March 8, 2017: SXSW to Remove Controversial Deportation Clause After Backlash, Instagram Launches Geostickers for Stories, AEG Live Rebrands as AEG Presents

1. SXSW TO REMOVE CONTROVERSIAL DEPORTATION CLAUSE AFTER BACKLASH: South by Southwest has announced in a blog post that it will remove its controversial deportation clause in 2018, after receiving backlash from musicians. The Verge: "'Safety is a primary concern for SXSW, and we report any safety issues to local authorities,' organizers wrote. 'It is not SXSW’s duty or authority to escalate a matter beyond local authorities.' The clause has actually been in SXSW’s contracts for years, but came under renewed suspicion last week when musician Felix Walworth of the band Told Slant tweeted a screenshot of the contract, and announced their decision to back out of the festival. Walworth’s tweets sparked backlash from several other musicians. Artists like Sheer Mag, Screaming Females, Talib Kweli, and Zach de la Rocha signed an open letter condemning the contract’s language and demanding the SXSW rescind the clause. Don Giovanni Records’ Joe Steinhardt said he would pull the label’s entire showcase from the festival if organizers did not amend the contract. Although SXSW co-founder Roland Swenson initially called the whole thing a 'misunderstanding' and said that the festival would likely never act on the clause, activists and lawyers pointed out that the aggressive wording was not an industry standard. A few days after Walworth’s tweets, SXSW organizers said they would consider amending the clause in the future, but stopped short of making an official decision. After artists continued to push back on the festival’s wavering, SXSW today officially announced the removal of the immigration clause." http://bit.ly/2lBgCC0

2. INSTAGRAM LAUNCHES GEOSTICKERS FOR STORIES: In a new effort to compete with Snapchat, Instagram Stories has launched its first geostickers, which allow users to add illustrations specific to their location to their 24-hour posts. TechCrunch: "The first places getting city-wide and special neighborhood Geostickers are New York City and Jakarta. These add to Instagram Stories’ existing location stickers that add the name of a place to your shots. Snapchat launched its own Geofilters back in 2014, which can’t be rearranged or resized. It added moveable Geostickers in August 2016 to give people more customizable control over their location-based creativity tools. With Geostickers in place, the last big Snapchat feature Instagram Stories is missing is augmented reality selfie Lenses. Facebook acquired MSQRD last year to bring these AR masks to its products. Yet despite their rollout on Facebook and Messenger, they haven’t come to Instagram yet. But the app is likely brewing its own unique take on the format before it makes its next push to do Snapchat better than Snapchat." http://tcrn.ch/2nbow1f

3. AEG LIVE REBRANDS AS AEG PRESENTS: The world's second-largest concert promoter AEG Live has rebranded as AEG Presents. Billboard: "The entertainment giant behind events like Coachella and Stagecoach in Southern California, Panorama Festival in New York City and 8,000 concerts a year around the world has quietly changed its name as part of a company-wide rebranding strategy to create a new identity for AEG's concerts and festival division. The new name also comes with a new logo that will be rolled out across AEG Lives 16 regional offices. The new name comes just weeks after completing the acquisition of The Bowery Presents, making AEG Presents the largest promoter in New York. Company officials confirmed to Billboard that the rebranding is currently in a soft rollout phase and that a broader campaign and launch is planned for early spring 2017. The rebranding covers AEG's 16 regional offices and includes partner organizations Festival Productions Incorporated, which promotes New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival; L.A.'s biggest promoter Goldenvoice; Madison House Presents, which promotes Electric Forest Festival and co-promoted the 2015 Fare Thee Well tour; Paul McCartney's longtime promoter Barrie Marshall with Marshall Arts; country promoter Louis Messina and the ​Messina Touring Group, which produces tours for George Strait, Taylor Swift and Eric Church; recently acquired New York promoters The Bowery Presents; and Winter Circle Productions in New Orleans, which produces the annual BUKU Festival." http://bit.ly/2lDkSAX

* LOCAL NEWS *

BOSTON:  The Ames Boston Hotel has unveiled 1,700 square feet of new meeting and event space on the second floor. The spaces can accommodate as many as 125 people.

LAS VEGAS:  The Nightclub & Bar Convention and Trade Show, taking place at the Las Vegas Convention Center March 27-29, has announced its full speaker lineup. Speakers include Bob Peters of the Punch Room, chef Brian Duffy of Duffified Group, and Emma Vaughn of Main Street Hub.

LOS ANGELES:  Restaurateur and executive chef Aaron Robins has opened his second restaurant Soca in Sherman Oaks. Offering globally inspired steak and seafood, the restaurant seats 70 in the main dining room and 28 on an outdoor patio overlooking Ventura Boulevard.

For information on upcoming events in Los Angeles, visit Masterplanner: http://www.masterplanneronline.com/losangeles

NEW ORLEANS:  Hilton New Orleans Riverside has completed its $6 million renovation of its Grand Ballroom, Grand Salon, and first- and second-level meeting spaces. Upgrades include a new color palette of blue, grey, and gold in the ballroom; a blue color palette in the second-floor exhibition center; and a new pre-function area with grey armchairs and bronze side tables.

NEW YORK:  The 11th annual Cycle for Survival will take place Thursday through Sunday at Equinox Bryant Park. The indoor cycling event raises funds for cancer research led by Memorial Sloan Kettering.

The Brooklyn Museum's Fund for African American Art benefit will take place March 16. The event will honor art collector Pamela J. Joyner.

MasterVoices, formerly the Collegiate Chorale, will host its annual Spring Benefit on March 30 at the Metropolitan Club. Kelli O'Hara, Ted Sperling, and Danny Burstein will present live entertainment.

For information on upcoming events in New York, visit Masterplanner: http://www.masterplanneronline.com/newyork

ORLANDO/CENTRAL FLORIDA:  The Arnold Palmer Invitational Presented by Mastercard will hold its 39th annual tournament March 13 to 19 at Bay Hill Club & Lodge. All proceeds from the tournament benefit Arnie’s Army Charitable Foundation, which supports Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children and Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women & Babies.

ROME, ITALY:  The Society for Incentive Travel Excellence and Meeting Professionals International will host a co-located event, the S.I.T.E. & M.P.I. Global Forum, on January 12-14, 2018, at the Rome Cavalieri Waldorf Astoria.

SAN FRANCISCO:  Hotel Via is slated to open this spring. The 159-room boutique hotel, which is located across the street from AT&T Park, will have a 3,000-square-foot rooftop lounge available for private events.

TAMPA:  J. Michael Williams is the new managing director of Innisbrook, a Salamander Golf & Spa Resort in Tampa Bay.

TORONTO:  This year's Toronto Storytelling Festival will take place March 24-April 2 at various venues including the Toronto Public Library, Harbourfront Centre, and Royal Ontario Museum. Produced by Storytelling Toronto, the event will celebrate Canada's 150th anniversary by partnering with the Shoe Project and Parent-Child Mother Goose program to present stories from refugees and immigrants.

WASHINGTON, D.C.:  Hargrove, Inc. has appointed David Cusack senior sales executive. Cusack was formerly director of operations for the White House.

YOUR NEWS: What are you doing? Tell us: [email protected]. 

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With contributions from Alesandra Dubin and Claire Hoffman in Los Angeles, Mitra Sorrells in Orlando, and Beth Kormanik, Michele Laufik, Jill Menze, and Ian Zelaya in New York.

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