With an over five year break from music, you might think "Can't Believe" and "You Gets No Love" singer Faith Evans would be concerned about the condition of the industry and competition. According to Evans, there is no need to be apprehensive.
"I don't feel apprehensive at all. There are a group of people out there, no matter how big or small that are waiting for my record," Evans tells BV Buzz. "When people see me out at the baseball games and at the grocery stores, they inquire about my music and that makes me feel good. It lets me know that they're still waiting and that makes me excited."
Fast at work on a new album, Evans says the wait will be well worth it.
"I work based on my heart and how people make me feel," said Evans. "And I'm believing 100 percent that it will be well worth the wait."
As previously reported, Faith Evans will release the as-yet-untitled sixth studio album through E1 Music and her label Prolific Music Group
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Lady Gaga, Jay-Z set to play at Brit Awards show
LONDON — Chanteuse Lady Gaga is up for three awards as women dominate the shortlist for British music's Brit Awards in London on Tuesday.
Lady Gaga is scheduled to perform at Earl's Court arena during the ceremony, one of the biggest nights of the British music year.
She's nominated for best international female artist, best album and breakthrough act of the year.
Florence and the Machine, Pixie Lott and Lily Allen also have three nominations each.
British contenders include boy band JLS, Leona Lewis, Bat for Lashes, Paolo Nuttini and Dizzee Rascal, while former "Take That" member Robbie Williams will receive a special award for contribution to music.
Also due to perform are Jay-Z, Alicia Keys and Allen. A video message from Prince Harry is scheduled to give the show, which has sometimes taken a raucous turn in the past, a royal stamp of approval.
International nominees include Bruce Springsteen, Eminem, Jay-Z, Michael Buble and Shakira.
The awards are the British equivalent of the Grammys, with most winners selected by a vote of more than 1,000 industry members.
Source - AP
Lady Gaga is scheduled to perform at Earl's Court arena during the ceremony, one of the biggest nights of the British music year.
She's nominated for best international female artist, best album and breakthrough act of the year.
Florence and the Machine, Pixie Lott and Lily Allen also have three nominations each.
British contenders include boy band JLS, Leona Lewis, Bat for Lashes, Paolo Nuttini and Dizzee Rascal, while former "Take That" member Robbie Williams will receive a special award for contribution to music.
Also due to perform are Jay-Z, Alicia Keys and Allen. A video message from Prince Harry is scheduled to give the show, which has sometimes taken a raucous turn in the past, a royal stamp of approval.
International nominees include Bruce Springsteen, Eminem, Jay-Z, Michael Buble and Shakira.
The awards are the British equivalent of the Grammys, with most winners selected by a vote of more than 1,000 industry members.
Source - AP
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Warner Music Shoots Self In Head; Says No More Free Streaming
A few years back, it seemed like Warner Music actually had a better handle on where the music industry was heading than its 3 major label rivals. In the last two years, however, it seems like WMG has consistently gone further and further in the opposite direction. It may have hit a new low today with the announcement that it will pull out of all free streaming music licensing offers. Yes, Warner Music just told the one thing that was effectively competing with unauthorized downloads to shove off. Brilliant.
"Free streaming services are clearly not net positive for the industry and as far as Warner Music is concerned will not be licensed.
"The 'get all your music you want for free, and then maybe with a few bells and whistles we can move you to a premium price' strategy is not the kind of approach to business that we will be supporting in the future."
And thus, WMG will go out of business that much more quickly. That is the model that the market is moving to, and Bronfman and WMG appear to have decided to ignore what the market wants, to cover their eyes, stick fingers in their ears and go down with a ship that could easily be righted. Incredible.
Now, Warner may be a bit gun-shy after its investment in iMeem (a free online music streaming service) became a total disaster, but what Warner doesn't seem to realize is that a big part of why it failed was the ridiculous demands Warner put on iMeem in terms of how much it demanded in payment per stream. The problem is that WMG has totally unrealistic expectations of how much money should be paid per stream, and that's because the company's top execs still don't seem to handle basic economic modeling particularly well. And thus, the company will fail.
You don't compete with "free" by taking your ball and going home. You don't compete with "free" by pretending that old artificial scarcities are coming back after the wall has been broken down. You don't compete with "free" by suing customers. You don't compete with "free" by shunning those who have business models that work. You compete with free by offering a better product and a better business model. WMG is choosing to go in the other direction. Best of luck to them...
Source
"Free streaming services are clearly not net positive for the industry and as far as Warner Music is concerned will not be licensed.
"The 'get all your music you want for free, and then maybe with a few bells and whistles we can move you to a premium price' strategy is not the kind of approach to business that we will be supporting in the future."
And thus, WMG will go out of business that much more quickly. That is the model that the market is moving to, and Bronfman and WMG appear to have decided to ignore what the market wants, to cover their eyes, stick fingers in their ears and go down with a ship that could easily be righted. Incredible.
Now, Warner may be a bit gun-shy after its investment in iMeem (a free online music streaming service) became a total disaster, but what Warner doesn't seem to realize is that a big part of why it failed was the ridiculous demands Warner put on iMeem in terms of how much it demanded in payment per stream. The problem is that WMG has totally unrealistic expectations of how much money should be paid per stream, and that's because the company's top execs still don't seem to handle basic economic modeling particularly well. And thus, the company will fail.
