I used to waste time worrying about distribution...not any more!

david wrote:
However, I really do believe that recorded music is still the fundemental of the industry even though a handful of acts make hundreds of millions doing huge arena tours all over the world.

I didn't mean to suggest there's a choice between "records or gigs"... more that the audio recording as a product is in decline both on CD and download, and there's a lot more to content than just the record, or the video of the record.

For sure, there's still money in recordings but the music industry of the future won't (in my view) centre on the record, the release of the record and the chart position. And certainly not on a chart which is based more on the similarity between acts than the differences.

There are many things acts need to rediscover about being acts now that records are less central. Another angle would be the indie band that makes a living on merchandise.

It's my guess (and it was 3 years ago) that Steve Jobs started iTunes with an eye more on video than music. His Pixar (and now Disney) background, the QuickTime engine and the long running Apple trailers site were always about video. It's not a given that iTunes will carry on selling records the way Our Price used to.

Consider also the U2 iPod, and bear in mind the flash memory shuffles are already cheaper than CDs if you wanted to sell them loaded... with a 'free' player thrown in. What's the betting The Beatles catalogue will be available on a Beatles player?

Whatever the future looks like I'm sure there will be surprises for everyone - myself included - and I have serious doubts new technology will settle for selling audio recordings from an online shop. It's worth remembering consumer electronics dwarfs the music industry financially (there's a theory that CD's sold hi-fi systems), and so do games, film and many other segments of home entertainment.

I think we'll see big changes in 5 to 10 years.

Great thread with lots of excellent ideas. What will happen if the future is 'everything included' in your monthly broadband cost. IE you can download whatever you like and copyright holders will receive payment (in pennies, or even percentages of pennies per song). Hopefully it will mean millions of people downloading thousands of songs. This could set the cat among the pigeons.

Bemuso wrote:
[quote]david wrote:
(snip, snip)

It's my guess (and it was 3 years ago) that Steve Jobs started iTunes with an eye more on video than music. His Pixar (and now Disney) background, the QuickTime engine and the long running Apple trailers site were always about video. It's not a given that iTunes will carry on selling records the way Our Price used to.

(snip, snip)
I think we'll see big changes in 5 to 10 years.
news from the frontline. I was reading in a French trade mag that downloads of movies and things have started well in France. One site boasts 350,000 visits day and sells 200 ("and growing"). But what was really interesting is WHAT people are choosing to buy. Number one was episodes of the 60s cartoon series "les Shadoks". This would be like "The Pink Panther" topping the charts. The number two was the TV news from the day you were born.

Some good points again Rob.

There's always been some artists whose entertainment business
emcompass everything from records, videos, films, tours, acting,
merchandising, TV commercials, sponsorship, authoring novels
and having their own perfume and underwear brands..

So it's all out there for those who wanna chase it - and then there's people
who couldn't care less about all that and prefer to run a recording company
that doesn't involve itself in chasing externals.

For some "The World Is Not Enough" and for others a million or two is
enough to get by on - without all the other baggage.

Personally I have little interest in live shows and getting into that side
of the business .. it's like live theatre versa making films.

I choose films anyday, so in the music game I chose making records.

It really is a case of what ever works for you - a record company doesn't have to translate to a multi-faceted entertainment company if it so chooses.

For some, going down that path will be their downfall because that really does require a lot more expertise and energy to work all of those elements.

Lot's of savvy staff with skills and top market contacts plus a budget
with plenty of zeros at the end of the number.

For some it pays off and they make a hundred million or a billion -
so good for them.

But you sure have to get the puzzle right and have all the resources
made available to you - usually through one of the big 4 companies
(Universal, Sony BMG, EMI-Virgin, Warner).

If it's all out of your own pocket then you better take care not to lose
your house and end up in the unemployment queues.

If you're gonna play the multi entertainment business then you need something/someone who will capture the public's and media's immagination
that can make it work. Robbie Williams is a sure fire hit .. EMI poured a ton of dough to ensure that was the case. But it all could have easily gone horribly wrong - just look what happened to his Take That band mate
whose solo career went nowhere.

A company has to have deep enough pockets to ride out a flop
as well as enjoy success when it strikes.

Video isn't the be all and end all - in fact music video is no longer
the attention grabber that it once was.

The zillions of kids in Internet land all download audio only MP3 tracks
in the billions .. there's no video in all of those peer-to-peer files
changing hands*.

(*ok there's many types of files being swapped - but the big daddy
of them all is audio only music files)

For most they don't mind seeing a music video on TV but I think everyone
tires of them in a very short while.

Let's face it, music TV shows are on the wane - MTV now broadcasts
a variety of programming content away from the music video format
it was originally styled upon.

The golden wheel of fortune continues to spin - there's always another
Crazy Frog waiting in the wings for the right moment to hit.

David

David you make some really good points here and it is all to easy to get caught up in all kinds of activities. For my 2 pennys and after reading your comments i think it is important to specialise in a couple of areas where you have passion and build on it. Start small but perhaps limit yourself to a maximum 4 activities for example.

1. Downloads
2. Video (cheap/arty and only if you enjoy filming).
3. Events (gigs/parties)
4. Physical (vinyl/CD/DVD)

You can think of and add your own but as a band/artist it is important to narrow down your activities and concentrate on them.

Your website is GOLD and all marketing activities must point to your site where you can monetise the above and more.

But great points David.