Regardless of what the actual numbers are, the success of this project from Radiohead’s perspective will not be based on how many people paid for the music in it’s digital form. It’s all about ancillary revenues for them.
Why do we insist on examining this effort in a vacuum, and start anticipating the follow-on effect? I’m guessing they will command an unprecedented fee to tour and play festivals this Spring / Summer 2008, and maybe (hopefully) go the Pearl Jam route wherein distributing /selling their live shows at a low cost via download. They will undoubtedly own the copyright of their material going forward, as their deal will in all likelihood be a licensing deal with XL (UK) and ATO/TBD Records (US).
Why did Paste Magazine allow subscribers to name their price? Simply to increase it’s distribution / readership in order to generate more advertising revenue.
Why did The Format (Nettwerk) allow people to download their year-old album Dog Problems for free from June 25 to July 15, 2007? So they cold use Google Analytics to tell them where people are downloading from in order to better focus their touring efforts.
Why does Trent Reznor want NIN music to be cheaper (or even free)? So more people can have the music to generate an interest in attending the live show when NIN tours. He knows touring revenues are the lifeblood of the industry going forward, and connecting with fans in a live environment will prolong his career.
I really like what he did with pricing option on the new Saul Williams release, 192 Kbps MP3s for free and 320 Kbps for $5.00 (with the option of uncompressed FLAC).
http://blog.wired.com/music/2007/11/choose-your-own.html
I think 192 Kbps is a formidable bit rate, the sound quality is good enough (for me) and the file size is very practical.
I have never listened to Saul Williams, but I will be downloading his new release. And guess what? If I like it and am entertained by it, I will probably purchase the CD and/or go check out his live show.
I am also willing to bet Trent and Saul are probably running Google Analytics on the site so they know how to better focus the touring efforts.
Radiohead Questions Album Sales Report, Sets CD Release Date — Digital Music News
