Eric Baptiste named CEO of SOCAN - Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada

TORONTO, Jan. 19 /CNW/ - The Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN) today announced its board of directors has named Eric Baptiste to serve as the organization's Chief Executive Officer (CEO), as of May 16, 2010, replacing Andrˆ© LeBel who announced his plans for retirement last year.

Baptiste currently holds the position of CEO of the International Confederation of the Societies of Authors and Composers (CISAC), the World Federation of Copyright Societies with 225 member societies in 118 countries. Among his many achievements during his 12-year career at CISAC, Baptiste raised their profile through lobbying activities in many countries, and created the successful CISAC "World Copyright Summit." Prior to joining CISAC, Baptiste was CEO of a commercial radio station (95.2 Paris FM) serving the greater Paris area and Chief Operating Officer (COO) at Radio France International (RFI).

"SOCAN is a remarkable performing rights organization, with a proud history of innovation and outstanding success throughout its 20-year history," says Eric Baptiste. "It's a great honour to join its leadership team and have the opportunity to build on its success."

Earl Rosen, president of SOCAN's board of directors said "The board selected Eric because of his extensive international experience with rights management. His vast career in the industry demonstrates his proven capabilities as a leader for consistently delivering concrete and innovative results."

A search committee of six SOCAN board members reviewed and interviewed candidates from a broad field of executives in the running for the position, lead by the executive search firm Odgers & Berndtson. Following a rigorous interview process, the committee reached a unanimous decision and presented its recommendation to the board of directors. "I am very pleased to say that the board whole-heartedly supported the recommendation," said Rosaire Archambault, SOCAN board member and chair of the search committee. "We are confident in the board's final decision and we are looking forward to working with Eric."

"I am delighted with the selection of Eric as my successor," says Andrˆ© LeBel, CEO, SOCAN. "He has all it takes to take SOCAN to the next level."

For more information please visit www.socan.ca

About SOCAN

At SOCAN, we understand that the Canadian music industry is only as strong as the sum of its parts. We are proud to play a leading role, working with other organizations to ensure the long-term health of our members' livelihoods and the Canadian music industry as a whole. SOCAN is the Canadian copyright collective for the communication and performance of musical works. We administer these rights on behalf of our members (composers, lyricists, songwriters and their publishers) and those of affiliated international organizations by licensing this use of their music in Canada. The fees collected are distributed as royalties to our members and to affiliated organizations throughout the world. We also distribute royalties received from those organizations to our members for the use of their music worldwide. SOCAN has offices in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Edmonton and Dartmouth.