MUMBAI: The global live event arm of multi-media conglomerate Percept Ltd, Percept Live, plans to focus on the country’s indie music and artists for its growth and expansion, Percept Jt MD Shailendra Singh said.

The parent company had recently announced that Percept Live, would be listed in New York stock Exchange (NYSE) in 2015-16 with a valuation of $ one billion.

Speaking with Radioandmusic.com (RnM) at the launch of a new event- ‘Windsong Music Festival’ for alternative live Indian Music, to be held in Goa from 24-25 December, Singh said Percept Live’s strategy would not only promote the country’s music talent beyond mainstream Bollywood but build value of its bouquet of IP (Intellectual Properties) and ensure long-term returns on investments (ROI).

Percept Live’s IP include Sunburn, Fight Night, Bollywood Live, LOST, Superstar and the new Windsong Music Festival. The company aims to tap live event audiences for intellectual properties in the Live Entertainment, Sports, Fashion, Digital and Media space.

“An artist like Sonu Nigam charges Rs 25 lakhs and Shah Rukh Khan 2.5 crores for a show. With that kind of investment, our margins will be 10 per cent at the most- we can’t add value. By getting indie and new acts there is a much higher rate of ROI. We will be promoting Indian acts but will also include foreign acts, even in Sunburn.”

Despite the logistical and financial challenges like lack of arenas and bureaucracy that India presents for live music, the potential is immense, said Singh. The country’s 600 million youth who are being brought up in mall and YouTube culture need to be aware and appreciative of live music present in a huge market.

Percept is already infusing Rs 200 crore in Percept Live, of which Rs 50 crore will be invested in creating innovative IPs with global appeal and scaling up its existing IP portfolio.

“The potential of our brands is big. Sunburn which is five years old is already valued at Rs 150 crores and has a fan base of 3,00,000. We have already investing in Music, Sports and Bollywood. Live music in India is still a virgin segment but with huge potential. We estimate it to be around Rs 50,000 crore ($ 10 billion),” he said.