Applied Marketing: Recording Industry

Archer donates money to bring relief to Nashville after flood

2010-05-14T18:02:00.000-07:00

William Acher will be donating 20% of the May sales of his book to aid the flood relief in Tennessee. Nashville, one of the music capitols of the world is in ruins, being the home to many artists, their homes mostly destroyed.

Stereogum is stating that one of the music halls in Nashville holding some of the world's most famous musician's guitars are broken beyond repair. Acher is hoping that this donation will precedent a lot of artist to make the same sort of donation as well, to bring relief to the people of Tennessee and to help aid the rebuild of the music capitol of our nation.

more information on the book can be found at: www.starvingtheartist.com

it can be purchased on Amazon for 9.95 or downloaded for 4.95.

Source: http://www.mi2n.com/press.php3?press_nb=130111

-Samantha Corrie Schulman

State Farm helps out OK GO!

2010-05-14T17:34:00.000-07:00

Does anyone remember OK GO before the "Here It Goes Again" video? no? anyone...anyone.....? yeah, I didn't think so. OK GO is one of those bands that got their success based on a simple video, the song was mediocre, but the artistry was what made their name huge, huge enough for Columbia to spend half the manifest budget two years ago to have them perform. Once again, OK GO is making waves virally with their newest release "This Too Shall Pass." Releasing a clip in January that had no embedding code, bloggers apparently lost their minds, (I didn't read any, but I mean, it very well could of happened.)

Anyway, for the release of "This Too Shall Pass" OK GO teamed up with State Farm Insurance to fund the project and just seconds into the video State Farm's logo is shown.

The video is incredibly well done and can be seen on the band's youtube account.

Not only does OK GO once again prove that they are easily the best marketed band in the top 40, but the video speaks for itself.

http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/03/ok-go-goes-viral-again-with-help-from-state-farm.html#more

-Samantha Corrie Schulman

Why Justin Bieber?

2010-05-14T16:09:00.000-07:00

I don't know if anyone remembers, but my first blog happened to be about Justin Bieber and the mall riot he caused last November. Now, everyone knows who Justin Bieber is and if you don't, you live in a hole. This fifteen year old boy has gone from nothing to one of the, if not the biggest name in pop music right now; what many don't understand is why. Well, here are the reasons according to Jay Frank, basically, someone is a marketing genius.

1. time out releases to songs; a new song every few months.

2. have shorter introductions at the beginning of songs.

3. longer songs; have songs longer than 2-2:30 minutes.

4. poppier chord changes

5. the repetition. "baby, baby, baby"

overall, j. biebs is taking over the world.

oh yeah, heres a video... 1-5 is definitely shown.

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/03/why-just-bieber-is-such-a-big-hit.html#more

-Samantha Corrie Schulman

Last.fm tries to fit in.

2010-05-14T15:25:00.000-07:00

As if there weren't enough streaming sites on the web (Pandora, LaLa, Purevolume, MySpace) now Last.fm is doing just that. Since Last.fm started some individual tracks have been streamed on the site, but a limited amount.

This week Last.fm abolished all individual tracks and are now making their site more like Purevolume, where artists have pages and can stream their music via their page.

Here is the zinger, Last.fm is paid for every song that is streamed on their site, even with this new layout, artists still will not be getting paid any royalties, no matter how many times their songs are listened to.

Last.fm claims that these plays are promotional and thereof do not fall under the royalty laws. So, artists, you can stream your music, but Last.fm is taking all of your money.

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/04/lastfm-to-add-play-direct-indie-artist-program.html

-Samantha Corrie Schulman

Expert Marketing or is Atlantic really poor?

2010-05-14T15:19:00.000-07:00

Atlantic Records is asking fans to help fund their artist Natty's second record. How are they doing this? They're enticing fans by offering them the EP at a discounted price, paying to introduce him on stage, having him come to your house and even having him mix your record. Not only is this a way to fund his project, but connect him to his fans.

It's definitely odd that a major label is in such a dire need for money, but at the same time, I don't really believe it. I think that if this is just Atlantic's scheme to get Natty some recognition or even connect him to his fans, they're doing an incredible job. I'd definitely pay some money to introduce my favorite band on stage or be able to hang out with them, especially if it meant funding a new record....

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/04/major-label-atlantic-asks-fan-to-help-fund-new-natty-release-via-pledge-music.html

-Samantha Corrie Schulman

RIAA beats LimeWire

2010-05-14T14:46:00.000-07:00

The RIAA beat LimeWire in a major courtcase earlier this week because of LimeWire's inability to change it's policies so that it is a legal source to download music. As we all know, LimeWire is one of the simplest downloading sites out there. Like Napster, LimeWire allows users to download content from other LimeWire users- this concept for all of you who didn't take Art and Business of Recording, has a specific name, it's called "Peer to Peer" file sharing. Meaning, that once you're logged in anyone can download anything in your "shared" folder off your computer, which can be incredibly dangerous. It's sort of like how on iTunes you can listen to other people in your networks music, even though you can't download it onto your computer, it's accessible- LimeWire allows you to take it right off of the other persons computer.

LimeWire was held accountable for the following:

1. Their awareness of substantial infringement by users.

2. Their efforts to attract infringing users.

3. Their efforts to enable and assist users to commit said infringment.

4. Their dependence on infringing use for the success of their business.

and finally:

5. Their failure to mitigate infringing activities.

Basically, their getting in trouble for allowing users to download music illegally and turning the other cheek, acting like they don't know.

The RIAA is hoping to scare other companies into cracking down on infringing users.

-Samantha Corrie Schulman

LoKast Social Music Application?

2010-05-14T14:25:00.000-07:00

As if there werent enough social networking sites that promote stalking and communicating with people you don't know, the newest is LoKast. Short for "local-casting" the application is a lot like facebook. It allows you to have your own page for videos, pictures, web-links and music you love.

LoKast first became popular this year at Coachella when bands with post exclusive content about their sets to LoKast fans. Even better is that when you're within 300 feet of another user of LoKast it connects you and allows you to exchange content between the two of you.

Now, initially I thought this was really creepy, but I read the section about Coachella and I think that's awesome. A lot of bigger bands, like Third Eye Blind are using the application to keep in touch with their fans and bring fans together.

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/05/lokast-social-app-gains-transaction-at-concerts.html

-Samantha Corrie Schulman

Press, Pause, Play

2010-05-14T14:11:00.000-07:00

A new documentary being released and is finally saying what we're all thinking: with the advancements in technology and the internet, everyone thinks they're an artist and will do anything to be one.

The documentary goes on to discuss how these technologies are changing the face of the art industry; whether that be novels, visual art, music or film. Artists are now starting to work in several different mediums and how they can manage themselves. It briefly touches on the fact that anyone can manage themselves and anyone can create art because the computer does it all.

These technologies aren't all bad because the documentary also goes on to talk about how they are helping to develop new forms of art. This got me thinking, does that mean that at some point this influx will cause the demand for all these types of art to start to diminish?

Do you think that programs like photoshop and garage band have started to make the QUALITY of art deteriorate?

I think that at times the surplus of art is incredible, but honestly, anyone can sing into their computer now and make a million dollars, are we okay with the quality of our art diminishing if that means making a profit?

a preview of the documentary can be seen here:

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/05/are-a-new-breed-of-artists-musicians-emerging-from-the-digital-swamp.html#more

-Samantha Corrie Schulman

will Recovery be a resurrection?

2010-05-14T13:48:00.000-07:00

this post is going to be my first post of ten or so because being the basket case that I am, I forgot to do these all semester......... way to go SC.

here we go. :)

For the past few years it seems like Eminem and Jay-Z have fallen off the map. Anyone remember when Jay-Z "retired" from music, but not to long ago released his newest record, "The Blueprint 3" which got massive radio play with Empire State of Mind and Onto the Next One.

Everywhere I turned there was some poster of Jay-Z or someone talking about the new record, but he never toured for the record and after a while, the buzz died. So now, Jay-Z is teaming up with Eminem to bring "The Blueprint 3" back to live and promote Eminem's newest record "Recovery". HOW? you ask...? By playing sold out shows at the two rapper's hometown major league baseball fields. Yankee Stadium on September 13 and Comerica Park on September 2.

This will be the first ever, full concert at the new Yankee Stadium.

Both artists are hoping that these shows start their summers with a bang! Both will be spending the summer playing major festivals in the states and overseas. So, what do you guys think? Will these shows be enough to resurrect Em's career and boost Jay-Z's already over the top persona?

We'll see.

Source: http://www.spin.com/articles/jay-z-eminem-team-hometown-stadium-gigs

-Samantha Corrie Schulman

One last post about EMI (because this is my last post)

2010-05-12T11:13:00.000-07:00

After posting about EMI all year, it only seemed fitting to do a closing post on EMI.

2009-2010 was a rough time for EMI despite it's "winning streak" of hits. They have a massive debt to pay Citibank and merger or bankruptsy have seemed to be more likely than EMI paying it back.

Fortunatly for EMI, they got some investers in the nick of time and bought themselves another year. Are they out of the woods? Not a chance, these guys live in the woods at this point. Now the question is, who is most likely going to buy EMI? Fingers are pointing to Warner Music CEO Edgar Bronfman Jr. as the most likely candidate, but rumor is, he is going to wait until the price comes down a little further. Perhaps until they are about to go bankrupt next year? For more, read on hypebot.

- Ian Gollahon

Source:
http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/05/will-anyone-can-anyone-buy-emi.html#more

Maniac's Singing Heads

2010-05-10T07:45:00.000-07:00

The band Maniac have been telling fans they'd be releasing their music very soon, and they just did today. They take you to their web site, but you don't just go there and stream the songs. Do you ever go to a site to stream the songs, and then find you have nothing else to really look at? Well, Maniac solves this problem by making a little video that goes with each song. It's the guys' heads, just their heads, singing along with the songs while you listen to them.

There are four heads, and the one that is singing lights up. The ones that aren't singing are looking around, moving their mouths like they are singing a different song or talking to each other.

It's pretty amusing, and gives you something fun to look at while you listen to the new songs.

Then, right below where you are watching, you can find links to the band's facebook, youtube channel, and twitter. You can also click a link to join the mailing list. When you click on any of these, they open up in a new window, so your music and singing heads aren't interrupted.

I thought it was a pretty cool way of marketing your songs. I know I told all my friends about the singing heads, and I'm telling you all now, so their idea might be working.

--- Ashley Snider

Source: http://www.maniacmania.com/

Bob Baker: Giving Music Consumers These 3 Choices Leads to More Revenue

2010-05-09T23:57:00.000-07:00

Bob Baker of TheBuzzFactor recently did a study regarding a new release from the Raveonettes. Scott Cohen, manager of the Raveonettes, wrote an op-ed piece that appears on the Billboard website. In this article, he shares interesting numbers from the Raveonette's newest release.

Here are some interesting figures:

When choosing between a full length digital album for $7.99 or a single track for 99 cents, 75% of the time fans chose the 99 cent single. Since most of a band's revenue is generated from album sales, this is not good news for the band.

Trying something different, the Raveonettes released an EP, available for purchase at $3.99, as well as offering the single tracks for 99 cents. Given the choice, more than half chose the EP over the single track. "By providing different pricing and format options, we were able to increase our sales from casual fans who want more than a track and less than an album," says Cohen. "Should we consider selling full-length albums on physical formats and dividing the album into three EPs for the digital release? The evidence suggests that this would generate more money."

Cohen believes that offering a full length physical CD (15 tracks for $15, maybe accompanied with a DVD or another form of upgraded packaging), three digital-only EPs (five tracks each for $3.99), and singles (99 cents per song). He believes that this will satisfy new fans, casual fans, and core fans.

This study is very interesting and may open up new marketing opportunities for bands approaching a new release. The results of the study only make sense; new fans are offered the opportunity to buy single tracks, casual fans will be able to enjoy an inexpensive EP, and the core fans will be able to have a unique, high end physical product. Following a similar strategy will allow bands to maximize profit while keeping all tiers of fans satisfied. It will be interesting to follow similar case studies as they arise in the future.

http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/05/bob-baker-giving-music-consumers-these-3-choices-leads-to-more-revenue.html#more

-Scott Schaffer

MySpace Loses $150 Million Dollars.......

2010-05-08T20:17:00.000-07:00

Yes, according to Hypebot MySpace has been losing money with a reported $150 million dollars lost this past quarter, along with the $88 million dollars they lost last year. This news final clears up some of the mixed reports released from NewsCorp. to their investors earlier this week. Also, an earlier post on Hypebot showed a graph put together by NielsonWire Research Group which confirmed that MySpace has been losing unique page visits since 2008 in comparison to Facebook. So, what does this mean for the standpoint of music marketing? Well it shows that there’s a change happening where possible fans are now at on social networks, and with music sites like ReverbNation creating widget tools to easily embed music into Facebook fan pages. I predict within the next few years that the idea of creating a MySpace music page to place your bands music will not be as appealing as creating a Fanbage on Facebook. The easy tools Facebook offers to share content with larger audiences will continue to increase as the years go on, but only time will tell.

Submitted by: Jarvis R. Smith

Source
http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/05/myspace-lost-150m-in-last-3-months.html

Has Apple gone rotten?

2010-05-07T09:40:00.000-07:00

Many of us are children of the indie rock movement (don’t care if you don’t want to be labeled that, your fondness of that one non-indie thing is not going to keep me or anyone else from stereotyping you). Our niche identifies with a sort of anti-consumerism or counter-consumerism that is probably just sub-consumerism. I mean of course, that we don’t like to eat at McDonalds or shop at Wal-Mart because, when it comes down to it, we are just too indie-rock. A candy bar (or more likely some vintage candy that you eat ironically) is probably not any healthier or less chemically then a side of McDonald's fries, but many of us would take the candy bar just out of principle (that and McDonald's smells like a toxic waste dump). For better or worse, most anyone who owns an Animal Collective CD has a sort of consumer conscious that we tend to take more seriously than mainstream culture.

That said, we come to my point – Apple. When ABC has a story “Has Apple Lost it’s Cool?” the answer (for me) is undoubtedly yes. As briefly discussed in the video, Apple can be a bully when it comes to market share. They’ve shown us that they aren’t afraid to sue everyone or illegally raid your house for the iPhone 4G. In fact, they are starting to make Microsoft look like a softy. Have we all forgotten we didn’t want Microsoft to be anti-competitive? Why are there no Apple anti-trust cases? In my opinion, it’s because they slap the words green and sexy on everything they do. Apple: green and sexy. Bill Gates: bad. Ever heard of marketing? Ever think your just buying the image Apple is selling?

Although I think this video is overwhelmingly bias on Apple’s side (I mean they interview a guy that has Apple tattooed on his forehead with a MacBook), at least the video gives us a foreshadowing of the Apple backlash on its way. For me, it’s already here.

Stay tuned for the next ABC special – “Has MySpace lost it’s awesome?” Really ABC?

- Ian Gollahon

WMG Offers Mixed Financial Reports, Digital Sales Up

2010-05-06T18:10:00.000-07:00

Warner Music Group showed a loss for the quarter ending March 31st of $25 million or 17 cents per share. That amount has decreased significantly because in the same quarter last year, they had $68 million or 45 cents a share loss. Their overall revenue fell 1.3% to $662 million with rising digital sales contributing to their improving numbers. Other improvements are that digital sales reached $199 million or 30% of total revenue which is up 8% from the previous quarter and up 15% from $173 million in the prior-year quarter. In addition, operating income grew 60% to $24 million compared to $15 million in the prior-year quarter.

