Legacy Preservation in a Digital World: Montreux Jazz Festival’s Strategic Evolution (2/2)

Leaders League: Managing intellectual property today involves a special focus on digital assets. What was the major turning point for you, and what are the returns on investment from intellectual property assets particularly valued via digital means?
Mathieu Jaton: In 2019, we created Montreux Media Ventures, a production, editorial and content distribution company primarily on digital platforms. We possess a phenomenal audiovisual heritage recognized by UNESCO, which has been digitized. However, once digitized, it’s crucial to distribute it coherently to meet the brand’s needs.

To achieve this, we recruited Nicolas Bonnard, a specialist who previously managed Discovery Channel, MTV and Vice Media France. Nicolas, being from Montreux, agreed to help us with this digital transformation. His vision was to move from "Nice viewing" to "Point of view." In other words, transitioning from simply showing pleasant images to providing engaging content with a specific viewpoint aimed at a defined audience.

Thanks to this new approach, we have been able to develop the Montreux brand through digital content. Montreux Media Ventures, a fully-owned entity of the Montreux Jazz Festival, is responsible for this entire digital transformation. This allows us to significantly value our intellectual property assets on digital platforms, bringing a return on investment through greater visibility and brand engagement.

We managed to organize a digital festival, offer artists the chance to perform online, and distribute their performances. We did countless things during Covid, which strengthened Montreux Media Ventures.

This transformation began in 2019, then along came Covid. Did this period allow you to take a step back and reflect on the project?

Phenomenally so, yes. I hesitate to call it a stroke of luck, but creating Montreux Media Ventures a year and a half before Covid helped us immensely. Although the festival was halted, our ecosystem remained highly active. We never stopped working. We managed to organize a digital festival, offer artists the chance to perform online, and distribute their performances. We did countless things during Covid, which strengthened Montreux Media Ventures. When the festival resumed, Montreux Media Ventures was much more powerful than in 2019. Every constraint leads to an opportunity, and we seized this moment well.

How do you approach cybersecurity, data protection and online ticketing, especially with European regulations that also impact Switzerland?
We have implemented relatively simple protection procedures with solid partners like SRT in Switzerland, acquired by Orange, for cybersecurity. For ticketing, we work with Ticketcorner and Eventim, the largest ticket sellers in Europe. We don’t have our own ticketing system but use a recognized, secure platform, which is crucial for us.

We are also fortunate to have André Kudelski, the festival’s president and a cybersecurity expert, on our board. He brings his expertise and alerts us things to be vigilance about. Our choice of secure partners and partnerships with other companies ensures constant monitoring of our platforms.

The main risks we identified concern the data of ticket buyers and the festival’s visual heritage. The buyers’ data is protected by our ticketing providers, and the visual heritage is hosted by EPFL, specialists in this field.

The greatest innovation is returning to the human element. Technology should serve emotion and experience.

What innovations are you most proud of?
I'll give you a paradoxical answer that may surprise you. Coming from the hospitality and heritage background, like Claude Nobs, the greatest innovation for me is returning to the human element. Technology should serve emotion and experience.

Concretely, this means that the festival’s historical innovation, namely broadcast techniques, has evolved. It used to be about the race to 4K, HD, 8K, etc. Today, these are standards. We’re no longer striving for the best camera but to tell a story that offers a rich experience to the consumer. It’s no longer about technology for technology’s sake but using it to capture the essence of emotion.

What’s most interesting to me is that we’re bringing back the human aspect in a technological world. For example, every time we do something at the festival, I ask my teams to engage all five human senses. Every detail, from the quality of the railings to the comfort of the seats, should contribute to a complete and pleasant sensory experience.

For me, the innovation of the future lies in using technology to return to the essence of human senses and experience.

Our strategy involves using technology to enhance human experiences, making every detail contribute to a complete sensory experience.

What are the key elements currently transforming the approach to intellectual property in the music-festival business?
In the Music industry, and the live music business in particular, two clear lines of development are emerging. On one side, there’s the Big Music Entertainment, with events like Coachella and Glastonbury, and Taylor Swift and Coldplay tours, which are ultra-formatted and professional machines. In this world, intellectual property and image rights are locked down, and everything is strictly controlled.

On the other side, there’s a return to the roots, to the human element, improvisation, and creation without massive production. This is the vinyl of the music business, a more artisanal and intimate approach. Montreux fits into this second category, valuing the human and creative experience.

However, this duality creates challenges for intermediate players, like regional festivals or clubs that can’t compete with industry giants. The resurgence of record labels, capitalizing on publishing rights, also complicates things for smaller structures.

For us, it’s crucial to position ourselves clearly, either in mass business or in intimacy and local experience. Regional festivals focusing on their local community succeed because they touch a loyal and emotionally engaged audience.

What recommendations do you have for other festivals looking to enhance their brand?
First, stick to your values, don’t follow the trends. We have fundamental values linked to our brand and festival. It’s essential to respect them while evolving, without trying to become something else. In the entertainment world, there’s a frantic race to be the biggest, the most beautiful, but it’s crucial not to lose yourself.

Second, be authentic. Always act as authentically as possible.

Third, have a clear vision. Many festivals disappear because they are absorbed by trends. Don’t follow trends blindly. It’s about creating new needs while responding to existing ones. Steve Jobs always emphasized the importance of creating needs, and this approach has always fascinated me.

Finally, always think about the quality of the experience at the end of the day. We organize events for their people to enjoy, not to satisfy our ego. It’s important to know if we’re responding to a public need or creating something new. Both are complementary, but you need to know when and why you’re doing them.

To conclude, in 2004, we could have increased the festival’s capacity to follow market trends. But we preferred to stay true to our values: intimacy, proximity, uniqueness. This economic irrationality will prove to be our salvation in the future I believe..

In summary, the key is to know where to position yourself, stay true to your values, meet public needs and create new experiences.

Interview by Aude Ghespière