The music industry is NOT dead - it’s just in need of some long-overdue ingenuity and perhaps it’s not the same old dinosaurs at the top who are in the best position to deliver. For those music cynics out there, I’d like to reacquaint (or rather introduce) you with Trent Reznor. Front-man of popular industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails and business man extraordinaire, Mr. Reznor has long been a ray of hope in the dark world of a troubled industry.
Reznor’s most recent industry-leading coup came just over a week ago and should serve as a lesson for the rest of his troubled and not-so-forward-looking colleagues. Amid little fanfare and, and even coming as an utter surprise to many fans, Nine Inch Nails released a brand new collection of tracks last Sunday, setting the blogosphere ablaze. The collection, which was available exclusively online, featured five tiered versions of content that were priced according to the level of content the buyer wished to receive. Prices ranged from $0 all the way up to $300 and for those who say music spending is a thing of the past – listen up.
The fastest-selling part of this collection was the $300 ultimate collection, whose 2,500 copies sold out almost immediately and left many fans (myself included) kicking themselves for missing the boat.For those mathematicians out there, you’ll already know that sales of the ultimate collection brought in a whopping ¾ of a million dollars in record time.
The most impressive part, though, is that Reznor, notorious for his dislike (read: disdain) of record labels, released the collection independently and under a creative commons license. Without a label’s hand in his pocket, Reznor will pocket much of these funds and he will be handsomely rewarded for his efforts. Stay tuned for more Reznor-logic.
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This post falls for the fallacy that equates the music industry with the recording industry. The music industry is more than record companies. It’s concerts. It’s musical equipment. And so on.
The music industry was never dead. In fact it is thriving. It is the recording industry as represented by the RIAA and IFPI that is dying.
So long as the RIAA and IFPI continue on piracy, lawsuits and draconian copyright laws, the recording industry is heading for failure and quickly. They need to focus on increasing the value of their product to consumers.
Comment by Vincent Clement - March 11, 2008 8:49 am
Vincent, you’re absolutely right. The “industry” is about much more than recording - it’s all 360 degrees. From a 360 perspective (concerts, merchandise, equipment) the industry is still quite healthy, and in many ways doing better than ever before. The revenue generated on ringtones alone has been enough to boost many artists to multi-million dollar sales - pretty impressive for a six-second snippet. On top of that, concerts are selling out at record pace, and tickets are selling at unprecedented prices - so in fact, the “industry” is doing quite well.
One of the keys to success, as you mention is to start delivering more value (or a la Reznor, and letting customers decide how much value they want). I, much like many people, am tired of the whining of a “losing industry”.
The inspiration behind this post actually came when I was at a conference last week to kick off Canadian Music Week. I was listenting to a panel discussion in which a Managing Director from one of the “big labels” must have quipped three or four times that “artists need the labels for ‘protection’”. This was his response to any challenge or question about what should become the labels’ new role in the ever-changing industry. I was really hoping for more insight than “you need us”.
Where I appreciate Reznor’s savoir-faire and respect the loyalty that he has created is in being able to strike out on his own as a free agent and still maintain (if not exceed) his past performance under the protection of a label.
Comment by Ian Da Silva - March 11, 2008 11:07 am
Here’s the latest:
Reznor Grosses $1.6 Million In The First Week Of Ghosts I-IV from the nope,-no-way-for-musicians-to-make-money-at-all dept Last week, we noted that Trent Reznor’s latest experiment with business models had resulted in selling out the exclusive deluxe edition of his latest Nine Inch Nails offering, grossing $750,000. That, of course, didn’t include any of the lower level sales. Reznor has now released the news that in the first week alone, the project has grossed $1.6 million in revenue, despite the fact that the music was widely available for free download (some of that helped along by Reznor himself). How long until someone says that there’s no way to make money giving away music again?
http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20080313/171933538.shtml
Comment by Danny Williamson - March 14, 2008 12:13 pm