Found this @ Slashdot this morning; but the newer story (first one was posted in 2004) was also posted via Yahoo News:Older: http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/6558540/walmart_wants_10_cdsNewer: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080302/media_nm/walmart_dc"..."[A Wal-Mart spokesman said:] 'The record industry needs to refine their business models, because the consumer is the ultimate arbitrator. And the consumer feels music isn't properly priced.' "...."The major music companies have been resistant to lowering their price on CDs, but now they may be dragged to that point: Wal-Mart, the largest retailer of music with an estimated 22 percent market share, has proposed a five-tiered pricing scheme that would allow the discounter to sell albums at even lower prices and require the labels to bear more of the costs."Thoughts?
"Look at me, I'm quoting another user to show how wrong I think they are, out of arrogance of my own position. Wait, this is my own quote, oh shi-" ~ Nitroadict
Well I don't like Wal-Mart any more than I like the RIAA (which is not at all), but that quote from the Wal-Mart spokesman is right on. If music weren't so damned expensive, music piracy would become a fringe activity.
Pro Christo et Libertate integre!
I love alot of less than mainstream music and I was listening to an artist I like in an interview and it seems that the market has done it again. I guess due to the internet and things like myspace, artists are able to promote themselves more and more without the major companies. This means less overhead and cheaper prices. This has also lead to many independent artists being played on TV shows or soundtracks and sometimes the radio. So due to this competition companies are now being alot nicer to their artists and offering them better deals than before since artists find it more and more easier to go on their own these days and take all of the profit.
Another interesting side note is that due to the nature of the present IP issues, artists tour more and put on more shows. This makes more sense for this industry to go more decentralized since who really needs a massive company to make a profit unless they can get your name out. It turns out that now you only need your own computer to network on and at the end of the show you (the artist) can take all the money (costs included).
Concerning with the way the industry has/is changed(ing), I remember a little while ago David Bowie remarking that at some point, the only thing artists will be able to do is perform live and tour, when everyone is able to remix, download, transmit, remake, cover, etc music, as it's become less and less physical, and more informational. Also, the recent sales models that Trent Reznor has been trying out (even the announcement of a new album, randomly posted only online) has also given me hope that there is more than one or two guys in the business who understand what's going on, especially considering the positive reaction from the fans.The way things are going now, I can entirely imagine me writing an essay on economics (at some point in the future), and putting them against my own songs and people would like listening to it. I would be surprised if someone hasn't already attempted this since the Internet went public. Assuming, of course, that it's a good idea at all; I'm not sure how it would work out exactly.