Obviously, these statistics indicate that digital sales are taking over. Who knows where Warner Music Group would even be right now without them. We'll just have to continue to wait and see if digital music wipes out CDs completely.

- Samantha Bruno

Source:

http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/05/wmg-offers-mixed-financial-report-digital-sales-up.html#more

Hip-Hop's "Independent" Business Model

2010-05-04T20:29:00.000-07:00

Young Money's Drake, before he was part of Young Money, was credited as an independent artists. Drake's credit spans from releasing So Far Gone as an independent mixtape, becoming Grammy nominated, and reaching 2,000 downloads in 10 minutes of the release of his album, but how independent was he really? There is word that he was already signed to Young Money/Universal when all this hype was going on. The same thing is rumored to have happened with Souljah Boy and recently with Spree Wilson. Spree Wilson signed to Jive Records without disclosing the deal because they wanted him to market himself and put out mixtapes and pre-projects to create buzz.

I think this is an interesting way to go about things considering it has always been the buzz an artist creates for themselves that gets the attention of the major labels, so this seems a little backwards. It gives artists credit to be successful on their own, but then they have the major label to back them and help them make money.

It's quoted about Souljah Boy that "At the first radio meeting after he was signed, the label decided to do nothing because they didn't want to mess with his grassroots." This could be good because fans' loyalty will grow and everyone wants to see their favorite independent artist make it big on their own. On the opposing side, fans may feel betrayed for being made to believe the artist made it on their own when really a major label helped them out.

Source: http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment/2010/05/hip_hops_new_business_model_ma.html

by Rebecca Weyhrauch

Buy a Ticket, Get an Album

2010-05-03T12:58:00.001-07:00

Tom Petty has announced that for every ticket purchased for his upcoming tour, he will be giving away his first new album in five years free of charge. Once you buy the ticket, you will get two tracks to download right then, and then later, when the album is released in June, you will get a free download of the entire album plus some bonus live tracks from the tour.

This is being provided by Live Nation, who said that with the merge with Ticketmaster, they would like to be able to do more cross promotion like this.

This makes sense to reel in some excited fans and make them even more excited by the fact that this new album (the first in five years) is being handed to them on top of their ticket to see Tom Petty live. Plus, with fewer people interested in buying music, but many still interested in concerts, it seems like a good idea and a fair trade.

But it is Tom Petty. And his concert tickets probably don't cost $15. So, I'd say this is a loss that Tom Petty can take. I still think it may be a good idea for bands to do, even if it is just a few free songs, because that can make the difference between a fan buying a ticket and not buying one. If you add a little extra, it definitely makes it more appealing.

--Ashley Snider

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/05/even-tom-petty-gives-his-music-away-free.html

Breakthrough for Ad Supported Music

2010-05-02T10:18:00.000-07:00

A UK music streaming service, we7, had its first profitable month – where on demand music was paid for in full by advertising. This most likely makes we7 the first company to demonstrate that a music on-demand ad-funded model can be profitable and still return measurable royalties.

The company states that one million plays on we7 generates payments to the music industry of between $3,100 and $6,200. These payouts “dwarf previously reported competitive models, especially revenue share models which shift the risk to the artists and songwriters.”

There is a long list of companies, Lala among them, that have failed to make ad supported music profitable. So what makes we7 different? Part of it might be their model of controlled growth, but a larger part of it could definitely be that record labels that given it reasonable terms and time to experiment.

Simon Wheeler, Director of Digital at Beggars Group, says “with the emergence of new digital models, it is important that they are given opportunity to develop and grow, but with a clear understanding that music has a value which needs to be recognized and paid for.” The CEO of we7, Steve Purdham, agrees “music has never been a ‘freemium’ model – they key going forward is protecting the value of music with smart economic delivery.”

If we7 can maintain its profitability, it could be a breakthrough for ad supported music and it would mean that the music on-demand ad-funded model can work – it just needed time to find which variation worked best.

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/04/we7-claims-a-profitable-month-is-this-a-breakthrough-for-ad-supported-music.html

-Emilia Segatti

Bye, Bye Lala. Hello Cloud?

2010-05-01T19:05:00.000-07:00

Yes, according to the San Francisco Gate, Apple will be closing down Lala for good on May 31st. The decision for many has come unexpectedly, and Apple has the blogsphere questioning their decision to close Lala. Was it because Lala wasn’t generating enough revenue? Was Lala losing customers? Well the San Francisco Gate believes Apple is getting ready to unleash their version of the cloud, but it’s still speculation. It will be a shame if Apple doesn’t make use of the cloud distribution technology Lala has, and incorporates it into iTunes somehow. The only downside I see to Lala closing is that all the users who were loyal to the service will be left without a home. This also makes me wonder what will Pitchfork be using as an alternative source to stream music come May 31st? The “Apple Cloud” saga begins (maybe).

Submitted by: Jarvis R. Smith

Source
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2010/05/01/bloomberg1376-L1RCTK1A74E9-5.DTL

Record Store Day Declared Big Sales Success

2010-04-28T19:40:00.000-07:00

According to the Nielsen Soundscan, recorded music sales surged during America’s third annual Record Store Day on April 17th. In comparison with the previous week, overall U.S. album sales in the independent sector increased 12% including a big 19% vinyl sales jump for the weekend and 529% growth in vinyl single sales.

Several artists including Black Keys, Soundgarden, and Bruce Springsteen were among those who released exclusive vinyl singles, part of the nearly limited vinyl and CD releases offered in the U.S. for Record Store Day. Eight hundred stores in the U.S. (1,400 total worldwide) participated in Record Store Day and saw a 7% increase in record sales. While on the whole, album sales were up 3% on a year-over-year basis.

Honestly, these statistics sort of surprised me a bit. What they suggest to me is that the Compact Disc is still thriving somehow in a world that has been overpowered by the Internet and illegal downloading. I still believe the CD is going to eventually become extinct, however. What I think is keeping the CD sales alive right now is the older, less technologically-inclined generation who grew up on cassettes and CDs. Eventually, this generation is going to die out and the people to replace them are going to be those who grew up on stealing from the Internet. I guess only time will tell what's really going to happen though.

- Samantha Bruno

Source:

http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/04/record-store-day-declared-big-sales-success.html#more

Trade Your Fans

2010-04-27T11:11:00.001-07:00

Headliner.fm is a social networking promotion site which allows bands to share their fans. If your band has a show coming up or is releasing an album, you can send a request to another band through Headliner.fm and ask them for a promotion. If they accept your request, your advertisement will be published on their social networking sight and sent to all their fans. Since the promotion is coming from a band they are a fan of, they will be more likely to take the promotion into consideration than had you blindly sent it to them.

This is a great way to promote because bands can help each other out. If you know of a band that sounds like yours, you can easily reach out to their fans and expand your fan base. From a fan's perspective, anything that is promoted through Headliner.fm is okayed by the band promoting it, so you can trust it. If a request is sent and the band doesn't think they relate to it, it can be denied and their fans won't get bothered by it.

Watch demo here!

Source: hypebot.com, headliner.fm/

by Rebecca Weyhrauch

Are CDs A Lost Cause?

2010-04-26T19:34:00.000-07:00

Universal Music Group just announced that they're going to lower the prices of their CDs to $10 or less. This effort is being made to see if people will be more likely to buy new releases on CDs if they cost less. In an age where anything can be downloaded for free, lowering the prices for the almost forgotten about CD can't hurt. It is, however (in my opinion), too little too late. Downloading music for free has been going on for about 10 years now, and record companies are just now deciding to lower the cost of CDs to compete with downloads? The kicker in this situation is that the price reduction isn't even permanent-- it's just a "pricing test" to see how consumers react to lower prices. The beginning of this temporary price reduction does not have a start date, but it is rumored to begin in the second quarter of this year.

Like I said, this can't hurt, but I do find it a bit humorous that it took someone this long to figure out that lowering prices on CDs may help sales. My predictions for the test: it probably won't help too much. Most young adults don't even buy CDs anymore because they grew up with music downloads, so they probably won't jump on this. Older adults may get into this deal because they're not as tech savvy and many still buy CDs, but we have to remember that the sales will be on new releases. A lot of older people like to buy CDs of artists that they grew up listening to, so the sales may not be on items that they want. Again, I feel as if this attempt is too little too late.

-Ashley Stokvis

source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/allsongs/2010/03/cds_are_cheaper_but_is_univers.html

Rhapsody Allows Offline Streaming

2010-04-26T09:26:00.001-07:00

Rhapsody has announced an upgrade to their iPhone app that will allow users to stream music through the app even when the phone is out of wireless range. This will be the first music app with this feature that will be released in the United States. However, there are some things it can’t do just yet. Right now, users can only stream playlists they have created themselves. The ability to stream albums and songs offline will not be available until June.

Despite that, this is going add a lot of value the Rhapsody’s subscribers if they can stream the music even when their device is offline. As no iPhone gets service 100% of the time, this is going to be really great for those who use Rhapsody to listen 24/7. No matter what, they can access all of the music on Rhapsody, and that means you’ll have a lot of music at your disposal, even when you are in the middle of nowhere with no wireless connection. I think that’s pretty cool.

Although this app is currently only available to the iPhone, they say they will have one available this summer for Android devices.

Rhapsody said that their current app has been downloaded 1.5 million times, so it will be interesting to see if that grows with the addition of this feature. Of course, you first have to subscribe to Rhapsody in order to really get the full use of the app, but if it means you can now access a huge collection of music anywhere at anytime, it might really be worth your money.

-- Ashley Snider

Source: http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/content_display/industry/e3i30743ee7ced098677d5dc5a8c2374e5d

Launch of NimbitPro

2010-04-25T12:40:00.000-07:00

Nimbit, a direct-to-fan services provider, recently launched nimbitPro which is an improved suite of tools and services designed “to allow artists and their teams to manage their direct to fan marketing and sales efforts via a unified dashboard.” NimbitPro allows artists, managers, and small labels to capture and communicate with fans, execute marketing campaigns, generate direct sales across multiple storefronts and distribution channels, and to measure their efforts. According to Nimbit co-founder, Patrick Faucher, “we’ve now delivered an end-to-end platform designed for long term, profitable fan relationships and music careers.”

With nimbitPro, artists can distribute their music to iTunes, Amazon, eMusic, Rhapsody, and Napster in addition to selling their digital music on Facebook, MySpace, and on their own website. The dashboard also offers real-time sales analytics and reports in addition to a multitude of other fan management tools. At only $25 a month, nimbitPro seems like a reasonable investment for any artist hoping to expand and engage their fan base.

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/04/nimbit-expands-direct-to-fan-toolkit-with-nimbitpro.html

-Emilia Segatti

Cloud Computing (Reality or Fiction)?

2010-04-24T21:18:00.000-07:00

I came across an interesting article on Yahoo!’s Associated Press speaking about the cloud and how many companies like Rhapsody have been using it for streaming music over the internet and on mobile devices. Associated Press gave some insight on why the cloud is beneficial for some music listeners, especially the ones who have a wide variety of musical tastes, and consume new music daily. At the same time they focused on why the cloud hasn’t crossed over to the mainstream. One point AP makes is that the cloud hasn’t been marketed well enough to the masses to make them understand why it’s better than buying music in stores or online. Also, many consumers do not like the idea of having to pay a monthly bill for music. Along with these issues for the consumers, record labels are hesitant of moving to the cloud because it hasn’t proven itself as being a strong way to generate revenue from music streams.

I think the cloud is still something that needs to be developed. I’ve been researching this for the past few months, and it sounds like a great concept expect there are a lot of issues on the legal side that stand it its way (read this article). So, I can understand why many labels are wary of joining. Given more time, I think the cloud could be the thing that reinvents record labels, and make them work within the digital era of music.

Submitted by: Jarvis R. Smith

Source
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100419/ap_en_mu/us_music_in_the_cloud

FYS Yourself with Four Year Strong

2010-04-23T17:27:00.000-07:00

Four Year Strong's newest album, Enemy of the World, was recently released and in order to help promote it, they've come up with an amusing/unique web site.

I saw a few of my friends tweeting, "FYS yourself like I did" with a picture of themselves containing various cartoon-y graphics such as clothing, tattoos, piercings, etc. that they added to their picture. Curious as to what that meant, I clicked the link and it brought me to a page in which I could upload a picture of myself and add different kinds of graphics to it. This page was also continuously streaming 4 songs from Four Year Strong's new album [as I added things to my picture]. At the bottom left of the page is a link to a contest in which you can enter the picture you've created with a chance to win the "Enemy of the World Package" which includes a skate deck, vinyl, CD, tickets, and more. At the bottom right of the page were various links to follow the band on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, and YouTube.

This is like the culmination of everything we've been talking about in class. I thought this was a really smart way for Four Year Strong to get some of their music out there for free in order to promote their new album. It was mentioned in class that it's not really a good idea to give away ALL of the music for free, which FYS didn't do. In my opinion, they put up just the right amount of songs up to give the listener a good preview of the album. The thing I really liked too was that they were getting people to come to the Web site through these funny pictures that people were creating of themselves. Initially, I didn't click the link wanting to hear the band's new music, per se. I just wanted to make a goofy looking picture of myself because I was bored. While I did so, however, I found myself to be digging the music as I had fun turning myself into a scene kid with the "Fys yourself" game. This led me to tweet my picture which in turn, probably got some of my followers to click the link and hear some of the songs as well.

Unique move by this band in my opinion. They didn't force the music down your throat, you had the option to pause it if you wanted and you also had the option to enter the free contest. And even if this doesn't lead to people buying the album, they may still check out the band's Facebook, Twitter, or MySpace page and buy tickets to see them in the future.

If you're bored like I was, I recommend you go "fys yourself" and maybe listen to the music too. Personally, "Wasting Time (Eternal Summer)" was my favorite song.

- Samantha Bruno

Source:

http://www.fysyourself.com/

Facebook meets Pandora....?

2010-04-22T17:58:00.000-07:00

I mean, we all knew that Facebook was going to get a better music player sometime because frankly, Facebook's music pages SUCK, but did anyone think it was going to be PANDORA? I remember when Facebook first started having artist pages, remember iLike? If you've never experiences iLike, let me just tell you, it rarely worked, sometimes only had 30 seconds of a song and was rarely updated. With Facebook on the rise and myspace declining, it was only a matter of time before music companies jumped on the Facebook bandwagon.

I've had a Facebook since 2005 and before that I was an avid myspace user. Anytime I wanted information on any band I listened to, I'd go straight for myspace, but now, in 2010, I just search on Facebook or Google and it pops right up.

Basically, the Pandora link to Facebook is just like the Twitter link to Facebook. The purpose? to make it simple for your "friends" to see what Pandora stations you're listening to and what bands you like the most. It makes your Pandora profile link with your Facebook profile- your friends list moves over, along with your profile picture- thus "linking" the two sites.

Personally, I think it's pretty cool, but at the same time, it's odd to think of Pandora as a social networking site.

Hopefully, you're not listening to anything too embarrassing...because from here on out, everyone's going to know.

