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The Next MySpace
Source:
HypeBot
A few years ago basically every internet-conscious band or artist had a MySpace profile. Times change and so does the internet; and MySpace has been dethroned with no other 'king' in sight. So music business folks love talking about “the next MySpace." There will be no “next MySpace." Here's why: MySpace came up in the early days of web 2.0; the first wave of a new trend to make the web more social through platforms. MySpace fit into the trend ...
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Music Services Agree! Freemium Just Doesn't Pay...
Source:
Digital Music News
Freemium has the Chris Anderson stamp of approval. But in the real world, music companies are realizing that freemium is too expensive and unsustainable, at least without serious constraints. It doesn't make economic sense, and worse, it feeds a consumer addiction to free—instead of whetting the appetite for premium. This has become obvious, and the examples of freemiumexodus are now everywhere. Just this week, Paris-based streaming site Deezer drastically limited its free option, the latest company to smell the expensive ...
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C'mon: Is Soundscan Really Undercounting the Little Guy?
Source:
Digital Music News
One thing's clear: Nielsen Soundscan doesn't count every last album sale. That would be impossible. But are they somehow missing this vast number of unsigned and indie albums (and singles), and grossly skewing our picture of who's really winning? That's been a longtime argument from two of the front-running digital distributors, Tunecore and CD Baby. In fact, just last week, CD Baby and Disc Makers president Tony Van Veen was making this case in response to a story on CD ...
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5 Reasons Free is Hurting Us All
Source:
HypeBot
Few question the power of free music to garner new fans and reward existing ones. But marketing guru John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing is worried that too much free has side effects. Free everything has “created an environment that may actually be hurting the seeker of quality information more than the spreader of quality information, writes Jantsch. “The trend towards tiered levels of paid content will continue to escalate and the ability to foster community around your content will ...
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Album Art: Suburban Abstract
Source:
Sound Insights by Doug Payne
Somehow abstract art became popular among the American suburban culture of the late '50s and early '60s. For proof, watch any episode of Mad Men, one of the best ways to see—not really know—what the world might have been like for East Coast Americans of a certain age at certain point in history. (Left: Olga Albizu's “Red") While that show is little more than a tiresome soap opera that only occasionally shows how American culture was evolving through the fascinating ...
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Have the Grammys Become Racist? Take a Look...
Source:
Digital Music News
At first blush, it seemed like cutting categories was a smart path for the Grammy Awards. But instead of cutting the fat, a lot of important ethnic genres were eliminated—and that is stirring a growing consortium of concerned musicians. “The biggest and most irresponsible cut to us is that you have eliminated Latin Jazz," Carlos Santana wrote NARAS trustees earlier this month. “We strongly protest this decision and we ask you to represent all of the colors of the rainbow ...
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Jonathan Coulton on His Business Model and How Now is Best Time Ever to be a Musician
Source:
HypeBot
NPR's Panet Money recently featured successful d.i.y. musician Jonathan Coulton (@jonathancoulton), dissecting his success and asking if other musicians could follow a similar path, Hypebot's look at the interview “How Jonathan Coulton Made $500,000 Last Year As A D.I.Y. Musician“ received heated comments and questions that he's agreed to answer. But first, we wanted to share Coulton's own take on his career and the issues raised in the interviews. Here's Jonathan Coulton in his own words: On Friday the posted ...
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