“Change happens, and it hurts if you happen to make a living in an obsolete industry,” Anders Bylund writes for The Motley Fool.
“We’re standing at the crossroads of the traditional studio system and a new era of mostly digital free agents. CD sales are no longer the cash cows they once were. Physical media sales, where CDs stand for the lion’s share, dropped 15% last year, and the trend is expected to continue. Wal-Mart is no longer the largest music retailer in the world, as Apple’s iTunes store claimed that honor back in April 2008,” Bylund writes.
“The labels are understandably upset because their very successful business model is going the way of the dodo bird,” Bylund writes.
“The record industry as we know it is buckling under pressure from digital downloads. Labels like Warner Music like to blame illegal file-sharing for much of their problems, continuing a Quixotic lawsuit crusade against the windmills of piracy. ‘Digital sales gains don’t make up for the physical losses,’ they often complain,” Bylund writes. “But that lament fails to account for the fact that consumers have broken free from the restrictions of the old album format. One-dollar single-song downloads have simply changed the way fans buy their music. Why download a whole album when you can just pick the good stuff and leave the yucky filler material behind?”
Bylund writes, “The way to fight this battle is to start trusting the consumer a little. Apple’s success proves that people are perfectly willing to pay a reasonable amount of money to fill their musical desires, as long as the shopping experience is easy and elegant. The company is selling iPods about as fast as it can make them, and iTunes sales follow suit.”
Full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Judge Bork” for the heads up.]
Yay, someone who gets it!
About damn time someone gets it….damn!
I’ve been say that same thing for years now.
In think there is a mistake, it should have read “MOVIE cartels need to finally embrace change or face extinction”.
Music costs very little to produce and they seem to have accepted a DRM-free future. It is Hollywood who have huge cost structures that will suffer more than the music industry if people stop buying DVDs, yet wont move to HD due to the invasive DRM.
The artist don’t need them any more, they just need Steve. By the way, those software distributers and rack jobbers better start looking for a new model as well.
“Nothing new here, move along.”
The people who get sued by the RIAA for downloading music off peer-to-peer networks need to get some balls.
A non-profit group should step up and pay for their legal defense. They may not win, but you could force the RIAA to spend a lot of money on their own legal fees.
It’s evolution happening, the same as Apple/Google/open source vs. M$, Detroit’s Big 3 vs. Germany/Japan/South Korea.
What is society/the economy going to look like in the 21st century? That’s what’s unfolding right now before our very eyes.
Is innovation going to win, or is status quo going to win? The status quo has got to go, especially where it only or primarily benefits the few vs. the masses.
My $.02.
Peace.
” width=”19″ height=”19″ alt=”cool smile” style=”border:0;” />
Olmecmystic
Tower Records Haiku
Miles of aisles and piles,
brought hours of listening smiles,
Stoned out of my mind.
I’d like to see GarageBand & iTunes linked together with Apple services that would allow bands to publish, get producers, and release albums directly into iTunes. This is the kind of thing that Apple could do well, and the likes of Amazon will still be just shops.
Another big factor is the ubiquity of legal, free, commoditized music online. Take holiday music for instance. I can easily find dozens of streams in every style from classic to international to jazz to modern, all free and supported by advertising. I can’t imagine purchasing a Christmas CD given these alternatives, where in past years I might have added a disk or two to the collection.
Now extrapolate this to all other types of music and that’s the issue. I doubt that illegal downloading is that significant compared to all the legal streams that people are listening to. The new business model has happened and the old companies need to adapt.
@PXT
Good thought. But please substitute GB with Logic.
I do like the idea of a “waiting room” inside the iTunes Store for independents to pitch their creations. This would be another creative outlet as well for producers, engineers, scholars, and the legal and admin types who would subcontract with Apple to manage this new river of creativity.
Studio satellites could evolve in every major city on the planet to provide administrative, legal, and studio time using the best equipment technology has to offer.
These studios would serve as an alternative to the current indentured servant program that has existed for the last forty years in the music industry.
Aside from that, why not a website devoted to would-be musicians where the consumer gives an up or down vote based on the merits of their musical submissions. Consumers would be invited to sort through myriad musical tastes and choose their favorites.
