The will-it-won't-it debate about whether or not Electric Picnic will return this year for its tenth anniversary took another twist yesterday as POD Music Ltd's John Reynolds and Melvin Benn, of Festival Republic Dublin (FRD), clashed in the High Court over control of arguably Ireland's most popular music festival.
Mr Reynolds, who was among the founders the 'boutique' music festival in 2004, sold a majority stake in the festival to FRD in 2009 for €4.2m to assist in the festival's operational costs. However, Reynolds contends that Benn and FRD are operating a "one-size-fits-all" policy in relation to the festival, meaning that bands who usually wouldn't be considered a good fit for Electric Picnic's very distinct audience and identity are being approached without his approval.
Reynolds cites last year's co-headliners The Killers as an example of this. He maintains that the US band were added to the Electric Picnic line-up against his will because FRD wanted the band to headline a German festival the following week and that this was ultimately detrimental to Electric Picnic's brand.
Electric Picnic has been operating under considerable losses in recent years. The Stradbally event was a combined €2.1m in the red for its 2011 and 2012 festivals alone, a loss that Mr Reynolds suggests is down to band selection. Benn, meanwhile, countered by saying that the festival's pricing structure of around €250 per weekend ticket were increasingly prohibitive to festival-goers in the current economic climate and that he intends to reduce prices for this year's festival.
Reynolds, however, said that he believed that the festival should not proceed this year while it is understood that Benn wants to formally announce this year's festival sooner rather than later.
Electric Picnic is operated by EP Festivals Ltd, 71% of which is owned by Melvin Benn's Festival Republic Dublin Ltd and 29% owned by John Reynolds' POD Music Ltd. Mr Justice Peter Kelly transferred the case to the Commercial Court, but has adjourned to allow for talks between both parties.
What does this all mean? Well, this is certainly the most intriguing lead-in to Electric Picnic in its near ten year existence. This is - by far - the latest that Electric Picnic has ever taken to make any formal announcement as to its upcoming festival. We're already in the second week of April, meaning that there's barely four months left until the Picnic is supposed to open its doors.
There has been no line-up announcement, no early bird tickets and, with a whole host of festivals both old and new already with tickets on sale and line-ups locked in place, the potential audience (as well as bands who might be available to play) is diminishing rapidly.
Electric Picnic has made an effort to source volunteers for art and spoken word performers but to organise, promote, sell tickets to and run and event of Electric Picnic's magnitude in just over four months is a very big ask indeed.
The future of Electric Picnic might well depend on successful mediation between Benn and Reynolds. If the case is brought before the courts, knowing how that system works, it could take months to resolve and each day that passes makes the process seem that little bit more unlikely.