-Samantha Corrie Schulman

source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/04/facebook-partners-with-pandora-for-social-music.html

Fans Choose Songs For New Devo Album

2010-04-20T22:14:00.000-07:00

Trying to think of a creative way to catch the public's attention with your new album? Be prepared to be jealous of Devo's idea. The band wants their fans to decide which songs are going to make it on their album. Devo has 16 new songs, but only 12 will make it to the album. Not only is this a good way to grab the public's attention, but it will also make an album that the fans like the best. There may have been a few songs that were not so great, but this gives fans the chance to decide "ehh...I am not digging this song. It definitely doesn't belong on the album." I personally would be super excited if one of my favorite bands did this. Fan interaction is an amazing way to build hype around a product. Something that this reminds me of is how currently, Muse has a thing going on where the fans can pick the set list for some of their upcoming shows. I cannot stress enough how awesome I think this is. So many more people are going to want to buy Devo's new album now because they feel like they had a hand in creating it.

-Ashley Stokvis

source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/allsongs/2010/04/devos_new_album_you_pick_the_s.html

Chain Mail Music

2010-04-20T10:49:00.000-07:00

Everybody has that friend who sends chain mail religiously, as if they really would have "7 years of bad luck if you don't send this to 10 friends." If you aren't that friend, most likely you find it annoying when you receive these kinds of emails and texts, but what if it was music being sent to you?

The band Skybox has embraced filesharing by its fans and are encouraging it through chain mail. What the band is asking it's listeners to do is pick their favorite song and send it to 10 friends (without any threats for bad luck). There are even "share" buttons on their website music player to make it easy for fans to send. This benefits the band because it increases the amount of people hearing about Spybox, listening to their music, and the band also has access to the email addresses and can send other information (tour dates, release dates, etc.) directly to their fans.

Source: www.hypebot.com

by, Rebecca Weyhrauch

Apple May Also Be Creating a Concert Ticketing System

2010-04-19T10:20:00.000-07:00

So, MySpace has just launched their concert ticketing system, and it seems like Apple might be jumping on the bandwagon too.

Although this ticketing application may not actually be realized, the system would be used on iPhones and Apple computer users. The system will allow users to get to concert tickets from their iTunes, buy them, and then the ticket would be sent to the user's iPhone or computer to be used to get into the concert. There would also be other bonus features, such as the chance to buy live recordings of the event, or get discounts on food or merch. There will be more exclusive content as well.

This system, if it actually happens, would make use of smart phones and the mobile market, and I can see this application being very popular with iPhone users, simply because you can buy tickets and have them stored on your phone instead of making sure you have them stored somewhere you remember and that you don't forget them when you head out to the show.

If this application actually happens, I think it would be successful because of its convenience and the exclusives that it will offer.

- Ashley Snider

Source: http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/content_display/industry/e3i33e34f97cdbeee3e5a8dd1f4eb83ee2b

The Stimulus Package

2010-04-18T10:33:00.000-07:00

In an age where the CD has basically become obsolete, rapper Freeway’s latest release, The Stimulus Package, with its exorbitant packaging seems completely illogical. When you purchase the CD, it comes as a folded wad of oversized paper bills with the face of either Freeway or producer Jake One on one side and liner notes on the other. The actual CD comes inside a wallet that also contains a black credit card with a code to download the instrumental version of the album.

Even if the packaging is a little extreme, it’s a nice change from the lackluster album art that seems to have resulted from the digital age. Hopefully, this will encourage other artists to follow Freeway and Jake One’s lead and create unique packaging.

However, The Stimulus Package has more to teach other artists than simply being more creative with their album art. Freeway was once a part of the Roc-A-Fella clique but in the last few years, he has been struggling to find an audience and his reputation had steeply declined. His last two albums failed to gain much press and his career seemed to be grinding slowly to a halt. This changed with The Stimulus Package. Even though a lot of the buzz and write-ups are simply about the packaging, it has still gotten Freeway and his music mentioned on NPR and all sorts of blogs. So perhaps the lesson to learn from this is that if the way you package your product is interesting enough, people will talk about it regardless of what the actual product is.

Source: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=125991360

~Emilia Segatti

Your Favorite Musician is A Sellout! (Who Cares?)

2010-04-17T20:04:00.000-07:00

I came across an interesting article on Cnet.com speaking about musicians, and if it's possible for them to sellout within this decade of music. The author (Matt Rosoff ) spoke about how many bands have been getting that extra push from corporations to get their music out to the public and generate a stronger stream of revenue from recorded music. Mr. Rosoff spoke about a band he discovered (Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes), and how he really enjoyed their single “Home”. Then when he saw that Microsoft was using this same single as the theme music for the launch of their new Smartphone “Kin”. He lost interest in the band because now the song he enjoyed for the artistic value is being used as a tool to sell a product. Mr. Rosoff goes on to ask the readers whether this makes him a dinosaur for believing that this makes a band a sellout.

I thought this was interesting because we spoke about this a little bit in our class, and how many bands have linked up with corporations (Mountain Dew, Red Bull, etc.) to have their music associated with selling a product, and whether this was an appropriate move for a band to make? I think it is because things have changed dramatically over the past few decades, and with CD’s becoming irrelevant musicians need to find other ways to make profit from their work instead of just touring and selling merchandise.

To me it all boils down to what the product is, and what its sellers are trying to say to its consumers by using a musician’s song. The Wilco and Volkswagen collaboration we spoke about is a good example of this. So, the issue of selling out is becoming a dated thing to say about a musician when they are limited to the ways they can profit from recordings. In the end, music is an art and that should never be forgotten, but at the same time it’s a business, and that can’t be overlooked . Especially when you’re trying to make it your career.

Submitted by: Jarvis R. Smith

Source
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13526_3-20002543-27.html?tag=mncol;title

MySpace Launches Events and Ticketing Platform

2010-04-15T13:34:00.000-07:00

So in an effort to stop the flow of traffic to Facebook and Twitter, MySpace has been coming out with a number of new additions as of late. And the latest addition may give artists and music marketers a reason to keep their MySpace profiles more up to date.

MySpace recently launched MySpace Events, a calendar and ticketing platform that allows artists and fans to create and share events. Each event appears inside the user's MySpace calendar, including any from Facebook. The events can be shared on a users' MySpace Stream, Facebook pages, Twitter, and via tiny url. Advertisers who want to promote an event can now also purchase a new special ad format that displays sponsored events directly inside the social calendar.

Marcus Womack, Director of Events and Ticketing for MySpace explains, “Ultimately our goal is to create a destination that allows users to manage their entire social calendar online through MySpace. Also, we’re providing artists with advanced tools to help connect with fans and promote their shows while conversely enabling fans to quickly and easily discover, share and purchase tickets to those shows.”

I logged in to MySpace to check out this new MySpace Events feature, and it was actually kind of cool. Right away it showed me recommended shows in my area with a link right next to each event where I could find tickets. Then there's a "browse" button where you can explore events on a categorical basis- concerts, festivals, art, sports, nightlife, etc. There's also a list on the side of the top ten most popular events in your area. Like most people, I'm tired of MySpace, but I have to admit I liked this Events page. I'm really lazy when it comes to looking up shows and events, but this is a spot where I can browse through every event all from one place. I know I'm not going to go so far as to create my own event using this feature (since I rarely login to this site anymore), but still I'd say the events page is worth checking out whenever I do occasionally stop at MySpace.

- Samantha Bruno

Source:
http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/04/myspace-launches-events-ticketing-platform.html

Yeah, I wrote this paper for another class, so what? I don’t see anyone else using proper Turabian (or whaterver) formatting on their blogs! What now?

2010-04-14T12:21:00.000-07:00

EMI v. Grooveshark

Initially launched in 2006 as a peer-to-peer music sharing network (somewhat similar to Napster), Grooveshark left it’s peer-to-peer ways and morphed into a music “stream on demand” site[1]. Built far away from the major record labels, Grooveshark was funded “primarily by friends and family.[2]” Unlike Napster (who claimed to not be responsible of its users content) or Myspace (a network where bands can legally only upload their own music), Grooveshark was breaking all the rules without finding any loopholes. Go to Grooveshark.com, type in a song title, and listen to whatever you want. The website idea, simple design, and ascetics are similar to an online jukebox that has every band and never costs a dime.

For consumers, this concept sounds great. Why buy an album when you can listen to it for free? Plus, streaming music doesn’t carry the same virus risks that downloading does. Finally, when streaming from Grooveshark there is no transfer of files; so no risk of lawsuit. Seemingly closer to tuning into the radio than stealing a CD, Grooveshark is a music consumer’s dream. For some copyright holders, Grooveshark seemed more like a nightmare.

In judging if the use of copyrighted material is “fair use,” a question a lawyer might ask is -- “Does [the infringement] affect the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work?[3]” Grooveshark’s motto is “Play any song in the world, for free![4]” This gives strong implication that Grooveshark not only has potential to hurt the market for music, but that Grooveshark is seemingly designed for such a purpose.

Because of the free and versatile nature of Grooveshark: it resembles neither a new way to buy music (as iTunes does) nor a new way to listen to radio (like streaming radio stations do). Grooveshark represents a new way to get any song at any time without paying any money. Perhaps this is what frightened major record companies like EMI, the holder of so many valuable copyrights.

On May 8^th of 2009, EMI sued Grooveshark for copyright infringements[5]. According to many sources (including Wall Street Journal’s All Things Digital), Grooveshark was actually working with EMI to reach a legal agreement when EMI decided to go to court instead[6]. Nothing has been announced as to what Grooveshark had on the table, but considering their limited income from a few advertisers featured on their website, it was probably nowhere near the ten or twenty dollars EMI expects to make per album. In examining the case EMI v. Grooveshark, it seems that the law is undoubtedly on the side of EMI. Not only was Grooveshark proudly disregarding copyright laws, it announced no legal defense to the public save attempted “negations” with EMI. Apparently, Grooveshark thought it could figure out the copyright licenses after it put up the copyrighted material.

In addition to constitutional law being on the side of EMI, there are also several cases that can serve as precedent to EMI v. Grooveshark. Most famous is Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) v. Napster in 2000. When at the federal appeals court, the law sided with RIAA (the copyright protectors) instead of Napster (the copyright violating website)[7]. In what many consider the sequel to RIAA v. Napster (MGM v. Grokster) the courst also sided with the copyright holders (MGM) and forced Grokster to pay damages of $50 million[8]. The Grokster case particularly concludes that not only is it illegal to offer a service that allows its users to violate copyright law, that service itself (Grokster or Grooveshark) can be held responsible for damages.

Though the law seemed to be clearly on the side of EMI, it seems that the public was largely on the side of Grooveshark. When Rolling Stone magazine covered the EMI v. Grooveshark story online, consumers from all over the world logged on to blog about their frustration with EMI. Comment after comment on the Grooveshark case grouped EMI with “the major labels,” calling them, “fools,” “greedy,” and “two faced.[9]” A blogger identifying himself as “EMI Sucks” argues, “I can’t believe EMI would stab them in the back like this. Grooveshark was on THEIR side by asking them permission for their music, and EMI turns around and accuses them of copyright violation?[10]” Although it seems these bloggers are confused about the fundamentals of copyright laws, they are also clearly music consumers. Who else would take the time to comment on a Rolling Stones post?

Even though it appears EMI had a foolproof case against Grooveshark, they decided to negotiate instead of pursue the lawsuit. According to an October 2009 article in Wired Magazine, EMI struck a licensing deal with Grooveshark and dropped the lawsuit[11]. Luckily for Grooveshark, because the case was a civil dispute instead of a criminal prosecution, Grooveshark came out relatively unscathed.

Today, Grooveshark stays true to its motto and continues to offer any song from its huge catalog for free. Supported by companies targeting music lovers, Groovesharks users pay for the music with their viewing of advertisements instead of cash. Blending a business model called “freemium”, Grooveshark also offers a premium account (even though basic use is free). The premium service costs $3 a month, removes the advertisements a customer would normally see, and allows the user additional features like saving playlists[12].

EMI v. Grooveshark is an especially interesting case because it marks the music industry’s digression from enforcing copyright laws. Even though the law was on EMI’s side, the music consumer was not. Working with Grooveshark instead shutting it down is part of a new strategy to embrace free music for fear of alienating customers.

[1] Peter Kafka, “Another Music Start Up Sued” All Things Digital by The Wall Street Journal. (June 17, 2009) http://mediamemo.allthingsd.com/20090617/another-music-startup-sued-emi-takes-grooveshark-to-court/ (accessed April 9, 2010).

[2] Peter Kafka (accessed April 9, 2010)

[3] Raymond P.Schmitz Jr. J.D., “Copyright: Infringement, Fair Use, and Licensing ” (lecure, Columbia College, Chicago, IL)

[4] http://listen.grooveshark.com/ (accessed on April 9, 2010)`

[5] Peter Kafka, “Another Music Start Up Sued” All Things Digital by The Wall Street Journal. (June 17, 2009) http://mediamemo.allthingsd.com/20090617/another-music-startup-sued-emi-takes-grooveshark-to-court/ (accessed April 9, 2010).

[6] Peter Kafka (accessed April 9, 2010)

[7] CNN, “Justice sides with recording industry on key issue in Napster court fight” (September 8, 2000) http://archives.cnn.com/2000/LAW/09/08/napster.justice/ (accessed April 10, 2010)

[8] John Borland, “Last waltz for Grokster” CNet News (November 7, 2005) http://news.cnet.com/Last-waltz-for-Grokster/2100-1027_3-5937832.html (accessed April 10, 2010)

[9] Daniel Kreps, “EMI Sues Music Streaming Site Grooveshark” Rolling Stone (June 18, 2009) http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2009/06/18/emi-sues-music-streaming-site-grooveshark/ (accessed April 10, 2010)

[10] Daniel Kreps, (accessed April 10, 2010)

[11] Eliot Van Buskirk, “EMI Drops Suit Against Grooveshark Music Service, Licenses It Instead” Wired (October 13, 2009) http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2009/10/emi-drops-suit-against-grooveshark-music-service-licenses-it-instead/ (accessed April 9, 2010)

[12] http://listen.grooveshark.com/ (accessed on April 9, 2010)

- Ian Gollahon

Redefining The Digital Music Market, One Phone At A Time

2010-04-14T08:43:00.000-07:00

Nokia, the world's leading mobile phone supplier and manufacturer of mobile telephones, furthered increased its global domination of mobile music service. 'Comes With Music' is a cell phone-based, Digital Rights Management-free unlimited music download service. Already in 30 countries, Comes With Music is innovative to China as being the world’s first DRM-free unlimited music download service.

Although the service has had a slow start in its other countries (approximately 107,000 subscribers), the market for China, and soon to be India, is a combined potential of 2.5 billion people. That is more than one third of the world’s population! Seeing the potential for millions of would be customers, the service will include catalogues from the four majors: Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, Warner Music Group, EMI Music and more than 70 local independent labels. 50% of the catalogue is expected to be local artists as well.

Besides being the world’s most populated country, what sets China apart from the rest of Nokia’s markets is its current dominance of China’s mobile market. Eight of Nokia’s phones are already available for the service and 80,000 retail stores around the country are carrying the supported devices. Liz Schimel, Global Head of Music, Nokia claims that "This launch delivers a truly mass market music offering from China's most loved mobile brand. Our broad range of Comes With Music enabled devices and the high quality, DRM-free catalogue form the perfect legal download recipe for the world's biggest market for mobile phones."

