Sunday, October 12, 2008

The Future of Publishing (Part 1)

Ugh, every time I come back to blogspot, the whole thing is in Arabic because it can tell from my IP that I am located in the Middle East. Even the link to where you can switch the language is in Arabic, and I can't read that language. This is fairly frustrating, but I think I have figured out which set of shapes is the link to switch languages.

Anyway, someone in the comments of my last comments mentioned how artists are now getting a financial cut of downloaded tracks. This is great, however, it only works if people use legitimate sites such as iTunes to download their music. The truth is, is that a large percentage of people are downloading through programs such as Limewire, or if you are more hip to tech, Bittorent. Heck, this blog format we use is a notorious method through which people distribute copies of albums. Just Google "blogspot" and "name of artist/album" and you will find a blog that will first review that album and then, usually in the comments section, provide a link to download a zipped folder containing the entire album. Try it, you can find pretty much every album no matter how rare. I occasionally use it to find albums that have never even made it to CD and it works.

So, what the heck? What are artists doing to sell their albums if this piracy is going on? Well, certain artists, such as Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails have decided to bypass the traditional method of distributing albums and figured they would try something new. They released their albums online for download with the option to pay any amount you feel they deserve. They also provided deluxe packages of their albums that came with special booklets or DVDs to buy. This way you could still have the physical media if you still wanted it, and they threw in some special whatnots for you. This method turned out to make quite a lot of money for the artists. Many people did pay for the album, and since they did this themselves, there was no cut of profits sucked up by the record labels. This is great for the established musician, but what of those people starting out? Is it hard for a band to make money when their album is being downloaded for free or a minimal price? Well, it ends up acting as an advertisement and draws more people to their concerts which in turn gives good income to the band. This will cause a resurgence, or a kind of throwback to the days predating the Beatles non-touring-concept-album years, when bands made most of their money through touring, and not the sales of the record.

But what of authors? Most can't go and sell out a large venue. Not everybody can be Mark Twain. But there is someting else. Something that is building momentum. A new way of distribution and looking at publishing that will quickly change the way all people create, buy and consume information.

However, it is very late here and I have to get up early for work, so I will complete that cliffhanger in the morning. Sorry.

2 comments:

Andromeda Jazmon said...

Ooo you left us hanging! What is this new way of distribution?

LibraryGirl said...

Very interesting. I'm anxious to hear more. Thanks for the information.