The answer to this was pretty clear from Jazz Summers. For him, brands waste their time with anyone other than the Band Manager. Everyone else is a messenger as far as he is concerned, often with little to add except their percentage. In the end, the brand would have to talk to the manager, so they might as well start there. Ultimately, he is right, as the role of the manager should be to look after the interests of the artist in all aspects of their career. He attacked the labels and anyone else in the middle of the process, such as marketing companies (he was looking at me as he said this!), as he believes that they don't understand what goes inside the heads of the artists, unlike the manager. So far so good. The panel was rocking, and this was only 10 minutes in! Ed Averdieck, Managing Director of Nokia Music Service agreed, confirming that he wished to have much more direct dialogue with managers, rather than going through thrid parties, no matter the fame of the band. For him, using third parties was not efficient. For those agencies who presently advise Nokia on music deals, this might come a bit of a shock! 15 minutes in and things are hotting up. citizensound says:

This is all well and good, but we see the reality as somewhat different. There are clearly band managers out there who are completely at ease with dealing with brands, and understand how they think. However, not every manager can do or wants to. Or they know they do not have the insight on brands that others may have. For some, leaving this in the hands of others is ok. Works for brands too. Brand people and managers are also stretched for time. So inevitably, there is a need to look to others for support. Control and responsibility rests with these two parties, but to say that all people in the middle are either inefficient or a waste of time is a very narrow position to take. Whilst taking ultimate responsibility for the outcome of any deal, many will inevitably depend on third parties who may or may not understand what goes on in the heads of the two parties, but CAN find an effective solution for both parties to benefit.