This panel is not about copyright, which is a good thing. It is about risk and investment and am hoping the chair Steve Hewlett will include some thoughts on open innovation, collaboration and cross-sector Research and Development, as well as the more mainstream stuff.

Patrick McKenna of Ingenious Media kicks off. The only constant in this changing equation is the need for compelling content, but this is the area that comes with the greatest uncertainty. The small companies that make up most of the creative industries create the most exciting content, but they must get access to finance in order to connect directly with their consumers. So what are the lessons for the investment community?

One size does not fit all (distinction is not about genre but about business model and risk profile).

Content businesses have the most extreme risk around demand and therefore have the hardest time raising finance. There is a need to develop new and alternative sources of funding to ensure growth opportunities. Unless creative business can retain their IP they will always be small, project-fee based and commercially vulnerable.

Creative companies need to make themselves more attractive. They need to develop their business skills and embrace holistic business models. The funding mix should reflect the different ways in which a single piece of contact can now be exploited and a far wider knowledge base is needed to prosper in this world.

Back to the rest of the panel: taking investment enabled Simon Fuller, founder and chairman of 19 Group, to take projects further and prove their value before talking to the majors, therefore negotiating a much better deal. On the other hand, companies need to be able to make mistakes and learn from them. However, Lorna Tilbian, executive director of Numis Corporation is not tempted. She likes rising dividends and strong cash flow -  her investors do not embrace risk.

Sense from the floor from Julie Meyer of Ariadne Capital and founder of the First Tuesday network: You don't need a lot of money, you need to know what you want to achieve. Start-ups are a hot kitchen, and you need to be able to stand the heat. People who have done well in creative industries (who know the score) should be investing in the next big thing, creating a virtuous circle.

So not much on risk or collaboration, but an interesting panel none the less. I liked the focus on the importance of creatives (the people) and relationships from Patrick, an ethos we very much buy in to in Media Sandbox. And also his recocognition that great opportunities come out of the cultural sector with huge commercial potential. We need a closer fusion between 'arts organisations' and the commercial creative industries.

Ducking out before the end of the event to participate in 'out of the closet', the C&binet unconference that has emerged...