One of the biggest obstacles Nokia and the music industry face in China is piracy. "Establishing legitimate online music services in emerging markets is imperative for the music industry's ongoing effort to remake itself," says Mike McGuire, Research Vice President, Media IAS Team, Gartner. The success of Comes With Music would be a win for artists, labels, publishers and consumers alike. American artists, labels and publishers now have the opportunity to profit from their catalogue legitimately being in the hands of Chinese music fans. Conversely, Chinese music will be available to the rest of the world with the expansion of the service.

- Steve Jordan

Source - http://musically.com/blog/2010/04/08/comes-with-music-goes-live-in-china-drm-free/

Music Streaming Service Teams Up With The Golden Arches

2010-04-13T13:52:00.000-07:00

Deezer, a French on-demand streaming service has partnered up with McDonald's. 1,161 McDonald's locations will have access to an application that streams playlists customized by Deezer. In a statement from McDonald's VP, Nawfal Trabelsi said, "this new original and targeted music offer brings an answer to the needs of our consumers looking for an experience beyond catering." Deezer's goal is to create targeted sound environments for brands.

This reminds me of a partnership that iTunes and Starbucks entered around 2007 where Starbucks gave away free song downloads for iTunes and then anyone with an iPhone or iPod with internet access could get free wifi from Starbucks. In addition to that, the user could log into their itunes and find out which songs were playing over the Starbucks speakers and instructions on how to buy the songs. I'm not positive if this is still going on because I don't go to Starbucks, but my guess is that it is.

Teaming up with a retailer is a great way to reach an audience, because consumers hear music most places they go, whether they realize it or not. When a good song or playlist comes on though, the customer will notice it and want to know who the artist is and what the song is called.

Source: http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/content_display/industry/e3i15f690d9bb7df9565bc15676352e69fa

-Ashley Stokvis

Promotion Through Music Videos

2010-04-13T12:32:00.001-07:00

Brightcove and TubeMogul did a study on trends of online music video watching, and the results could help artists get viewers to watch their videos.

It was discovered that, as we could have guessed, most music videos are found through Google searches. Google is responsible for 76% of views to be exact.

If it's longevity you are looking for, your best source is Twitter. Viewers that find videos off people's tweets watch about a minute more of the video than someone who found a video through other means. If a music video or song is good enough for someone to tweet about, then there's a good chance their followers will take the time to watch it.

If you want your video to be delivered when someone searches the internet to watch it, VEVO is your source. In just one month, VEVO has had 226 million views, where label and artist websites had only 25 million. Sites such as VEVO or YouTube are good for getting hits to your video because while watching one video, a bunch of others are listed to the side that the viewer might enjoy as well. This could also be beneficial in reaching a new demographic.

Source: http://blog.brightcove.com/en/2010/04/brightcove-and-tubemogul-publish-data-trends-online-music-videos-part-new-quarterly-research-report

By Rebecca Weyhrauch

UK Passes Anti-Piracy Act

2010-04-12T13:50:00.000-07:00

The U.K. has pushed a bill called the Digital Economy Bill through one section of the British government this week that seems to be trying to get a hold on piracy on the Internet and stop it.

What this bill says is that those who are suspected of illegal downloading will be sent letters by their Internet Service Providers (ISPs) notifying them to cease their actions. After a year, the regulators tracking this activity can decide if this letter impacted the file-sharing of the user or not. If it did, they can decide to take no further action. However, if it didn't, they can take technical measures that could lead to possible suspension of their use of the Internet. There are other aspects to the bill that include blocking all copyright-infringing Web sites, which makes me curious about what they'd do with YouTube.

While the bill is not fully approved just yet, it seems that people of the music industry in the UK think the bill is a good idea, and want to work with ISPs.

Geoff Taylor, a music industry executive says the bill " will not eliminate all piracy, but will go a long way towards reducing illegal freeloading and will help to build a more sustainable ecosystem for content on the Internet." He also expressed his understanding of what some music fan's may think, but assures them that the industry will continue to offer legal services on the Internet to fans that also get artists money.

It's interesting to consider how this might impact the industry for better and worse. I'm also wondering how the ISPs feel, now that they may have to issue countless amounts of letters to the many people who download illegally.

--Ashley Snider

Source: http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/content_display/industry/e3i3ddc3639f0395ca8dbc41a43806e6602

SoundExchange Payments Increase by 25%

2010-04-11T09:57:00.000-07:00

SoundExchange, the performance rights organization that collects and distributes royalties from satellite and online radio play, mailed nearly $52 million to artists and copyright holders in the first three months of this year. That’s about a 25% increase over any other previous quarter.

John L. Simson, the executive director of SoundExchange, said that the higher payout resulted from “more and bigger radio stations simulcasting online, the growth in streaming services like Pandora and a recent increase in satellite radio subscriptions aided by rising car sales.” He went on to add that SoundExchange has registered thousands of artists who had not been in the system and they have also done a better job of figuring out which songs are getting played.

With this increase of people listening to both online and satellite radio and the resulting jump in royalty payments, it seems like it’s more important than ever for artists to get their music on online radio stations and streaming services like Pandora as well as on satellite radio.

Source: http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/04/08/royalties-to-musicians-were-up-in-the-first-quarter-on-satellite-and-online-radio/

~Emilia Segatti

DRM (IT’S ALIVE!)

2010-04-10T19:46:00.000-07:00

D.R.M., three letters that caused controversy within the music industry, and made many record labels become public enemy number one in the eyes of consumers who were legally buying music online. What DRM (Digital Rights Management) was; was a access control software that enabled copyright holders to put restrictions on how many times a user could copy, transfer, and reproduce an MP3 file on another device. Consumers weren’t happy with these restrictions, and once DRM began to give consumer's computers viruses (due to the faulty technology) they were fed up with record labels BS, and wanted this technology gone.

In the end, labels eventually got rid of DRM, but according to a recent article in TechCrunch record labels have found a new way to watermark MP3’s without people noticing. The new “Dirty MP3’s” now collect information about the buyer and the music transactions they’ve made. According to an anonymous source TechCrunch spoke with, this is how it works:

“During the buying process a username and transaction ID are known by the online retailers. Before making the song available for download their software embeds into the file either an account name or a transaction number or both. Once downloaded, the file has squirreled away this personal information in a manner where you can’t easily see it, but if someone knows where to look they can. This information doesn’t affect the audio fidelity, but it does permanently attach to the file data which can be used to trace back to the original purchaser which could be used at a later date.”

If that doesn’t rile you up then here’s the real kicker. According to the anonymous source Apple and Wal-Mart are alleged to be using this watermark on their MP3’s.

What does this mean for all of us? Well if Apple and other online retailers succeed in creating “The Cloud” then we might have another DRM situation on our hands. It’s alleged by the anonymous source that record labels will want this new watermark embedded on all the music streamed on the cloud. I hope this isn’t true, but if it is then DRM will be making it’s return in a major way. Yikes!

Submitted by: Jarvis R. Smith

Source
http://techcrunch.com/2010/04/06/how-dirty-mp3-files-are-a-back-door-into-cloud-drm/

Never Shout Never Promotes through television

2010-04-09T20:42:00.000-07:00

The band, Never Shout Never, who is also the headlining band on the AP tour is going to make their television debut on Last Call With Carson Daily and will play their two singles off of their album. This is an example of what we read about on how to promote the product to the public through television. Although we've had discussions in class about bands playing as the musical guests on shows like this one or saturday night live not being as successful in promotion as it has in the past, I still think that having the opportunity to be a musical guest on a television show is still a great way to promote an artist. I know that personally I have watched some of the late night shows who have had musical guests I've never heard of; like when I first heard The Airborne Toxic Event, I immediately went on itunes and downloaded their album. On the contrary, there have been bands that i really didn't like or pay attention to, I think it's a hit or miss risk to take. Either way I think that music guests are going to pull at least a few hundred more fans by playing on television shows that apply to their target markets.

-Abby Goldstein

Trick Out Facebook Band Pages for $1.99 a Month

2010-04-07T18:29:00.000-07:00

Using the free and basic app called BandPage, Facebook previously only allowed for a band to have pretty limited options in setting up a profile page for themselves. Things have changed, however, with the creation of the upgrade to this app called BandPage Plus. With the new upgrade, fans are now actually able to listen to a band’s music via a Soundcloud player while looking at photos and viewing the rest of a profile that includes a tour schedule, photos, biography, contact information, Facebook wall, and Twitter Feed. Bands don't have to have any design experience because now for just $1.99 a month, they can create a custom BandPage with the help of a "click & customize" visual editor.

Here's a short video of how BandPage Plus works:

The first thing that sprang into my mind when I read this was.."oh there's another nail in MySpace's coffin." Now people won't even have to be directed to a band's MySpace page in order to hear their music! They can find out the basic information that they need to know right on the band's Facebook page AND listen to their music at the same time. I know that personally I've been invited to check out dozen of bands' fan pages on Facebook, and while I may look at it for a minute, most of the time my short attention span leads me to click out of the page rather quickly. I'm usually too lazy to try to find a link to the band's music, and I'm sure there a lot of people out there that are the same way. The Soundcloud player changes everything because now I can immediately check out the music as soon as I click onto the fan page, which would definitely help to spark my interest in a band.

For newer and lesser known bands, BandPage Plus seems kind of revolutionary.

Source:

http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/04/trick-out-facebook-band-pages-for-199-a-month.html

- Samantha Bruno

Is EMI going down?

2010-04-07T09:23:00.000-07:00

EMI - OK Go + Lawsuit /w Gorilaz + Lawsuit with lots of other people = the least of EMI's problems.

Ok, that probably didn't actually make sense, but my point was EMI is not looking so good. News of EMI's financial woes have long been public, but some information (not sure how accurate) as to why they are so so screwed is starting to surface. Here's a few quotes from hypebot.com about EMI problems.

Exactly what's going on at EMI varies by one's sources, but clearly the company is in a messy struggle for its survival. As of last Wednesday, EMI has just 90 days to raise $183 million to make an overdue loan payment and present a viable plan fir its future to creditor Citi.

Now that talks to license EMI's catalog with Universal have broken off, Sony issaid to be back at the table. Formal negotiations between Sony's finance director Kevin Kelleher and EMI's executive chairman Charles Allen could begin in May, if advisers can agree on an outline agreement over the next few weeks

:::

The contracts of some of EMI's best selling acts could be the reason that the label group has yet to make a catalog licensing deal that would provide much needed cash. The Beatles, Pink Floyd, Coldplay and Norah Jones were named by Showbix411 as having contracts which prevent EMI from licensing their recording to another label.

If true, EMI's extensive catalog would be significantly devalued. "Sources say that when the UMG folks realized this, they pulled out at the last minute," according to the blog. "EMI then went to Sony, almost made a deal there until that gang asked the essential questions." Other media sources suggest that Sony may still be willing to continue negotiations.

- Ian Gollahon

“IF UNPAID INTERNSHIPS ARE ILLEGAL, HOW CAN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY EXIST?...”

2010-04-07T06:16:00.000-07:00

Aggregated story at: http://www.thedailyswarm.com/headlines/if-unpaid-internships-are-illegal-how-many-billions-does-music-industry-owe-back-pay/

The Daily Swarm collects a few articles on the Labor Department cracking down on “unpaid labor.” New York Times, New York Magazine, and The Daily Princeton all have articles on this recent phenomenon.

Thinking broadly, they ask a valid question – “What would happen to the music industry if it had no inters.” Many think it would fall apart. But, for me, the real question this article asks is a more personal one – “Why am I buying a $20,000+ degree with ‘Music Business’ in the title?”

-Ian Gollahon

Has Bieber Fever become the Plague?

2010-04-06T21:29:00.000-07:00

Twitter is taking over the world, I mean, even for this class we are required to check it regularly. I know that I myself, use twitter for posting frivolous things, most of the time complaining about being tired or some other meaningless issue. But when did twitter become a reason for arrest? Scott "Scooter" Braun, the manager of Justin Bieber was arrested a few weeks ago for, strangely enough, NOT TWEETING?!

The arrest was based off of a November mall appearance on Long Island. Apparently, the crowd of young girls got a little too rowdy for police to handle and Braun was asked to tweet to calm them down and that the event was being cancelled. Bieber, due to safety issues never even stepped foot out of the car. Prosecutors are now arguing that Braun took too long to tweet and he is now being charged with reckless endangerment and criminal nuisance.

Braun is pleading not guilty, but if convicted could face up to a year of jail time.

Personally, I think the entire thing is ridiculous. Charging someone with reckless endangerment for not tweeting? What is next?

Sources: http://www.cnn.com/2010/SHOWBIZ/Music/04/01/justin.bieber.fever/
http://wcbstv.com/local/justin.bieber.manager.2.1586150.html

-Samantha Corrie Schulman

Lollapalooza Announces Lineup, Wheel of Fourtune Style

2010-04-06T21:04:00.000-07:00

Lollapalooza announced its lineup today, with headliners including Soundgarden and Lady Gaga. While the official roster is undoubtedly exciting for fans of the festival, last week's teaser bill was just as fun. As fans and blogs were making their prediction as to who would play this summer's festival, Lolla organizers released the image above: a Wheel of Fortune style list with only the O's filled in. This piqued interest of the individuals who had been guessing, either confirming or confusing their predictions, as well as those people waiting for an official announcement. It's an obvious gimmick, but still a good way for the festival to build on the internet buzz that Lollapalloza had already gained.

--Katherine Wood

Fan Funding

2010-04-06T13:59:00.000-07:00

While all artists rely on their fans to buy their music and merchandise, and to come see them in concert, some rely on fans to provide the opportunity to make their music. Fan funding is when fans of a particular artist donate money to that artist in order for them to pay for recording and such necessities to release their next big thing. Although its success has been rocky, UK rockers, Gang of Four are using Pledge Music to fund the release of a new album.

What's the incentive to pledge money? Not only do you get to hear another album from one of your favorite bands, but if you pledge, you are eligible for signed albums, broken guitars, and a custom mix. If you are a fan of Gang of Four, you better not wait, because they only have 56 days left to raise 96% of their funds!

Could this be a way of the future? Instead of fans paying for the music that has already been made, they will pay for the making of music they want to hear. This could be a way to make money when fans are downloading for free, rather make them pay for the music to be created for them to download.

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/04/gang-of-four-to-fan-fund-album-via-pledge-music.html

by Rebecca Weyhrauch

$10 All-You-Can-Listen

2010-04-06T13:38:00.000-07:00

Rhapsody, an all-you-can-listen music subscription site, has cut it's prices from $14.99 to $9.99. This fee allows users to listen to Rhapsody on their computer as well as one other device, such as an iPhone or MP3 player. This price cut has come at the same time that Rhapsody became independent from RealNetworks, a Seattle-based technology company.

The reason behind Rhapsody's lowered price is that they have been listening to their customers. "They wanted it to be more affordable. We’ve made it more affordable. They wanted the service on their mobile device. We added Android. BlackBerry is next. We’re offering our customers the ability to listen to all the music they want, wherever they want, whenever they want." said Jon Irwin, president of Rhapsody.

