Rediscovering Linkin Park
Oh man, I love digital music and hate people that want to take it away from me.
The big wigs in the music industry hate that we want control of our music and are in total denial about the market for music. Check out this article from Wired that calls out all the attitudes I hate. They are thinking in terms of their profit margins and not in terms of adapting to the current market conditions or finding new business models. I love this quote:
“It was only a couple of years ago that we said, What’s going on here?’ Really, an album that someone worked on for two years — is that worth only $9, $10, when people pay two bucks for coffee in Starbucks?” Morris sighs.
Yes, I know the music industry is angry that iTunes set the price at $.99 and think people should be forced to buy full CD’s and deal with it. But here’s the thing… they are in complete denial that the long tail exists. There is a ton of music that I’ve been buying that I wouldn’t buy if it was $14 for the full CD.
It is much the same as I wrote in my post about Cult of the Amateur and how I can’t feel any sympathy for the profit margins of of a big company. I just can’t. They need to wake up and figure out that consumers want control and technology provides the tools to make that possible.
It is just like the movie industry refusing to acknowledge that the world has changed. They should be looking at the music industry and try to get ahead of the curve. I’m not saying they need to lose money (I’m all for making money!) but they do need to get with the program. Selling a physical DVD for $15 or an online movie purchase for $15 is one thing but the fact I buy it online and get less for the same price is some crazy logic. I don’t even want the outtakes but knowing that someone else gets them for the same price drives me nuts. And if I buy the physical DVD can I rip it to my iPod? Nope… they want me to also buy the digital version.
When I worked sales it was called “porking” and no one likes it. You have to offer value if you want customers to stay customers. Instead, these guys think they own the world and we need to be thankful for what they offer. Keep in mind that it is the artists who are the artists and the rest of these folks are part of a support organization. The problem is that the times they are a-changin.
Lower development costs, digital distribution, online reviews and guides, and all kinds of other benefits are already benefiting the market. Just the fact that I can learn about music from my friends and sample before buying lowers my frequency of buyers remorse.
The other thing that cracks me up is when the music industry does try to play nice they still want “nice” defined on their own terms. The idea that I have to buy a music subscription and pay monthly is a model I won’t ever want. I do get it… I’ve liked the concept of Rhapsody and the other services and have friends who subscribe but I really like to own things and not have to go back time and again. Licensing schemes just always seem more restrictive or end up biting me in the ass in one way or another. Now- would something like that work in an office environment or a college where we want to provide a music source that people can customize and enjoy while on site? Sure! Would I want that tied to my personal music collection? No way.
Anyway, all this started because I’ve found a bunch of old music on my ipod (all legally purchased too). I’ve been especially enjoying some Linkin Park. I was thinking about the song “In the End” while writing my “goodbye eBay” email and was able to call it up on the iPod and listen to it in real time. Then I went and listened to the other songs I liked of theirs on iTunes and bought a few more that I had not previously owned. Simple and smooth and now they’re in my collection for all times.
PS- I’m still pissed at NBC for not selling the new season of 30 Rock on iTunes. Sigh. Lemon out.