continue actively to promote the hugely-successful video sector to customers, and retain provision of its authoritative research to demonstrate the importance and value of the sector. The BVA will continue and re-invigorate its prestigious annual awards. Liz Bales, the current Director General of the Industry Trust, will be appointed Chief Executive for both bodies. Lavinia Carey, who recently stepped down as Director General of the BVA, will represent the sector’s policy interests as consultant lobbyist.

The integration will allow the two long-standing organisations to navigate a changing landscape and ensure that equal rigour applies to industry bodies as it does to the transitioning businesses of member companies. The move will put in place a structure to enable both organisations to deliver to these challenges, and provide further efficiencies for both their members and broader stakeholders across the film, television and video industries.

Robert Price, Chair, BVA, said that with a backdrop of a transitioning landscape of the home entertainment industry, the BVA would take a decisive step forward to promoting the benefits of the sector, communicating with consumers about the ever-popular consumption of film, TV and video within the home and on the move. The integration will benefit both organisations, allowing a closer working relationship that will no doubt prove successful for both,” he suggested.

Brian Robertson, Chair, Industry Trust said the amalgamation of the BVA and Trust administrative functions would allow the “exceptional” organisations, and teams, to continue doing what they do best. “Maintaining the high standards of delivery to their respective objectives, whilst simultaneously delivering cost savings to their member organisations.”

Liz Bales, Chief Executive, British Video Association and Industry Trust for IP Awareness, said she was looking forward to taking on the challenge of driving two distinct and successful industry bodies through a period of transition, with two separate, if not dissimilar, remits. T”his integration will allow the two bodies to flourish and to meet the high expectations of their members,” she declared.

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