In order to succeed and compete with competitors, it is important to listed to your target market and what they want, then give it to them.

Sources: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2010/04/rhapsody-mobile-music-android-iphone-premier-price-cut.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+PopHiss+%28Pop+%26+Hiss+Music+

www.hypebot.com

by Rebecca Weyhrauch

More Interactive Music With The iPad

2010-04-05T14:39:00.000-07:00

Saturday marked the release of the iPad. We've all heard of it by now--it's that awkward gadget that functions like a computer, but is way smaller. It looks like an over-sized iPhone. There is, however, an advantage of the huge touch screen-- some people thing it will benefit the music industry. While I'm unsure of the future success of the iPad, I do agree that music has the ability to be way more interactive with this new gadget. How? Apps are already being created to work nicely with the iPad's large screen. For example, the free Rj Voyager iPad app allows the user to to modify an artist's music like a DJ or a sound engineer. Users will find that apps can be way more detailed because of the extra space on the iPad screen. In the Rj Voyager app, the bigger screen means more knobs and different features for the user to modify the song.
According to one of the creators, Michael Breidenbruecker, “the Rj Voyager is not only playing back samples. A scene can consist of synthesizers, drum computers, effects and filters, sample playback, and — most important for us — Reality Modules [grabbed through the microphone]. Attributes that can be tweaked can be everything from cutoff frequencies to synth patterns to the high hat [volume] level to the sensitivity of a reality module … it can literally be anything, depending on the artist who created the scene.”
Wow...that sounds like one cool app. I think there will be many more awesome iPad apps released, but the problem will be getting consumers to actually buy the iPad. I don't personally see the point in the average person buying one when chances are they already have an iPhone, iPod, and macbook or iMac. I'm not quite sure who the iPad is marketed towards, probably computer people as well as business people, and they may be interested in a different kind of app. Bottom line, it seems like the apps will be really cool for the iPad, but the average person who would use them probably isn't going to be buying the iPad in the first place. Only time will tell though!

Source: http://www.wired.com/epicenter/2010/04/ipad-interactive-music/

-Ashley Stokvis

Searches of "record store" may mean big success on record store day

2010-04-05T13:43:00.000-07:00

Google Analytics has released some statistics showing which search terms related to music are on the decline or increasing. It's pretty interesting.

Record store day is approaching on April 17th, and searches of the words "record store" have increased to show that this year's Record Store Day just might be huge. In the article, there is a chart that shows that searches of the phrase "record store" have been decreasing since 2004. However, in 2008, there is a little spike, which just might be where Record Store Day came around, and in 2009, the spike shoots up double what it was before. This shows that since Record Store Day began in 2008, the popularity of it is growing, and looking at the spike in 2009, I can only imagine how much bigger this year's might be.

Another interesting statistic was searches for the words "live music" and "concert." Although they pretty much mean the same thing, "live music" has shown a decline over the past five years, while "concert" has remained very consistent. This might just mean that more people think to write concert in their search, or maybe it means that people are looking for more specific concerts as opposed to, say, bars around the neighborhood that play live music.

Overall, it seems like record store day may be an even bigger hit this year if these search stats don't lie.

-- Ashley Snider

Source: http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/content_display/industry/e3i309cdb262cc7125e088a8a96ef025ac3

How Did Justin Bieber Get So Popular?

2010-04-04T17:45:00.000-07:00

I think we’ve all noticed that Bieber fever has taken over the minds of many teens and tweens. With the release of his new album, “My World 2.0,” it’s estimated that Bieber will have grossed around $15 million in total recorded music sales in the United States without the help of a Disney show. So how exactly did he get this successful this quickly?

The answer seems to be in how often Bieber releases content. Since April 2009, three official videos have been released, two albums, and three singles – that’s a total of 18 tracks within nine months. I think that this is something all artists can learn from.

Music listeners (and people in general) have ever-decreasing attention spans and to be successful, an artist needs to keep a constant presence in the minds of their consumers. These days it seems like the focus is more on singles like it was in the sixties when artists were active all the time. So if there’s one thing that Justin Bieber can teach us, it’s that success comes in large part by constantly giving your fans new content.

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/03/why-just-bieber-is-such-a-big-hit.html

~Emilia Segatti

Don’t Sleep on Geolocation

2010-04-03T21:19:00.000-07:00

A few posts ago I mentioned how SPIN magazine teamed up with Foursquare to host a musical scavenger hunt for SXSW . A recent post on Hypebot analyzed the use of Foursquare and other geolocation services during SXSW. The point they were making was how useful these geolocation services are in terms of attracting crowds to events. Also, for using it has as a tool to market your business or band to a larger audience.

I thought this was interesting because these services play an important role in tracking where your audience comes from. Also, these services offer new ways for bands to interact with their fans, and gives them an opportunity to host special contest using geolocation to get people involved with an event. Overall, these networks are still new to the social media market, but with more bands and businesses finding creative ways to use them. I’m sure we’ll see more innovative marketing strategies to come into play.

Submitted by: Jarvis R. Smith

Source
http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/04/geolocation-foursquare-gowalla-music-you.html

Velocity

2010-04-03T21:05:00.000-07:00

CD’s don’t sell anymore and record labels are getting tired of the same old song. Therefore, they’re trying new ways to lure customers back into the record stores. According to an article that I read on ColoradoDaily, Universal Music Group is looking to set a new standard price for selling new releases. This pricing strategy is called “Velocity”, and this model suggests that record stores should reduce their profit margins for top selling artists CD's from 25 percent to 35 percent, which will make new CD’s cost less than $10 dollars. Many record store owners are worried about this pricing strategy because they’re afraid it won’t allow them to bring in enough revenue to stay in business. At the same time they fear that by not adapting to this pricing system they will be alienating customers from buying CD’s from their shops.

I think this method will only increase sales by a small amount, but it won’t stop the steady decline. I still don’t believe that the compact disk can be saved, but I can’t blame UMG for trying new ways to make buying CD’s appealing. It will be interesting to see how well this model does within the months to come, but I don’t believe there will a significant change. As one commenter made within this article: “There's nothing special about a CD anymore”.

Submitted by: Jarvis R. Smith

Source
http://www.coloradodaily.com/cu-boulder/ci_14744033#axzz0j6SNXFJe

The Summer Obsession Free EP

2010-04-01T21:20:00.000-07:00

After their 3 year hiatus, The Summer Obsession is finally releasing their new album entitled Believe Nothing, Explore Everything. To promote this album they are allowing fans to download their ep for FREE at http://www.thesummerobsession.com/. As a personal fan I know that getting their free ep will make me want to buy their whole album. Also, their link on www.absolutepunk.net takes you straight to their main website where you can download the ep and can download their full cd when it's finally released. Much like the article we read about "free" being successful, I think The Summer Obsession is using their free ep to their advantage to maintain their fan base that they had 3 years ago as well as grab the attention of new fans.

-Abby Goldstein

Lou Reed's New iPhone App

2010-03-31T19:02:00.000-07:00

In a featured commercial on YouTube, Lou Reed's new iPhone App promises to make whatever you need to do "as fast and easy as possible." I don't know about making everything you need to do as fast and easy as possible, but this iPhone app will at least make it easier to read the names in your contact list..for the price of $1.99.

Rocker Lou Reed's iPhone app entitled "Lou Zoom" essentially just supersizes the names in your contact list. The commercial embedded in this article starts off by showing Lou complaining that he always has problems with his iPhone. It quickly shifts gears when Lou chucks his iPhone on the ground and claims that now with his Lou Zoom, "life is perfect." Each name in your contact list will expand to the full width of the screen making the names really easy to select.

I suppose this is being marketed to older fans of Lou who don't have great eyesight.

To me, this app is equal parts dumb and equal parts smart. $1.99 seems a little steep for something that merely expands the names in your contacts list, but perhaps there is a market for it. It's obviously not going to sell to kids and young adults because seriously, I know I would never drop 2 dollars on a "zooming" app.

However, I'm sure there are older, diehard Lou fans out there who are more willing to spend the 2 bucks on this kind of pointless app than I am. So all in all, maybe it will help Lou make more money or maybe it won't, but I guess there's no harm in having it out there.

You can check out the sort of-weird commercial for Lou Zoom here:

Source:

http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/03/lou-reeds-new-app-for-aging-eyeballs.html#comments

- Samantha Bruno

Important Tips for Your Artist Website

2010-03-30T21:17:00.000-07:00

Hard to navigate websites are the worst. It's as simple as that. Whether you're surfing the net for movie times, reading the news or checking up on your favorite artist difficulty finding what you're looking for is the easiest way to guarantee you won't be back to that site any time soon. For me, websites that don't have a logical layout rank high on my pet peeve list. So obviously I was thrilled to see an Chris Vinson, from Bandzoogle, had written an article on hypebot.com today called "6 Rules to Make a Band Website That Rocks."

Vinson's 6 rules are #1: No flash!, #2: Make a strong front page, #3: Keep it simple, #4: Keep it updated, #5: Keep it personal and #6: Create a community. While these tips seem obvious they're so often overlooked by bands (or their management) who think that their design is so creative that people will love it. Creative or not, if I can't find information about when your next show is because of your fancy formatting, I probably won't be coming.

To any artist working on a website, read this: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/03/6-rules-to-make-a-band-website-that-rocks.html#more

--Katherine Wood

New Profits from Lyrics

2010-03-30T12:00:00.000-07:00

Sony/ATV music publishing is partnering with Zazzle's ARTSPROJEKT to make t-shirts and other merchandise inspired by song titles and lyrics. Zazzle allows artists and fans to create and customize original works. They already have partnerships with Disney, Hallmark, and Star Wars to name a few. Since Zazzle has a custom manufacturing process and a marketplace to monetize content, there is little up front cost or risk. If this works, it is a great way to make money off of old songs.

Sources: www.hypebot.com, http://www.artsprojekt.com/newest_brands

by Rebecca Weyhrauch

More News in MGMT's 'Congratulations'

2010-03-29T18:45:00.000-07:00

I previously wrote about MGMT's new creative way of packaging their sophomore album "Congratulations" by way of scratch-off album artwork, but now there is another interesting twist with the release of this album. "Congratulations" was set for an April 13th release date in the US, but like many albums these days, it was recently leaked on the internet. In order to go with the flow, MGMT wanted to offer a free download of the album to their fans. Columbia, however, was against that and thought it a better idea to stream the album from the official MGMT website.
This is a good idea, because it will get more fans to the website. With more visits to the site there will probably be more purchases from their online merch store as well as other interactive actions on their site. It really works to their favor now to have a limited edition release of the scratch-off albums, because since fans can already listen to the album online for free, this will be incentive for major fans to go out and actually buy the album. All around, I don't think the leak was a terrible issue for the band, because bringing more traffic to the site now with the free streaming will still benefit the band.

Listen to the album at: www.whoismgmt.com

-Ashley Stokvis

Prince Charges Fans

2010-03-29T17:09:00.000-07:00

Apparently, Prince has charged his fans for membership to his fan club after the have cancelled their subscription. This all came a year after the fan club opened, and the members had sent in requests that their accounts be cancelled. These fans have been charged $77, not a small price.

The article I saw was a blog post from a fan. The fan said that when he sent in his request to cancel his account, he never received at reply. Upon being charged, he visited the fan club's Web site, only to find that the site was down.

The fan who wrote this post was blaming Prince wholly for this situation. In reality, it was the sales team behind the fan club's fault. This brought up the idea that the people surrounding an artist directly reflect the image of the artist. Prince, although he may not have been aware of this problem, is ultimately being blamed for it by the angry fans such as this blog poster.

Prince has yet to comment, and it will be interesting to see if he does. Having a massive fan base, I wonder if he sees this potential loss of some fans as an issue.

--Ashley Snider

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/03/prince-charges-fans-for-closed-fan-club.html#more

Ben Folds uses Chatroulette for live inspiration

2010-03-28T21:21:00.000-07:00

In case you haven’t seen this Chatroulette video of Ben Folds live, now you have. If you haven’t heard of Chatroulette yet, then kill two birds with one stone and watch the video. WARNING -- Video drops the F bomb.

Ben Folds connects with random people around world with webcams. As you can imagine, a good half of the people he runs into are lonely men looking for human interaction (though there is no nudity in this video).

As bands around the world try to break ground via texted song requests or streaming live feeds of their concert, Ben Folds pulls a 180 and uses the consumer for song material -- on the spot.

With a ton a views, he is getting publicity at the same time. As the digital marketplace continues to gain market share, everybody is looking to be the next online phenomena (even seasoned pros like Ben Folds).

- Ian Gollahon

Immitter: Pandora Wannabe

2010-03-28T10:40:00.000-07:00

Immitter debuted alongside 65 other starups at this year’s VentureBeat Spring DEMO event touting their “Pandora-style discovery of great new indie and d.i.y. music.” The founders of Immitter think that people enjoy discovering new music, but most don’t have the time to wade through millions of MySpace profiles and mp3 blogs.

Basically, Immitter works by having artists upload their original content that will be played according to specific parameters, much like Pandora. The founders think that artists will be willing to pay for this service because it connects them with a target audience. The big question is whether artists will be willing to pay to have their music on Immitter and that will largely depend on how many active listeners the site can deliver.

I highly doubt that there will be many artists who are willing to pay to be played on Immitter. To get played on Pandora, the only thing the artist has to do is have their music for sale on Amazon. I don’t think that Immitter has differentiated itself enough from Pandora or Jango to make it seem like a worthwhile investment for indie artists.

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/03/immitter-music-discovery-pandora-style.html

~Emilia Segatti

Michael Jackson's Estate Signs Biggest Recording Deal In History

2010-03-22T17:36:00.000-07:00

Yep, that's right. Michael Jackson has a brand new $200 million contract with Sony Music Entertainment for 10 projects over 7 years. How is this possible? Jackson actually has loads of unreleased recordings and we will likely hear some of them as soon as November. The deal also includes various DVDs, and even a re-release of "Off the Wall". What will make the re-release so special? Previously recorded tracks that were never released. Michael Jackson has already sold at least 31 million albu$s since his death not even a year ago, so this sounds like a pretty great idea to me. Rob Stringer, the chairman of the label group states, "we're dedicated to protecting this icon's legacy and we're thrilled that we can continue to bring his music to the world for the foreseeable future."

I wouldn't doubt it! If "certain conditions are met," the contract could be worth up to $250 million. That's quite an accomplishment for a deceased artist. With all of the hype still around Michael Jackson and his death, I think this is a great idea. These days if you slap MJ's name on anything, it will sell. Die-hard fans will appreciate the new material and the label banking on it will too.

-Ashley Stokvis

Pandora is Huge Source of Internet Royalty Income

2010-03-22T13:35:00.000-07:00

Pandora, the Internet streaming radio system we are all familiar with, has been able to survive legally by paying a royalty rate to be distributed to artists. The numbers that have been released show just how much they are contributing to the music industry.

In 2009, Pandora's revenue topped off at $50 million. SoundExchange, the group that collects internet radio royalties, took a portion of that to cover their fees and this topped at $28 million. SoundExchange has reported that Pandora's royalty payments account for 45% of their total royalties from non-interactive streaming online radio. Even though the company is still only 1% of the the overall radio marketplace, they still provide a substantial source of income for the music industry. And, unlike broadcast radio, internet radio royalties also go to the artists themselves.

