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Alan Parsons Wants to Eliminate MP3s, Slated to Speak at Subscribed '14

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Alan Parsons of The Alan Parsons Project has a long history of success but he's faced with a very different musical world today. One of his current projects is the elimination of the MP3 which he's begun with plans to release his own lower cost, higher quality downloads direct-to-fans. He's also set to speak at Subscribed 2014, a unique conference focused on the “subscription economy" which is increasingly important to musicians in the form of streaming services, whether one stop or boutique.

Alan Parsons is currently on tour and he also recently unveiled a new official website. Apparently this is also where he'll begin his assault on the MP3.

The MP3 Elimination Project

Parsons says:

“I’m on a quest to make the MP3 go away...Seriously. It’s unnecessarily there. There is technology there that allows the consumer a much better quality product if you would only spend a little more time downloading. Most artists are charging a premium for the high quality download. I’m going to reverse that trend and make it cheaper. My new website will have high quality downloads cheaper than MP3s. We’ll see if I can start a trend.”

So far the new single, “Fragile," is not yet available for high quality download but it is available via iTunes for 99 cents.

Alan Parsons: Public Speaker

Alan Parsons is scheduled to speak at Subscribed '14 about the “democratization and disruption of the music industry."

Parsons will speak at Subscribed '14 taking place in San Francisco June 2 through 4. Wish I knew more about his plans especially since he seems to be the only music person speaking.

Subscribed's theme is:

The Disruption of Everything

Every Industry | Every Company | Every Product

Subscriptions in the music industry have grown up a bit since the cassette of the month club I used to belong to. Yet one recent development includes monthly subscriptions to indie music which sometimes includes physical items.

Streaming music is typically either ad-supported or subscription with widespread hopes that subscriptions will grow. We mostly hear about the corporate approach, from Spotify to Beats, but there are growing numbers of boutique examples as well.

Though Parsons may be more focused on the disruptive effects of technology on the music industry, learning how to succeed in the subscription economy will be increasingly important moving forward.

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