Comments on: Online Music: Balancing The Scales Of 'Free'

By: Digital Economy Bill – My Relevant Posts In One Handy List « SoloBassSteve.com: Shiny Happy People Blogging…

Wed, 07 Apr 2010 17:25:09 +0000

[...] oh, and the point in this one about spending on Entertainment Media being WAY up, is vital… http://www.stevelawson.net/2009/11/online-music-balancing-the-scales-of-free/ [...]

By: Independence for Bands: 101 Pt. 2 « Rich Huxley AKA TheHuxCapacitor

Independence for Bands: 101 Pt. 2 « Rich Huxley AKA TheHuxCapacitor — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 09:36:29 +0000

[...] Often ignored however is how the advances in recording technology, dramatically reduces the costs of making music, and how the internet can almost entirely eliminate the distribution costs which often saw artists drawn into debt with their record labels; the fantastic Steve Lawson discusses that here in Balancing the Scales of “Free”. [...]

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 16:35:17 +0000

One thing that sticks out to me about how young people are consuming music is that while music in and of itself doesn’t seem to be a dominant form of entertainment, music does seem to be more ubiquitous. It is in the video games, films, etc. In fact those same teenagers that no longer own a stereo may in fact be listening to more music than I was when I was a teenager. This is anecdotal, but it seems that some kids never take those earbuds out!

While this may seem odd to older generations, just as texting amongst friends is not considered rude to teenagers, having music constantly playing could be part of an overall experience that teens create for themselves, and not an act of exclusion. Music is actually a soundtrack to their lives and not exclusively a form of entertainment in and of itself.

This could be damaging to musician’s egos as we all would love to think that our music would cause the listener to drop what they’re doing and just take it all in, but I’m not sure that’s the world we live in anymore.

The debate on how musicians can make a living in this environment will continue, but I suspect that it is one of these young consumers that will have that one idea that will change the course of the music industry, since it’s obviously looking for direction right now.

By: Rich Huxley

Rich Huxley — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:29:20 +0000

I love this subject. So emotive, so loaded and with so many statistics and surveys to be hurled at it; depending on which side of the argument serves our personal expedience.

I’m firmly with you Steve that there are huge benefits to the free distribution of music. When I think how many CD’s labels and PRs working with my music sent to promote our music, I’m almost ashamed.

Music has always been free to those in the industry. When we were courted by Beggars Banquet we went to their vaults. “Take whatever you want” they said. “Cool” we thought. Now I think “all recoup-able against those artists incomings record sales”. Sorry Basement Jaxx.

Jessie, I agree that the mp3 form has little intrinsic worth. That’s why I think it’s still important to have a physical release available for those who want it. Give the people what they want. The mp3 is a great medium for sharing though, and the key is that if people want to pay you money, they can. We also have the option of doing/making “Special” events/artefacts. Most importantly though, people buy from artists (Particularly independent artists) because they want to give them money, not because they want to pay for something. They want to support the artist.

Love the infograms Simon. Great find.

By: Simon Fairbairn

Simon Fairbairn — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 13:59:51 +0000

Check out this from The Times Lab.

http://labs.timesonline.co.uk/blog/2009/11/12/do-music-artists-do-better-in-a-world-with-illegal-file-sharing/

It’s a chart that suggests that artists are actually benefiting from activities on the internet and it’s only the record labels that are really losing out.

Nice.

By: Jessie

Jessie — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 13:24:17 +0000

An Inconvenient Music Truth – I like that. It often occurs to me as I consider whether to purchase an mp3 album, that isn’t it a little silly to pay for what I could doubtless locate and own for free? My history in various copyright protection societies prevents me, however the upshot is that music in mp3 form seems to be worth little. It might contain the same sounds as a cd or vinyl record, but it’s the tangibility and scarcity of a physical product that really matters to me, along with added value like liner notes and art, when it’s music I care about.

By: Alun Vaughan

Alun Vaughan — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 21:05:16 +0000

Great post Steve, I love the comparison with radio play – a great way to think of it. And for what it’s worth, my experience is that getting a song onto a cover CD of a magazine, even one that is very supportive of the artist in question, is still VERY expensive.