This shows that online radio is a valid source of income for the music industry, especially something that gains as much popularity as Pandora. I think Pandora will only continue to grow, and the money getting paid to SoundExchange will increase. Broadcast radio may not be as popular as it used to be, but online radio seems to be a good source of income that can hopefully be capitalized on and grow to keep the music industry afloat.

--Ashley Snider

Source: http://paidcontent.org/article/419-pandora-these-numbers-may-surprise-you/

Text Initiated Email List Sign Up

2010-03-21T19:36:00.000-07:00

One of the most difficult and crucial things for an artist to accomplish is expanding their email list. There are a lot of challenges associated with trolling for email addresses with a clipboard and pen. An artist doesn’t want to seem completely desperate by going around and begging people to sign up, but it can also be tricky to let fans at the show know where they can sign up. Finally, if some fans do manage to make it back to your merch table and sign up, there can be problems with illegible handwriting.

But now there’s a new idea for email list sign up that works via text message. Bands could, for example, create flyers announcing that each person who texts their email address to the phone number will be entered to win a meet ‘n greet, merch bundle, free tickets, etc.

I think this is an idea that could be invaluable to up-and-coming bands because it allows them to grow their fan base with minimal effort.

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/03/essential-tool-text-initiated-email-list-sign-up.html#more

~Emilia Segatti

YouTube Wants Your Music!

2010-03-20T19:25:00.000-07:00

YouTube has now decided to set its aim on the independent musicians by offering them a piece of the ad revenue with a new program called “Musicians Wanted". The goal is to lure musicians into using YouTube’s new program and compete with music rival MySpace Music. Yes, even though the site is not as popular as it uses to be, its music service continues to reach new heights with a monthly total of 30 million unique page visitors. YouTube is trying to get that same momentum going for their site with “Musicians Wanted”, and become an entertainment network on the same level as MySpace Music.

I think “Musicians Wanted” is great because YouTube is acknowledging the people who helped make their platform popular (artists), and rewarding them for their original content. Also, this is a good way for YouTube to continue to grow because it’s providing musicians with more opportunities to gain exposure for their work, which in result will lure more musicians into using YouTube than ever before. Overall, I see this new program being a major move for independent artists because they have another outlet to distribute their music through without being supported by a label (major or indie).

Submitted by: Jarvis R. Smith

Source
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-ct-youtube17-2010mar17,0,4484056.story

ReverbNation Expands Music Distribution Service

2010-03-19T20:47:00.000-07:00

ReverbNation launched an expanded digital music distribution platform this morning. In addition to iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody, eMusic, and Napster, they've added 29 more including Spotify, Last.fm, MySpace Music, Zune, Wal-Mart, Lala, iLike, MOG, and Pandora and bundled them into two packages: Essentials and the Pro. Each package is priced as a flat annual fee of $34.95 to $59.95 per year. The best part about this expansion is that artist continue to keep 100% of the royalties from sales and, where applicable, streams of their music. The deal is still non exclusive and they will continue to take no ownership rights over the artists' music. All of the existing distribution customers who want it receive a free upgrade to the "Essentials" package as well. GREAT IDEA!!!! This expansion benefits both the artist and the consumer. The artist will receive a wider range of distribution, 100% royalties (with sales automatically reported to SoundScan), and a larger and more diverse fan base, whereas the consumer will have access to wider range of purchasing/music for a wonderful deal!

http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/03/reverbnation-expands-music-distribution-service-.html#more

-Angelique Moore-

2010-03-18T21:00:00.000-07:00

Enter Shikari, from the U.K. are trying to expand their U.S. street teams by offering free tickets to their upcoming tour with A Day to Remember. This is great because who doesn't love free things for a few minutes of your time promoting a cool band? This will get fans excited not 0nly about the fact that Enter Shikari are doing a U.S. tour, but they also have the opportunity to get tickets to see a tour with a great line-up! You can't lose in a situation where tickets are being given away for free by working hard as a street teamer.

-Abby Goldstein

Digital Growth Offsets CD Decline for the First Time in the UK

2010-03-16T14:51:00.000-07:00

For the first time in the UK, growth in digital music sales in 2009 offset the decline in CD sales. As platforms such as Spotify, Amazon, iTunes, and MySpace Music expanded, digital revenue grew 73% (£12.8m to £30.4m) in 2009. This is in comparison to to an £8.7m drop in physical revenues throughout the year.

Robert Ashcroft, CEO of PRS For Music (UK collection society), explains, "Last year was the first in which the growth in revenues from the legal digital market compensated for the decline in revenues from traditional CDs and DVDs, although we remain cautious as to whether this represents a true turning point." He elaborates, "The next decade does, however, promise further growth in earnings from the legal digital market as well as the use of British music overseas."

This sounds like great news for digital music, and hopefully these figures will soon transfer to the U.S. as well. The only thing is..are these digital sales translating to money for the artist or is most of it going to the platforms like Spotify? I'm not sure, but either way if this data continues to remain true and sales continue to grow throughout 2010, this could be a cause for celebration for artists and their record labels.

- Samantha Bruno

Source:

http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/03/digital-growth-offsets-cd-decline-first-time-in-uk.html

Snowtape

2010-03-16T13:40:00.000-07:00

I remember when I was younger and would record my favorite music off the radio onto a tape, but it has been at least a decade since I have done that. Now radio recording could be making a comeback through a Mac application called Snowtape. Snowtape allows you to record radio stations digitally and is so much better than the tapes we used to record onto because now you can edit your recordings. Each track recorded is automatically cut separately and saved to your database. People are also able to program when to record by using iCal, so no one has to miss their favorite broadcastings. It's almost like TVO for radio! Also through Snowtape, users are able to apply album artwork, making the mixes look like everything else in your iTunes library. If that isn't enough to get you interested, Snowtape also has a compatible iPhone app.

Sources: www.snowtape.com

http://www.downloadsquad.com/2010/03/15/snowtape-best-internet-radio-app-ever/

By: Rebecca Weyhrauch

New Kings Of Leon App For iPhone

2010-03-15T13:08:00.000-07:00

Although Kings of Leon are currently taking a bit of a break, their fans are being treated with a new iPhone app. Tapulous, who made the "Tap Tap Revenge" app, is pairing up with KoL to create an app that will feature their hit songs including "Use Somebody" and "Notion". Not only will fans be able to play the Guitar Hero-style game on their iPhone or iPod touch, but they can enable their bluetooth for a battle mode to play against other fans. In addition to the game, the app offers an exclusive chatroom for fans. The app will be sold for $4.99.

I think this is a great idea. If one of my favorite bands released an app like this that featured a sizable amount of their music on it, I would definitely buy it. I do think that $4.99 is a little expensive for an app, but again, big fans of the band would definitely be willing to pay the price. One thing I like in particular about this app is that it's interactive. The apps that feature pictures and videos are getting really old and dry, because those are things that are very easy to find on the internet for free. A game like this, however, is a great idea for an app.

Here's an ad for the app:

-Ashley Stokvis

Source: http://www.billboard.com/news/kings-of-leon-take-revenge-on-iphone-gamers-1004074470.story#/news/kings-of-leon-take-revenge-on-iphone-gamers-1004074470.story

Wireless Music System

2010-03-15T10:54:00.000-07:00

A company called Sonos has developed a wireless music system. This system requires little installation, and can allow users to play music throughout their home. There are houses that have the technology to play iPods throughout the house already, but what makes the product Sonos has developed interesting is that it allows you to not only play music from your collection through it, but it also lets you play music from the internet through the house.

How can it do that? Well, the way this product is operated is through an iPhone app. Yes, the entire system is all controlled by the means of an app. That’s pretty cool, especially considering the picture I get in my head of streaming Pandora on your iPhone and being able to hear it coming through speakers throughout your house. While I currently live in an apartment where I can hear my Pandora music throughout it from my laptop since it’s small, I can see the appeal it might hold for someone with maybe an upstairs and a basement. However, they also sell a single system that is good for one room if you want a better sound on your Internet streamed music.

It would appear this product is being marketed to people with a little bit more money than me, though, since that one room bundle is going to be sold for $399.00 and asking for two rooms bumps it all the way up to $999.00. But other than that, I think it is a pretty cool system simply for the fact that it is controlled by an app. Maybe with a little competition, this Sonos product will come down in price in the future.

-- Ashley Snider

Source: http://paidcontent.org/article/419-sonos-gets-25-million-for-wireless-music-system/

American Association Of Independent Music boycotts Limewire party

2010-03-14T14:58:00.000-07:00

Article excerpt:

Indies Boycott Limewire Party At Digital Music East

American Association Of Independent Music (A2IM) President Rich Bengloff is encouraging his members attending this week’s Digital Music Forum East to boycott at Limewire sponsored reception on Thursday evening.
“…Services like LimeWire, Myxer and many more that, by the nature of their services, make it too easy for consumers to violate copyright and/or compensate independents in a sub-standard fashion or not at all,” Bengloff wrote in an open letter to his members and shared with Hypebot. “LimeStore uses the LimeWire illegal hits to drive traffic to their legal site,” he added.
From:

http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/02/indies-boycott-limewire-party-at-digital-music-east.html#more

My usual sarcastic rant:

What’s wrong A2IM, too indie for Limewire (or a reasonable acronym for that matter)? Last time I checked, second-generation P2P companies like Limewire and Soulseek pretty much birthed indie rock as it is today. Besides that, who uses Limewire anymore? These guys are so out of touch- not only are they acknowledging Limewire as something worth boycotting, they are giving it free press.

Their argument, and I quote, “Services like LimeWire, Myxer and many more that, by the nature of their services, make it too easy for consumers to violate copyright and/or compensate independents in a sub-standard fashion or not at all”

DUH

It’s freaking Limewire. Not only is it entirely out of date, it was never meant to pay royalties to anyone. It’s freaking P2P. Was this guy born yesterday? He’s the “President” of something called “American Association Of Independent Music”. WTF? How can this guy claim to represent Independent Music? Apparently he doesn’t even know what Limewire is.

- Ian Gollahon

2010-03-14T14:54:00.000-07:00

Like Hansel from Zoolander, fighting the iTunes man is “… so hot right now”.

While iTunes faces opposition with Amazon, a new seed of opposition has been sown from within: Pink Floyd is suing EMI over unlawful selling of singles on iTunes instead of selling the album as a whole. (Of course, that would never be a problem on Amazon.)

Apparently, Pink Floyd’s contract with EMI specifically prohibits EMI from “unbundling” the album and selling it in pieces. Although, the time of the contract was 1998 and most certainly not referring specifically to iTunes, it may still prove valid.

Considering an album is arguably an artistic statement and taking a song out of that album might be taking that song out of context, it’s a fairly consistent argument. Also, the legal precedent seems to side with Pink Floyd. For example, a synchronization license is required to put a song in the context of a moving picture. In this synch license, it is imperative that the rights holder approves the context that the song will be put in. In fact, sync licenses usually include a vivid description of the scene or commercial being used and a background of that context so as to avoid any contextual doubt.

It’s a fairly important concept when you consider a porno could be phrased as “a love scene”.

Similarly, a prog-rock album might have six one-minute songs and two twelve-minute songs. Making twenty-four minutes of the album two dollars and the other six minutes of the album six dollars.

So really, it is an issue.

In London (where the lawsuit is taking place), there is a set of Copyright Laws known as “Moral Rights”. Moral Rights put artists’ (be they copyright holder or not) on a pedestal much higher than any American court ever would. I’m no lawyer, but it looks like Pink Floyd might have a pretty serious case against EMI.

A version of the story exists at:
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17852_3-10466342-71.html

-Ian Gollahon

Apple vs. Amazon

2010-03-14T11:30:00.000-07:00

Apparently iTune’s 65-75% share of the download market is not enough. Apple has been aggressively discouraging record labels from participating in Amazon MP3’s Daily Deal and they have backed up those warnings by withdrawing marketing support for releases featured as Daily Deals.

For those not familiar with the Daily Deal, it’s basically a free promotion subsidized by Amazon. Artists and labels are asked to give a one day exclusive before the street date if they are participating in the program. During that 24 hour period, Amazon discounts the album to between $1.99 and $3.99 and the album is featured on its web pages and on the Daily Deal’s Twitter feed which is followed by 1.4 million people. Amazon does not charge labels for these promotions, but it does ask that them to promote the release through their websites, e-mail lists, and social networks. One major label group recently told its labels that its own studies had shown that “as much as 95% of all Daily Deal sales would never have happened without the discount.”

To combat Amazon’s Daily Deal, iTunes staffers used both “threats and actions to make it clear to almost every major and indie record label that participation in Amazon’s Daily Deal would cost them dearly at iTunes.” Since iTunes is threatening indie labels as well, it means that these smaller record labels will have to choose between having their content promoted on iTunes or receiving the boost in sales that can come from the Daily Deal. Neither Apple nor any record labels have commented on this battle, Apple’s power over the music industry is clear - the Daily Deals now feature only a fraction of what was offered a month ago and the albums that are featured are rarely new hit makers.

I’ve always thought Apple was a little evil and more than a little hypocritical but this clash with Amazon might finally show that to people other than PC and Zune lovers. Amazon MP3 was really iTunes first worthy competitor and their most effective tactic was the Daily Deal. Apple could have come up with their own exclusives to compete with the Daily Deal, but instead they threatened the labels. The Daily Deal is a tool that helps smaller labels sell more music and since Apple is trying to crush that, I really don’t see how they can keep claiming to be the saviors of music.

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/03/amazons-daily-deal-skirmish-offers-reminder-of-apples-power-over-the-major-labels.html

~Emilia Segatti

People Lie. Statics Don’t.

2010-03-13T21:08:00.000-08:00

According to the Guardian the demise of the music industry is evident in just about every aspect of music expect for one place………. statics. The author Mr. Keegan explains how sales from digital singles rocketed to a record breaking 152.7 million units in 2009. He also pointed out how many people who were downloading music illegally still spent money on concerts and ringtones ranging up to £3 ($4 dollars in U.S. currency) for the same song they downloaded for free. The main point he was making was that the statics of revenue are not as bad as the industry makes us believe.

Personally I think the industry is viewing the shift of music consumption wrong, and just because consumers aren’t buying music in the traditional way doesn’t mean they don’t want music. People are still going to concerts, buying merchandise, single songs, and ringtones as well as consuming music from other outlets (advertising and streaming services). In short, I think the industry needs to get over this argument, and start moving on to new ways to distribute music and monetize revenue. If anything is going to “kill” the industry it will be the lack of innovation from the record companies and artists.

Submitted by: Jarvis R. Smith

Source
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2010/mar/12/demise-music-industry-facts

Gaelic Storm's "Modem Marketing"

2010-03-11T13:08:00.001-08:00

Gaelic Storm may not be a household name, but they've managed to make the shift from playing pubs to selling out theaters without a label and almost no radio play. So the question is, how were they able to achieve so much success?

