- NEWS
Martin wades into abortion debateAs the Dáil committee hearings continue on the abortion bill, Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin has waded into the debate saying it is important that Christian believers "be, and seen to be, on the side of life, especially when life is most vulnerable".
Payment cuts see families pay rent shortfallLimits on rent supplement payments set by the Government are forcing thousands of families to make undeclared top-up payments to landlords to secure places to live.
- WORLD
Anger as North Korea launches another missileNorth Korea fired a short-range missile from its east coast, a day after launching three more of these missiles, a South Korean news agency said.
How Star Trek predicted the futureWHEN Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry first dreamed up the concept of a television show based in the unexplored universe of Outer Space in 1964, the world was a very different place.
- BUSINESS
Warnings over future of eurozoneThe eurozone is heading towards a break up unless there are moves towards much closer political and fiscal union, according to chief economist with State Street Global Advisers, Chris Probyn.
Bruton defends corporate tax rateIreland will be able to maintain its current corporation tax code in the face of international pressure to prevent multinational corporations avoid paying their fare share of tax, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton said yesterday.
- SPORT
Mayo’s statement of intentGalway 0-11 Mayo 4-16 Five minutes to go in Salthill yesterday and James Horan was still cajoling his men to sew it into Galway.
Wilkinson inspires Toulon to gloryASM Clermont Auvergne 15 Toulon 16 Not for the first time this season, a matchday performance and the result have made a mockery of the statistics.
- LIFESTYLE
What Lenny did nextLENNY Abrahamson has directed three feature films: Adam & Paul, Garage and What Richard Did.
Clothes maketh you madTrying on clothes, said Ewart, produced "sensations which bring deep peace and perfect contentment" to the female mind.
14-17C
Live Blogs
- We have no upcoming events at the moment. Please check 'Recent Events' tab for past events
Breaking stories
Day in the life
By Vincent Ryan
Mark Foster, managing director of music streaming site Deezer’s, talks to Vincent Ryan about his working day, from waking the children to going to gigs
MORNINGUnless I’m making a ridiculously early start to take the Eurostar to Deezer’s head office in Paris, or a plane to a crammed day of meetings in Dublin’s fair city (which I never have enough time to hang out and enjoy, by the way) I get up at 6.30am or so. I make sure the kids, who are perfectly capable of responding to their own alarms on their mobiles, actually do start moving their limbs in time to make their train, bus or lift to school. Then I can concentrate on getting to the office in west London, handily located within minutes of all four majors, and quite a few indie labels.
Of course, by the time I get there I’ve already read most of the emails that accumulated overnight, but I try and arrive before the rest of the UK and& Ireland team, to be able to respond before there are too many distractions.
We’re a small group for now, but there’s a lot going on — labels, media, artists’ managers, promoters, to talk to on both sides of the Irish Sea — as we expand our portfolio of partners.
The great thing about a fast-developing company like Deezer, in a dynamic industry like the music business (despite what you might have heard about its demise), is that there is always something new — artists, releases, marketing projects, industry forums (mostly on the growth of streaming as a business model).
Lots of people to talk to, to explain, encourage, cajole, reassure, motivate, perhaps even inspire.
AFTERNOON
An occasional business lunch (on the wane these days — who has the time?) but definitely more meetings, conference calls, often with North American artist managers who have heard about Deezer’s global expansion, Facebook integration, heavy artist focus, but as we’re not open in the US yet, need to understand how Deezer works and how our 50-territory reach, and growing, might help their artist promotion. Always a pleasure to evangelise.
EVENING
Gigs (I still love live music), networking drinks or dinner, presentations, the train or plane home — never the same twice in a row. Occasionally I even get to have dinner with the family or watch the football.
On the face of it, then, a pretty typical business day.
The marvellous thing is, though, I work for a young, fast-moving company, at the cutting edge of a music business that is, in many ways, reinventing itself, with passionate, energetic people employing innovative technology to enhance people’s discovery and enjoyment of music, my lifelong passion.
How great is that?