20/07 :  A barking mad idea that will revolutionise and liberate the music industry

    Slowly the impact of the internet on the music industry becomes clear: the success of bit torrent systems and music download sites show that you want to get your music for free, but you are also willing to pay for music.
In that sense you can compare music with water; you can get water out of the tap for free, but you also decide to go out and travel to a supermarket to pay for bottled water. As for music, you can use many peer-to-peer systems and get your mp3's for free, but you also buy tracks from iTunes and eMusic or buy cd's and vinyl records in stores on the high street.

You know there is always an apatite for buying music, but the current music industry seems too much focused on the business side and gets lost in the desire to earn loads of easy money in a short period of time. Greed has taken over the mindset of the major record labels and push their exploitation to the limit on their most precious assets ... the composers. Also the major labels see the opportunities of the internet as a threat and are willing to impose fear on their most precious source of income ... you!
Does that also sound like the ultimate loose-loose situation to you? If so, you understand that this imbalance cannot survive on the long term.

What we need is a revolution to liberate the music industry with as result that we pay for music, but with the feeling that we get it for free. In this balance we achieve a win-win between bands and fans.

All the lawyers in the world cannot prevent this revolution and you will play a vital role in making it happen.
Think of the possibilities when bands and fans come together with the aim to give each other what they want. It will become a marketplace that is built on a win-win between the makers and consumers of music.
In order to achieve this, you need a barking mad idea. Read the rest ...

04/10 :  Finally the artists are claiming their fair share

   The past years many new initiatives started to bring music to the consumers. Think of the legal iTunes Store and eMusic or illegal file sharing applications. The most recent music deal is between Nokia and the music industry. You would expect that the artists are part of any negotiations, but that is not the case.
Now the artists are bundling their collective power and fight back in an organised attempt to get more control over their work. They call themselves the Featured Artists' Coalition. Many well known names like Robbie Williams, Iron Maiden and Radiohead are joining this coalition.
Read the rest ...

03/10 :  Nokia announces a new music service in the same week when Apple threatens to close the iTunes Store

   Two interesting news articles this week.
First Apple makes the statement that the iTunes Store (iTS) exists to make money. So any initiative from record labels and publishing companies to get a bigger slice of the cake forces Apple to increase the prices on the iTS. As Apple does not want to increase prices, they rather seem to prefer to full the plug. Very unlikely, but still an official statement from the company that relies on the success of the iPod and iTunes in order to stay profitable.
On the other hand we have Nokia announcing a new music service, offering unlimited music downloads on pay-as-you-go phones. All of the major labels are on board, and Nokia announced it was also partnering with several independent labels. The deal allows 12 months of unlimited free downloads, but users can keep the music they have downloaded indefinitely. So it seems DRM is out of the door. Read the rest ...

02/09 :  Record label prevents own artist to become US number 1

   Warner has prevented its own successful UK artist Estelle to become number 1 on the US chart because it has removed her latest album 'Shine' from iTunes. This because the record label wants "to force fans to buy the whole album, not just individual songs".

Estelle was UK number 1 in March 2008 with the song 'American Boy' which also features Kanye West. This song was in the iTunes top 10 in the US before its removal. It was also at 11 on the official Billboard singles chart - but has now dropped to number 37.

Read the rest ...

24/07 :  Hunt for illegal downloaders enters a new phase in the UK

   The biggest UK internet providers and music industry representatives are working on a plan to introduce a tax to offset the loss of income due to illegal music download. Additionally, those suspected of illegal downloading will be warned by the internet providers. Read the rest ...