With the help of their management team, the band have consistently used "modem marketing" to stay connected with the many fans they've made through their fun live shows. It's really basic: within a single email, the band includes a free mp3 teasing their new album, tour dates, a contest for a trip sponsored by Southwest Airlines, an invite to an after-party where fans are asked to wear Gaelic Storm t-shirts for a group photo, a few trips that fans can go on and a link to buy merchandise. So essentially the fan is being gifted with a free mp3 at the top of the e-mail and then provided with a number of ways to stay engaged with the band through the e-mail and their active web site.

The concept is simple, but all of this done with repetition is a recipe for great success.

This is really what it's all about. It's so smart to offer something for free (the mp3 in this case) while simultaneously providing links to the fan to pay for merchandise and special trips. The fact that the band is so active with their fans offering them trips, after-party invites and a free song is what's going to make the fan more loyal. If the fan knows this is going to keep happening, they're going to stick with this band to see what other benefits they'll get from following them. And they're eventually going to be willing to spend money to get the extra stuff (the full album, merch, concert tickets).

Other unsigned, touring artists should take a page from Gaelic's book and follow their method.

- Samantha Bruno

Source:

http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/03/gaelic-storm-follows-recipe-for-email-success.html

What's Next For Pandora?

2010-03-09T14:51:00.000-08:00

With 48 million users listening 11.6 hours a month, Pandora can say they are a success. However, it wasn't always that way. It was in 2009 that Pandora had their first profitable quarter and before that, the music streaming site was struggling to exist. In 1999, creator Tim Westergren started the company through donations of angel investors. It began as Savage Beast Technologies and sold music recommendation services to larger companies such as Best Buy. By the end of 2001 he was broke and begging workers to stay for no pay. In 2004, Westergren made his lucky 348th pitch and landed a $9 million investment from venture capitalist Larry Marcus.

From there, the focus shifted from the business to the consumer, which was when Savage Beast Technologies became Pandora. In 2005, Pandora sold its first ad and things were looking up, until 2007 when a federal royalty board had increased the fee that online radio stations had to pay for individual songs from record labels. With a lobbyist in Washington D.C., Pandora managed a lower rate and were able to maintain their business.

In 2008, the iPhone app allowing streamed music from your phone set the company ahead with 35,000 new subscriptions a day. What's next you wonder? Well, it has been announced that Pandora has a deal with Ford and their voice-activated system, where drivers can simply say "Launch my Lady GaGa radio" and your Pandora playlist will begin. Samsung, Vizio, and Sonos are also integrating Pandora in their electronics.

"Think about what made AM/FM radio so accessible,” said Mr. Kennedy, Pandora’s chief. “You get into the car or buy a clock for your nightstand and push a button and radio comes out,” he said. “That’s what we’re hoping to match.”

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/08/technology/08pandora.html

By: Rebecca Weyhrauch

No One Knows: Facts & Figures About Legal Music Online

2010-03-09T11:16:00.000-08:00

As a student of this business we call music, I often find myself assuming everybody knows about new online services (your Pandoras and last.fms). Well, apparently I was super wrong. Consumer Focus, an advocacy group in the UK whose goal is to "be the voice of the consumer, and work to secure a fair deal on their behalf," has discovered some alarming statistics. First of all, only 60% of consumers are aware that online music services exist. As a marketer of any of the more than 20 services (Spotify, 7 Digital, et. al.) this automatically means they are leaving nearly half of the market untapped. Furthermore, and this is the part that upsets me, of the people who are aware of legal online music sources, 85% of them have only heard of Amazon.com &/or iTunes. That's like 85% of consumers not knowing they could shop anywhere other than WalMart and Target. Even more offensive, though, is governments and major record labels are going after consumers for being vicious music pirates without even making sure that these consumers know about the plethora of legal avenues that exist to satisfy their music needs. As Jill Johnstone of Consumer Focus said, "If file sharing is causing the damage the music industry claims, why aren't they putting more effort into promoting the legal alternatives? Before we go down the enforcement road, it is only fair to ask the music industry to do more to make people aware of the legal options."

--Katherine Wood

www.hypebot.com & http://tinyurl.com/yly8qxa

New Study Shows Big Money for ISPs with Bundled Music Services

2010-03-08T12:05:00.000-08:00

The industry analyst group Ovum was commissioned by the UK and Universal Music Group to conduct a study answering this question: Is there a commercial argument for ISP (internet service provider) music services?

What they found showed that ISPs using bundled digital music services could generate massive amounts of money - $155 million to as much as $306 million of direct revenue by 2013 to be exact. This is shown to be equal to 41% of the retail value of the digital music market in the UK.

Many of the UK's biggest ISPs, including Virgin Media, think that offering a digital music service makes a lot of sense for them, as it would potentially combat piracy and offer a legal way for users to get a lot of music. They also believe that having a digital music service included in their subscription packages would lower subscription costs because digital music would cover a lot of costs with the revenue they would bring in. It would also add a lot of value to different ISPs, creating some competition amongst them all.

What many people are arguing is that the music industry is not doing enough to make people aware of music bundling services. This survey of people in UK was pretty amazing to me: out of the variety of people surveyed, 40% could not name a digital music service, and out of those who could, 85% could only name iTunes or Amazon. This seems pretty crazy to me, but I guess it shows that if ISPs offer a music service with their subscription, more people may find they like the idea.

--Ashley Snider

Source: http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/content_display/industry/e3id2aec2226dc5e3de9f3be95ef0eaeaec

MGMT Promotes New Album In An Intersting Way

2010-03-08T11:57:00.000-08:00

Musical duo MGMT has just released their second full length album Congratulations, and they've thought of an interesting way to sell more physical copies. They are releasing a "Limited Edition Scratch-Off" cover of their album. Wait...what? Yes, you heard it right...these limited edition copies include a "scratch off" album cover and it also includes a "custom metal coin" to satisfy your scratching needs.
I have mixed feelings about this. I think it is a good way to package their album because it's unique. Huge fans will feel like they have a special piece of MGMT history when they get this. Also, they've used the ever-popular buzz phrase "Limited Edition." People like knowing they they have a product that won't be made forever...something that not everyone will have. On the other hand, however, I think it's sort of bizarre. I personally wouldn't run out and buy a CD just because the album cover was a scratch off, but to each their own. I give them a lot of credit for coming up with an original idea. It's a way for them to promote Congratulations successfully, because this idea is certainly making people notice the album.
Oh yeah! They also made this tacky video to make sure everyone hears about it:

-Ashley Stokvis

MTV Partners with OurStage

2010-03-07T08:09:00.000-08:00

Van Toffler, the President of MTV Networks Music Group, announced during his keynote speech at the Billboard Music & Money Symposium that MTV has partnered with OurStage.com to develop an array of promotional initiatives for emerging talent. OurStage’s fan voting platform will be used to discover artists for showcasing across on air and online MTV properties. The plan is “Needle in the Haystack” where each week MTV will spotlight an emerging artist from OurStage. The artists will be interviewed by MTV Music bloggers and promoted as an “artist to watch” across MTV’s sites and social network channels.

OurStage works by having fans compare one song or video to another and then choosing which song they liked more and by how much. The judging system randomizes all entries so that fans have no way of knowing or controlling who they judge. This system eliminates cheaters and the best performers are driven to the top by fans.

By partnering with MTV, each vote on OurStage becomes significantly more powerful and the opportunities for the artists that are voted the best are greater than ever. MTV averages 150-200 music cues daily in their current programming and has 600 music video hours on TV each week not to mention online music video programming, mobile music apps, and music video games like Rock Band. With MTV’s scope combined with OurStage’s unique voting platform, unknown artists from every genre could quickly become household names.

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/03/ourstage-and-mtv-partner-for-artist-discovery.html

~Emilia Segatti

SXSW gets a new SPIN with the help of Four-squares

2010-03-06T20:16:00.001-08:00

South by Southwest is just around the corner and as fans, bands, and industry players get ready to head to the south, SPIN Magazine is teaming up with social network Foursquare to create a musical adventure like no other. What Spin and Foursquare plan on doing is creating a musical scavenger hunt that people must do in to do in order to collect special badges SPIN will offer. One scavenger hunt they have requires people to check out three bands with an animal related stage name to gain the “Animal Collector” badge. With each badge a person collects they will get a reward.

I think this scavenger hunt is interesting because it’s a creative way for SPIN to gain more readers to their magazine. I have no doubt that one of those rewards will be a year subscription to their magazine, and few other products/events they’re sponsoring. Also, this is good for Foursquare because they could get more people to use their service after using it during SXSW. Overall, I think this type of fan engagement and partnership between companies needs to occur more often because it provides new ways to enhance the way music can be marketed via mobile phones. I can only imagine how this type of interactivity would work for a band releasing an album.

Submitted by: Jarvis R. Smith

Source
http://mashable.com/2010/03/06/spin-magazine-foursquare/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Mashable+%28Mashable%29

Dum Dum Girls Release Cassette Tapes!

2010-03-05T21:10:00.000-08:00

The Dum Dum Girls, a garage-rock band, are having a release of their special compilations by distributing no more than 400 cassette tapes consisting of 11 tracks. This is being done in hopes to promote their new LP entitled I Will Be. This is a great idea to try to sell something really special and different that will get the fans buzzing about the return of the cassette tape. As we've talked about in class, I believe cassette tapes will follow what vinyls have done by becoming almost a collectors item and a hot commodity. It will be cool to see if the cassette craze will carry through and what other artists will decide to release their music on cassettes as well.

-Abby Goldstein

http://pitchfork.com/news/38080-dum-dum-girls-release-tape-comp/

OK GO Goes Viral Again

2010-03-03T19:05:00.000-08:00

Everyone remembers OK GO's famous treadmill video for their song, "Here It Goes Again". They were one of the first bands to experience major success due to their self-made viral video that was put on YouTube. A new OK GO clip was released in January, but bloggers were not pleased to see that the viral embedding was turned off this time, the blame for this being placed upon EMI.

With an open letter to fans, OK GO let their fans know that they were not happy about the disabled embedding. Luckily for them, State Farm Insurance came to the rescue. State Farm offered them a sponsorship deal so that they could come out with a new embeddable video for the same song. In exchange, State Farm's logo would get exposure within the video.

Just 72 hours after it was posted, the new viral video had over 800,000 plays on YouTube alone!

OK GO wouldn't be where they are today if it weren't for their first viral video. It's smart to continue on with what worked for them the first time by doing the same thing with another new, innovative video. What surprises me is that EMI would try to disable the embedding of the video this time around. Obviously, the embedding was a great thing for OK GO the first time: it gave them a huge amount of exposure and notoriety that they probably wouldn't have gotten otherwise. Didn't it even land them that performance on the MTV VMA's that one year?

I just don't get when labels are going to realize that "free" exposure over the Internet is helpful in the grand scheme of things.

P.S.- Check out OK GO's new video above. I like it, but I think I still prefer the treadmills.

- Samantha Bruno

Source:

http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/03/ok-go-goes-viral-again-with-help-from-state-farm.html

Thumbplay on the Cloud

2010-03-02T12:57:00.000-08:00

Thumbplay, a music subscription service, has hired Apple's Pablo Calamera as it's Chief Technological Officer. Calamera oversaw technology development for MobileMe, Apple's cloud service. It's not coincidence that Thumbplay is launching their program on the cloud through a Blackberry application on Thursday. Thumbplay will provide access to millions of songs through unlimited, on-demand access.

Thumbplay has created the CTO position just for Calamera. Sounds like Thumbplay needed someone who knew what they were doing and had experience to get them where they want to be on the cloud, and Calamera was there man.

Sources:

http://www.thedailyswarm.com/headlines/ringtone-monger-thumbplay-hires-apple-exec-cloud-based-music-service/

http://hypebot.com/

- Rebecca Weyhrauch

Rage Against the Machine Vs. Simon Cowell

2010-03-01T15:59:00.000-08:00

At the beginning of the 2009 Christmas season, a fight for the number 1 Christmas song began between Rage Against the Machine and Simon Cowell. RATM claimed that it was tired of Cowell's "karaoke acts" taking the no. 1 spot, and urged their fans to make their 1992 hit, "Killing in the Name" the best seller. Although RATM is one of the biggest (and in my opinion greatest) rock bands of all time, MANY were expecting one of Cowell's X Factor acts to take the top spot. This is because as we all know, in recent years, Cowell has been one of the biggest influences in the music industry with his roles at American Idol, X Factor, and Sony. RATM, however, managed to beat Cowell, and many people were surprised by this feat.

So, how did RATM manage to beat Cowell for the no. 1 Christmas song? They reached out to their fans by using social networking sites like Facebook. A group named "RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE FOR CHRISTMAS NO.1" emerged on Facebook, and within 2 weeks, had over 450,000 members. Not only Facebook helped, but also their websites, various blogs, and many other media outlets. It's surprising to me, yet really really awesome that RATM found a way to make a song from 1992 a bestseller in 2009. It just goes to show how artists can use the internet to spread the word about their product to the consumer.

The funniest part about this feud though has to be the fact that Sony is behind both of the acts. Yes, that's right...RATM is under Cowell's Sony deal, so even though Cowell "lost," he still gets that money in his pocket at the end of the day.

-Ashley Stokvis

Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/musicblog/2009/dec/11/rage-against-machine-christmas-no1

Are Apps The New Music Model?

2010-03-01T11:17:00.000-08:00

According to the article I read, sales of iPods are slowing. However, iPhone sales are growing, and this means the use of apps are also growing. This article takes the stance that Apple needs to develop a new platform for the sale of albums that make apps "a key channel for music sales." This is because the younger generations are much more interested in throwing their money at an app than at digital music sales. Three-quarters of digital music buyers are 25 and older, which means the young teens right now might need something different to capture their attention and keep music sales afloat.

Although iTunes music sales are still growing, it is coming from "the increasing average number of downloads per buyer." This means that once the CD generation gets older and we're left with the young kids today in their 20s, they may not be interested in using iTunes and spending money on music in this way.

The author of this article believes that if Apple can come up with a music product innovation by taking apps to a platform for sales, it will appeal to the youth more than putting songs on their iPod will. It's an interesting thought, and I'm sure we're heading for new innovations no matter what.

-- Ashley Snider

Source: http://paidcontent.org/article/419-the-music-industrys-demographics-problem/

Dropcards: Upgraded Download Cards

2010-02-28T08:51:00.000-08:00

Dropcards are music download cards that come complete with custom artwork, a website address and a unique access code to unlock digital downloads. According to their website, these cards “help successfully bridge the gap between the physical and online world of music downloads.” In January, Dropcards unveiled their new download card platform and last week, they held a webinar to give people a tour of the new features they added. With these new additions of detailed redemption reporting and interactive graphs, artists will be able to keep all of their offline marketing efforts focused and data-driven. There is also a redemption map powered by Google where each user who redeems their media is pinpointed according to their actual location. In addition to being a really cool looking map, this can help artists plan potential tour routes and they can see where their fans are clustered.

We’ve been talking in class about how the CD is so ubiquitous and I think Dropcards are a great alternative. They’re versatile – you can sell them at shows or hand them out for free, include them with other merch, and you can change the content at any time. Dropcards also offers the option of e-mail collection where users would be prompted to enter their e-mail address after submitting their access code. This gives the artist more contacts and hopefully widens their fan base as well.

I think we’ll start seeing more Dropcards being handed out at shows because of all the extra benefits they offer to the artist. It’s a much better strategy than blindly giving people a CD sampler and hoping they actually listen to it and decide to come to your next show.

