Comments on: File Sharing III – a response to Jeff Schmidt… http://www.stevelawson.net/2007/10/file_sharing_ii/ the soundtrack to the day you wish you'd had Sat, 04 Feb 2012 22:39:36 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Steve http://www.stevelawson.net/2007/10/file_sharing_ii/comment-page-1/#comment-330 Steve Sat, 06 Oct 2007 03:48:20 +0000 http://www.stevelawson.net/wordpress/2007/10/file-sharing-iii-a-response-to-jeff-schmidt/#comment-330 James - "When we appreciate that gift as gift, rather than simply something we managed to get for free, does that help?" is a really interesting point. I guess in some ways that's the point of the Street Team stash - a repository of music, made available to people who've signed up for the street team, which is 'free' but is a gift rather than something thrown away. Albeit a gift that's either a thanks or at least a 'thanks in advance' for Street Team-type helpfulness... ...which reminds me, I need to do some proper thinking about what the street team is, what it's for, and how that set of relationships can move forward in a way that is mutually beneficial, but that's a whole other blog post... James – “When we appreciate that gift as gift, rather than simply something we managed to get for free, does that help?” is a really interesting point.

I guess in some ways that’s the point of the Street Team stash – a repository of music, made available to people who’ve signed up for the street team, which is ‘free’ but is a gift rather than something thrown away. Albeit a gift that’s either a thanks or at least a ‘thanks in advance’ for Street Team-type helpfulness…

…which reminds me, I need to do some proper thinking about what the street team is, what it’s for, and how that set of relationships can move forward in a way that is mutually beneficial, but that’s a whole other blog post…

]]> By: Steve http://www.stevelawson.net/2007/10/file_sharing_ii/comment-page-1/#comment-331 Steve Sat, 06 Oct 2007 03:43:24 +0000 http://www.stevelawson.net/wordpress/2007/10/file-sharing-iii-a-response-to-jeff-schmidt/#comment-331 Mike - all very valid points re the 'subscription' query... the thing I need to take some time to do is look at the balance between creative/artistic idealism and the pragmatic reality of what I do on a day to day basis to get my music out there, and then apply that same degree of pragmatism to thinking about this whole issue - it's unfair on any new models for distribution/remuneration/etc. to impose on them a level of idealism that my current model doesn't have to meet... Mike – all very valid points re the ‘subscription’ query… the thing I need to take some time to do is look at the balance between creative/artistic idealism and the pragmatic reality of what I do on a day to day basis to get my music out there, and then apply that same degree of pragmatism to thinking about this whole issue – it’s unfair on any new models for distribution/remuneration/etc. to impose on them a level of idealism that my current model doesn’t have to meet…

]]> By: James http://www.stevelawson.net/2007/10/file_sharing_ii/comment-page-1/#comment-332 James Thu, 04 Oct 2007 23:07:13 +0000 http://www.stevelawson.net/wordpress/2007/10/file-sharing-iii-a-response-to-jeff-schmidt/#comment-332 We need to be careful, though, of allowing money or finance to be the key to anticipation. When scarcity is a factor, either through records being expensive or us being short of money, financial cost works to focus our minds on a new record. But if it becomes the key part of the equation, that's a problem. One other way it works is through relationships. That doesn't scale up to "big names" and "big releases" but if someone has seen the care a friend has put into crafting their new album, could that cause them to focus on it (even if it's then given to them for free) in a way similar to the way you enjoyed Dogman? When we appreciate that gift as gift, rather than simply something we managed to get for free, does that help? And how much of it is about the event? I think one key aspect to what Radiohead have achieved with their new album is they have taken away the incentive to leak the record, the spoilers of endless blog chatter, etc. I've not yet ordered the new album but you can be sure I will before next week because I want to get it when it comes out. I wonder if that'll make it more special than if I'd found a torrent, been a little smug to have it early, and then not been part of the excitement when it was launched to the world? We need to be careful, though, of allowing money or finance to be the key to anticipation. When scarcity is a factor, either through records being expensive or us being short of money, financial cost works to focus our minds on a new record. But if it becomes the key part of the equation, that’s a problem.

One other way it works is through relationships. That doesn’t scale up to “big names” and “big releases” but if someone has seen the care a friend has put into crafting their new album, could that cause them to focus on it (even if it’s then given to them for free) in a way similar to the way you enjoyed Dogman? When we appreciate that gift as gift, rather than simply something we managed to get for free, does that help?

And how much of it is about the event? I think one key aspect to what Radiohead have achieved with their new album is they have taken away the incentive to leak the record, the spoilers of endless blog chatter, etc. I’ve not yet ordered the new album but you can be sure I will before next week because I want to get it when it comes out. I wonder if that’ll make it more special than if I’d found a torrent, been a little smug to have it early, and then not been part of the excitement when it was launched to the world?

]]> By: Mike http://www.stevelawson.net/2007/10/file_sharing_ii/comment-page-1/#comment-333 Mike Thu, 04 Oct 2007 16:54:50 +0000 http://www.stevelawson.net/wordpress/2007/10/file-sharing-iii-a-response-to-jeff-schmidt/#comment-333 Steve said: "This already exists to a degree with that site where you can pledge to pay for an album before it's even been recorded, and when the band reaches a certain level of funding they go in and make the record... But I have to say that as a creative idealist, I still don't like the idea of making records for a market like that." However even if fans "subscribe" to the new release, they don't know in advance what they're going to get. You've done this to a certain extent where we paid in advance for the CD and got "Lessons learned" as an added bonus for stumping up in advance. The difference is what stage in the process you get listeners involved with cash... For you it was at the point of pressing CDs so you had already committed the music, just needed cash flow for the physical disc, right? Marillion did a bit of this - fans commit to buying the CD up front to subsidise the costs of recording. Well, why not? If they had decided to record their farts for 60 minutes fans would probably have been disappointed, and not invested up front again, but it would have been their call artistically, no? I hope you continue to do what you do, and that it is lucrative enough for your to continue. As a professional musician and teacher (like yourself), my wife makes less per hour than our window cleaner. Steve said: “This already exists to a degree with that site where you can pledge to pay for an album before it’s even been recorded, and when the band reaches a certain level of funding they go in and make the record… But I have to say that as a creative idealist, I still don’t like the idea of making records for a market like that.”

However even if fans “subscribe” to the new release, they don’t know in advance what they’re going to get. You’ve done this to a certain extent where we paid in advance for the CD and got “Lessons learned” as an added bonus for stumping up in advance. The difference is what stage in the process you get listeners involved with cash… For you it was at the point of pressing CDs so you had already committed the music, just needed cash flow for the physical disc, right? Marillion did a bit of this – fans commit to buying the CD up front to subsidise the costs of recording. Well, why not? If they had decided to record their farts for 60 minutes fans would probably have been disappointed, and not invested up front again, but it would have been their call artistically, no?

I hope you continue to do what you do, and that it is lucrative enough for your to continue. As a professional musician and teacher (like yourself), my wife makes less per hour than our window cleaner.

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