You don't compete with "free" by taking your ball and going home. You don't compete with "free" by pretending that old artificial scarcities are coming back after the wall has been broken down. You don't compete with "free" by suing customers. You don't compete with "free" by shunning those who have business models that work. You compete with free by offering a better product and a better business model. WMG is choosing to go in the other direction. Best of luck to them...
Source
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Music Industry Counts the Cost of Piracy
PARIS — Worldwide sales of recorded music fell by about 10 percent last year, a trade group said Thursday, as revenue growth from digital services was insufficient to compensate for a continuing fall in sales of compact discs.
The group, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, used the publication of the figures as an opportunity to renew its calls for a tougher crackdown on digital piracy, which it blames for a 30 percent decline in global music sales from 2004 to 2009.
“We’re all fed up with talking about piracy,” said John Kennedy, chief executive of the trade group. “It’s boring talking about piracy, but it is the problem and we can’t avoid it.”
Critics say music companies have been too slow to embrace new online business models that are attractive enough to lure music fans away from pirate sites.
Over the past year, however, Internet streaming services like Spotify, which offer free listening, supported by advertising or subscriptions, have gained a growing following. Revenue from streaming is accelerating as growth in sales of digital downloads from services like Apple’s iTunes slows.
Global sales via the Internet, mobile phones and other digital methods rose 12 percent last year to $4.2 billion. Digital sources accounted for 27 percent of recording industry revenue, up from 21 percent a year earlier, the trade group said.
But sales of CDs fell by about 16 percent worldwide, causing overall industry revenue to decline to about $15.8 billion in 2009 from about $17.5 billion a year earlier, in figures adjusted for swings in exchange rates.
“Sadly, today we are not at the turning point,” Mr. Kennedy said. “I still hope that in a few years’ time, that point will come.” He said that the industry slump, which has persisted since a 2001 peak in revenue, was hurting the development of local music in a number of markets hit hard by piracy, as record labels have less money to invest in new artists.
In France, for example, the number of albums released by domestic artists has fallen by 60 percent, he said.
In Spain, where music sales have collapsed, there were no albums by domestic artists among the top 50 sellers last year, compared with 10 as recently as 2003, the music federation said. In a report, it blamed what it called a “culture of state-tolerated apathy toward illegal file-sharing.”
Worldwide, the industry federation says, 95 percent of the music downloaded via the Internet is pirated, a percentage that has not changed over the past year.
In recent months, governments in South Korea, Taiwan and France have enacted tough laws aimed at curbing unauthorized copying by authorizing the cutoff of persistent pirates’ Internet connections. Music executives want other governments to adopt such measures, which have encountered fierce resistance from civil liberties groups.
“It’s not enough for us to be proactive with our business partners,” said Eric Daugan, a senior vice president at Warner Music International. “We also need our governments to help.”
Source
The group, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, used the publication of the figures as an opportunity to renew its calls for a tougher crackdown on digital piracy, which it blames for a 30 percent decline in global music sales from 2004 to 2009.
“We’re all fed up with talking about piracy,” said John Kennedy, chief executive of the trade group. “It’s boring talking about piracy, but it is the problem and we can’t avoid it.”
Critics say music companies have been too slow to embrace new online business models that are attractive enough to lure music fans away from pirate sites.
Over the past year, however, Internet streaming services like Spotify, which offer free listening, supported by advertising or subscriptions, have gained a growing following. Revenue from streaming is accelerating as growth in sales of digital downloads from services like Apple’s iTunes slows.
Global sales via the Internet, mobile phones and other digital methods rose 12 percent last year to $4.2 billion. Digital sources accounted for 27 percent of recording industry revenue, up from 21 percent a year earlier, the trade group said.
But sales of CDs fell by about 16 percent worldwide, causing overall industry revenue to decline to about $15.8 billion in 2009 from about $17.5 billion a year earlier, in figures adjusted for swings in exchange rates.
“Sadly, today we are not at the turning point,” Mr. Kennedy said. “I still hope that in a few years’ time, that point will come.” He said that the industry slump, which has persisted since a 2001 peak in revenue, was hurting the development of local music in a number of markets hit hard by piracy, as record labels have less money to invest in new artists.
In France, for example, the number of albums released by domestic artists has fallen by 60 percent, he said.
In Spain, where music sales have collapsed, there were no albums by domestic artists among the top 50 sellers last year, compared with 10 as recently as 2003, the music federation said. In a report, it blamed what it called a “culture of state-tolerated apathy toward illegal file-sharing.”
Worldwide, the industry federation says, 95 percent of the music downloaded via the Internet is pirated, a percentage that has not changed over the past year.
In recent months, governments in South Korea, Taiwan and France have enacted tough laws aimed at curbing unauthorized copying by authorizing the cutoff of persistent pirates’ Internet connections. Music executives want other governments to adopt such measures, which have encountered fierce resistance from civil liberties groups.
“It’s not enough for us to be proactive with our business partners,” said Eric Daugan, a senior vice president at Warner Music International. “We also need our governments to help.”
Source
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