'Off the record' -Prospect

'Off the record' -Prospect

4 August 2007

CD sales have collapsed. Live shows, touring and merchandise income are robust. Prices for concerts are way up. Elton John charged a record $690 for top seats in Las Vegas.

Gerd Leonhard, a music business consultant, predicts that by 2010, recorded music sales will make up only 30 per cent of a successful label's revenues. The rest will be generated by artists' extra-musical brand extensions. Like those $20 T-shirts.
"Record sales as we know them are in long-term decline," says music business analyst Keith Jopling. "Whereas the wider music market—live, merchandising, streaming video and music social networking—is in rude health. After seven years of gradual change, we are about to see a major shift. Record companies are, at last, in a hurry to transform themselves into proper consumer marketing companies."

Private equity firm Terra Firma is buying EMI. The first thing they did was to discuss offloading the recorded music division. The only part they want is the licensing.

Clever bands don't even want to get signed by major labels anymore.

http://www.prospect-magazine.co.uk/article_details.php?id=9735

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