Over time the gifted would rise with the help of their fans and after a time has passed, the voting would be closed and the top ten would move on to phase two, which of course, would be a chance to compete at a higher level as well as earn booty and a chance to sign with a label.
Take <a >MacJams</a> for example, couldn’t they cut a deal with an independent record label and begin promoting their musicians? I believe the business at MacJams would explode if marketed properly. Man, that’s a lot of listening to do and perhaps people would vote for anyone by name after awhile and completely ignore the production value.
Jump in here any time Reality Check, before I blow a fuze…
MacJams
*Snapping fingers at G4Dualle’s haiku.*
Their entire industry isn’t obsolete, just their business model.
Yes, definitely Logic and perhaps GarageBand too. This would be a great way for Apple to capitalize on its authoring tools investments.
One side comment: for this holiday season, all the chain “record stores” in London (HMV, Zavvi – ex Virgin) have reorganised their space, and reduced CDs from about 50% to about 20%. The new space has gone to DVDs, mainly large boxed sets of TV series and dead actors and directors, and a bit of Bluray. But it looks as if here at least the industry has accepted defeat on the high street.
G4DUalie:
Logic is great and all, but you have to try GB. Really, I have discovered that so many of my small-time projects I can now do much faster in GB, and it’s just so much fun to use! I’ve done commercial jingles, indie short film scores and music for corporate video, and for most of them, Logic was just too much hassle. With enough JamPacks, you’re all set.
What I’m trying to say, for start-up bands and popular short-form contemporary music, GB wields surprising amount of power in an incredibly fun package.
Couple of things
Thought Apple / iTunes Store already had some kind of plan/deal in place to allow independent/newbie musicians to sign with a number of providers/agents who manage the connection with Apple, yes ?
Or something to that effect ?
And the whole idea of “getting it” and when ?
Bunch of us have for a long damn time
Think another 8,000,000 +/- did last quarter
Be a lot more again tomorrow
Remember what Steve said way back at intro of iTunes Store
“Music is low hanging fruit”
BC
@Predrag
Logic is great and all, but you have to try GB.
Agreed. I’m not discounting GB. I was trying to elevate PXTs idea. I am convinced Clapton could write a hit song using GB and an iMac.
For anyone who has suffered the trials & tribulations of mixing down tracks on a reel-to-reel, GB is more than adequate. I have a couple of tunes on MacJams wherein I used GB.
The fact is, I don’t own Logic. I was never that serious. Besides, I’m convinced that I haven’t tapped half of GBs capabilities.
It matters not where the music originates, if its good you won’t be able to ignore it.
Have you tried wolfgangsvault.com for streaming classic concerts? It’s far out!
@PXT & G4Dualie
The “problem” or opportunity you are talking about has already been solved.
Anyone can use CD Baby to get on iTunes. Just send them five CDs.
It doesn’t matter what software you want to use, Garageband, Logic, Digital Performer, Cakewalk (God forbid), Cubase, just burn your CDs and CD-Baby will handle the rest.
@G4Dualle, Predrag,
This idea of sending completed tracks to iTunes for sale is a great one. But I have to agree that Logic is the better tool to do this with, and is almost set up to do such a thing in its Export and Bounce capabilities. Even Logic Express is a more practical tool. Fine to start in Garage Band, but Logic is a far, far more complete and better sounding app, and just as easy to use.
@Synthmeister
what about accounts for artists that let them bounce new tunes straight to iTunes? I think the idea was to bypass making CDs.
G4Dualie:
Totally agree. We are lucky to live in the times where the barrier of entry is low enough for anyone to overcome it. My start was with PortaStudio (tascam’s 4-track cassette). And even that was in my mid-20s, and it brought enormous amount of joy. Imagine the arrival of MIDI and software sequencers!
And to BC Kelly:
Yes, there are plenty of independent distributors that work with iTunes (as well as with all other online stores) and take their cut from an independent musician. You provide your master and cover art, they send you a quarterly cheque, after taking their cut. You get more money than if you were to sell your physical CDs on Amazon (and you have to press/print/shrinkwrap/barcode/pack those CDs yourself). Much more money, both per song sold, as well as in total, when sold on iTunes, vs. physical distribution.