Charles Caldas is the CEO of MERLIN – the agency defending the global music rights of independent record labels. MERLIN’s goal is to assure that independent record labels indeed enjoy their due financial return in the domain of digital music as well as in the emergent streaming market, working in astonishing ways to ensure that all parties involved are valued and protected collectively. The company has brought together more than 20,000 independent labels and distributors from 46 countries on all continents, and represents some of the most prominent independent artists in the world. It is Charles Caldas who has gone “knocking on the doors” of the likes of Spotify, Google/YouTube, Apple, Soundcloud and many others to apprise them of independent music’s authors’ right and monetary value. It is an honour to welcome this illustrious personality and man of Portuguese descent as keynote speaker of Westway LAB PRO ’16.