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/02/dropcardscom-new-look-even-better-tasting.html

~Emilia Segatti

Did Apple Kill Music?

2010-02-27T20:41:00.000-08:00

A shocking headline, but according to an article on Techradar a UK record company (Naim Label) owner/producer Simon Drake believes Apple’s products (iPod and iTunes) are the reason why everything went wrong with music over the past decade. A bold statement considering Apple has just sold its 10th billion download on iTunes and of course the iPod is responsible for this huge milestone. But in the eyes of Simon Drake Apple’s dominance over the music industry is the problem.

Some of the arguments he makes is that it’s hard for specialized labels like his to generate revenue off of songs on iTunes because they dictate the prices, which he feels are too low. He also believes that music has lost its value because the iPod has made music so accessible that people take the experience of obtaining music for granted. Lastly, he explains how iPods are the cause of short attention spans and low quality in music because listeners don't take the time to listen to music anymore.

I found this article interesting not because of the content, but how not every indie label sees the benefits of supporting iPods or selling their music on iTunes. I do agree with some of his statements especially about the lost of quality in sounding recordings, but the rest of the argument is looking at the revolution of Apple's products in the wrong way.

I believe Apple did what needed to be done in order for music to be relevant in the digital era it was headed into after Napster. I think Simon Drake might want to reconsider his position on this topic because Apple's products may be his only chance of survival as digital music continues to rise.

Submitted by: Jarvis R. Smith

Source
http://www.techradar.com/news/portable-devices/mp3-players/is-the-ipod-killing-music--672494?src=rss&attr=all

Vedera Wristbands = FREE MUSIC

2010-02-25T20:06:00.000-08:00

This past weekend at the Jack's Mannequin headlining show, the wristbands that were given to people 21 and up had a great promotional idea printed on them that helped opening band Vedera gain a larger fan base and also help them get their music out. The wristbands came with a special code to text to a certain number that if sent, would give you a free Vedera song to be sent to your email! As we learned in the audio book, people love free, and much like what Cypress Hill did with collecting fan's emails in exchange of a song, the emails can then be saved and used to send out more information about Vedera such as upcoming tour dates, and other news thats happening with the band. This is a great idea, especially at a show where the band being promoted is opening. It gives people the opportunity to see them play live and get excited about them, and then get more fans listening to their music by obtaining a free song which will then remind them about how much fun they had at the show they just went to!

-Abby Goldstein

Warner Withdraws from Streaming Services: Muse Speak Out Against It

2010-02-24T21:34:00.000-08:00

Warner Music recently announced their decision to stop licensing their artists' tracks to free streaming services such as Spotify. One of Warner's biggest-selling artists, Muse, is speaking out against this decision. Bassist Chris Wolstenhome of Muse expressed his disdain for the idea by saying, "It's like taking your song off the radio isn't it? You're instantly taking your song away from a group of potential listeners." He also went on to explain that these kinds of initiatives are being made by big corporations, not the bands themselves. He further elaborates, "As far as bands are concerned you just want people to hear your music whichever way they can."

Unfortunately for Muse, Warner Music CEO Edgar Bronfman says these free streaming services are "clearly not net positive for the industry" and "not the kind of approach to business we will be supporting in the future."

I agree with Muse's Chris Wolstenhome's statement that taking music off of free streaming sites is exactly like taking it off of the radio and worst of all, keeping it away from a potential fanbase. As we've been reading about, so many underground bands only became huge because of fans accessing their music for free over the Internet. By taking the music off of streaming sites, this kind of exposure will be greatly limited. I also don't see the point because honestly, right now I could probably find any Muse song on YouTube within 2 minutes if I wanted to so what's the difference? I thought the record labels might have learned by now that the best way to compete with free was to just go along with it but apparently that's not the case.

- Samantha Bruno

Source:

http://www.spinner.com/2010/02/24/muse-speak-out-against-warner-withdrawal-from-streaming-services/

New Reverb Store

2010-02-23T20:30:00.000-08:00

Selling Merchandise on Facebook in Two Minutes or Less from ReverbNationBlog on Vimeo.

This week two companies, ReverbNation and Audiolife, joined forces and launched a new venture called the Reverb Store. Both e-companies already run operations geared towards helping musicians market themselves, without any record label behind them. With the Reverb Store, bands can now create and sell merchandise through their Facebook pages all via a surprisingly simple interface. Artists can set their own price and all profit goes straight to them. The video above is not really worth watching, unless you're ready to start using the Reverb Store, as it's basically just a step-by-step tutorial. It did, however, make me feel like I could design a bitchin' t-shirt for my band and start selling it immediately and I'm no graphic designer. I'm also not in a band. It's just that cool. With companies like ReverbNation and Audiolife creating marketing platforms this easy, it's a wonder every band isn't skipping the middle mand and going the DIY route.

--Katherine Wood

2009 Beacon Box Set

2010-02-23T11:00:00.000-08:00

The Allman Brothers, who play a spring residency in New York every year, have released their 2009 concert series in a box set, the 2009 Beacon Box. The box features their 15 concerts played at the Beacon Theatre in 45 CDs. The box also includes a 60 page CD booklet with liner notes, set list, and exclusive photos, as well as souvenir backstage passes, and a 2-CD bonus show they played at Warren Haynes' 20th annual Christmas Jam in 2008 . All these things are packaged in a custom-made, serial numbered, hand-crafted wooden collector's box, screen-printed with the Beacon Theatre's marquee and other images for the price of $499.99.

To some, $500.00 is a lot of money to be spent at one time, but to devote fans it's a steal. Each of the 45 CDs can be purchased separately for $27.99 each, but if you purchase the 2009 Beacon Box you get the CDs at an approximated price of $10.00 a piece plus a bunch of free collectors items! If you are planning on buying the Allman Brothers' CDs, you are best off the purchase the box set, where the price of each CD is less than 50% of the regular resale price.

Soure: http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2010/02/18/derek-trucks-goes-behind-the-allman-brothers-beacon-box-set/

http://www.hittinthenote.com/cart/p-961-allman-brothers-band-br-2009-beacon-box-setbr15-concerts-62-guest.aspx

~Rebecca Weyhrauch

Radio Revenue Down in 2009

2010-02-22T11:32:00.000-08:00

According to the Radio Advertising Bureau, radio revenue for 2009 dropped a whopping 18%. Because the radio's number one product is the listener, one would hope that the on-air advertising would have been more present, but advertising was down 20%, to just $13.2 billion.

What does this mean for the music industry? Internet based products are in demand, leaving traditional forms of entertainment, like radio and CDs, in the dust. Like I mentioned before, the radio's number one product is its listener, because it basically sells its listener to advertisers. The fact that advertising was down 20% shows that the money being put out by advertisers is going somewhere else...internet radio. We are all aware that websites such as Pandora have grown astoundingly large, so it is no surprise that many advertisers have left the radio and put their money towards internet advertisement, which is where more of the consumers are.

Although I am aware of how huge internet radio is, I am still surprised at how much radio revenue dropped in 2009. Although it dropped, I don't really think the radio will become obsolete, because it is convenient for people who can't always be by a computer...millions of people still listen to the radio in their cars. Also, the shift to internet radio has been mostly made by people who listen to the radio for music. Talk radio is still the biggest radio format, so while many music listeners are listening to internet radio, there will always be listeners who prefer traditional radio.

-Ashley Stokvis

Source: http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/content_display/industry/e3if45006c9b5c413468712c94657493408

EMI Disables Embedding Option on YouTube

2010-02-22T11:17:00.000-08:00

Ok Go is well-known for their rise in popularity thanks to their treadmill dancing in their music video for "Here It Goes Again." The band credits this success largely in part to YouTube, where fans could watch the video, then embed it in other sites, thus passing along the video until they gained so much recognition for it that they were performing on the VMAs.

Recently, YouTube and the band's label, EMI, have placed restrictions for embedding on these videos. YouTube, which now pays record companies a very small amount for streaming their artists' videos on the site, didn't agree to pay the labels for streaming on any other site. So, EMI doesn't get any revenue from any of those times Ok Go's video was embedded on another site, and with so little revenue in the music industry, the label is trying to get all the money they can.

Ok Go is rallying against disabled embedding, saying it will kill the free viral marketing that they owe so much of their success to. The band can't even post the YouTube versions of their videos on their own site. According to the article I read, when EMI disabled embedding on the "Here It Goes Again" video, "views of the 'treadmill video' dropped 90 percent." That's pretty huge.

The members of Ok Go argue that since there is so little revenue coming from streaming YouTube videos, there's really no point to policing it as much as EMI is. And, honestly, I just went on YouTube and found the "Here It Goes Again" video on two random people's pages that had the embedding option available. So, it doesn't look like it's working.

-- Ashley Snider

Source: http://paidcontent.org/article/419-ok-no-go-youtubes-embedding-restriction-is-bad-for-new-bands/

New Survey Shows 30% of U.S. Never Uses the Internet

2010-02-21T09:24:00.000-08:00

A new survey by The Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration shows that 30%of U.S. consumers do not access the internet. When participants were asked why they have no internet connection at home, 16.7% responded “don’t need/not interested” while 38.9% answered “too expensive.”

So what does this mean for the music industry? Perhaps we shouldn’t abandon the physical format so quickly since 30% of potential customers do not have access to iTunes or Amazon. The article stresses the idea of making the product available wherever the consumer spends their time. So this could mean pushing to get a CD into Wal-Mart’s limited music section or maybe even seeing if Dollar General or similar stores will start selling CDs. Maybe we’ll start seeing portable music pop-up stores across from arena size concerts or at the state fair.

One thing that this survey didn’t address is smartphones. Are the people who don’t need or can’t afford an Internet connection in their homes using their mobile phones to access the Internet and download music? If that’s the case, then apps for bands become more important than ever as a way to reach potential fans and consumers.

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/02/survey-30-of-us-never-use-the-net.html#more

~Emilia Segatti

My Mobile Device is better than Your Computer

2010-02-20T19:15:00.000-08:00

According to Read Write Web there’s a new trend that’s starting to happen right within our pockets, and it’s with mobile devices. In particular, mobile devices being the preferred choice for Internet access among consumers. R.W.W. stated that research shows that the average American is spending more than three hours a day on their mobile device than on their computer. So what’s driving this new obsession? Well according to R.W.W. it’s the ability to access and more effectively use social networking platforms.

Mobile devices are becoming the preferred choice for accessing social networks because it allows people to update, talk, and share the everyday happenings of their lives in real time (right at that very moment). Also, mobile devices make social networking more accessible because they have it right in their pockets, ready to go, and they don’t have to wait for lengthy loading times unlike a desktop.

This article is similar to what we talked about in class, and how it’s just as important to have a mobile app for your band as it is to have a website. Also, I think this is important to marketing music because we’re witnessing another change in the behavior patterns of how consumers consume. So if a good portion of people are downloading apps and accessing social networks from their phones. Then the way music is distributed needs to accommodate this new behavior pattern as well.

Therefore, with the rise of mobile device users I think there’s going to be a bigger demand for music applications then before. This is good because it’s going to open up the doors for new innovative ways to distribute and sell music.

Submitted by: Jarvis R. Smith

Source
http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/social_networking_now_more_popular_on_mobile_than_desktop.php

Ad Supported Guvera To Launch In U.S. March 30th

2010-02-20T12:59:00.000-08:00

Australian designed Guvera, an ad supported music service, will officially launch in the U.S. on March 30th. Content has been approved by Universal, EMI, IODA, BMI, SESAC, and INgrooves.

The content of Guvera is paid for by advertisers looking to target customers via branded channels. Once you view the ad, DRM free mp3's are offered. Although Guvera is starting as music based, the company plans on expanding in the future to include other forms of digital media. "We also see a huge future in delivering film and television content, especially after the success of the Australian beta," according to Dan Thompson, Head of Content of Guvera Limited.

Free music, television, and film content is a lot to offer from an ad based website. If Guvera is successful, I could see a continuing trend of similar ad based free digital media sites. Critics argue that the company may not be able to stay afloat with a specific ad based revenue, but only time will tell.

-Scott Schaffer

Source: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2010/02/ad-supported-guvera-to-launch-in-us-march-30th.html

Creators of Pirate Bay create payment system for artists

2010-02-20T09:57:00.000-08:00

"Pirate Bay co-founder and spokesperson Peter Sunde is leading a new startup whose goal is to encourage users to donate money to many of the same rights holders that he once helped them grab content from."

(from hypebot.com)

Great idea right? Enough people might use Flattr that it will become a viable means of getting paid for a cyber contribution. I love it.

Too bad it probably won’t work.

Here’s why:

Call me pessimistic, but I think Peter Sunde's claim to fame "The Pirate Bay" was successful because there is always a demand for free. Bottom line, Pirate Bay costs nothing and gets you pretty much anything. Flattr on the other hand, costs something and gets you pretty much nothing… besides the ability to give that money away… which I’m pretty sure I already have.

Yeah, it would be great if I gave money away to starving artists like myself. After all, if anybody needs my charity, it’s whoever had enough time to spend 30 hours making that music video for “Chimpanzee riding on a Segway” (by the way it’s so amazing you have to Google it). In fact, it’s pretty much decided, I was going to spend half an hour out of my day and $10 out of my wallet to contribute to Haiti, but after seeing this Flattr thing, I know where my oh-so-expendable student loan money is going now. I want to see that Chimpanzee ride a Harley.

Back to a serious note, I really do like the idea of Flattr. But when you put Flattr into a different light you can see that it might run into some problems. We will probably hear about it a little more, see a few Flattr buttons here and there, and then be like, "Whatever happened to that Flattr thing?”

So, best of luck to you Sunde. It's great in idea. But, though the Swedish have a saying, "Many small streams will form a large river", the Americans have a saying "Finders keepers losers weepers". And for reasons like that, you may want to rethink your Flattr model.

-Ian Gollahon

Analysis: Major Labels Acting More Like Indies Online

2010-02-18T21:38:00.000-08:00

When it comes to direct-to-fan sales and marketing, the focus is currently on independent artists and labels and how they are using new digital tools to sell music and other merchandise outside of traditional retail channels. Nowadays, there are all sorts of non-traditional products being sold directly from major artists’ web stores.

For example, LadyGaga.com, under Universal Music Group's umbrella, is offering a bundle consisting of Lady Gaga’s Heartbeats headphones with a T-shirt for $100. The headphones themselves cost $100 so the buyer is essentially getting the t-shirt for free. The bundle does not include any recorded music. Another major artist taking this approach is Mary J. Blige. Mary J. Blige, an Interscope artist, recently partnered with Carol’s Daughter beauty products to sell five hundred units of a bundle containing her new album, and three, limited Carol’s Daughter products, for $29.99 each through her web store.

I think it makes sense that major labels have caught onto the fact that they can make a lot more money by selling exclusive products to super-fans. Diehard fans are going to be willing to pay a little bit more to get something other than just a CD or a download. Major labels can certainly capitalize on this idea to make some extra revenue. Though selling a CD with beauty products for only $30.00 (like in the case of Mary J. Blige) may seem very minimal, labels will still be making more money than they would with just a digital offering of the music. Every little bit counts.

- Samantha Bruno

Source:

http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/content_display/industry/e3i4c8c39f58df428b9d63903d073e69230