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josh_junk
- FB Fan -
11 Posts |
 Posted - 03/19/2003 : 08:11:15
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By Frank Green
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
By Frank Green
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
March 17, 2003
Phish fans no longer have to drive to various venues to hear the rock band's concerts.
Every note the group has played in dozens of live performances since the beginning of the year is now available for downloading at the band's Web site for about $12 per show.
So far, half of the downloads have been made by fans who were at a particular show and who wanted the music as a souvenir, while the other half are from people who just have to have everything the band plays, said a representative for the group.
The music business, slammed by a steep decline in CD sales caused by piracy and other factors, has found a promising new revenue stream: live recordings for sale on the Internet or available on CDs immediately after performances.
HearItAgain.net and DiscLive are among several fledgling companies that contract with rock acts, follow them around the country recording their concerts, and then market the goods in cyberspace.
One analyst who follows the music business said he expects that at least half of the touring bands in the United States will soon be recording the bulk of their on-the-road sets as a way of making extra cash.
"This makes a lot of sense because it's an easy way for labels and bands to do something different and it provides incremental income," said Phil Leigh, an analyst who covers the music industry for Raymond James & Associates.
The trend to capture live music comes a few years after House of Blues, a nightclub chain, began a successful project offering concerts by B.B. King, Stone Temple Pilots and other stars recorded at many of its clubs for later viewing on the Internet at about $8 each.
Concertgoers who attended the House of Blues performances also can retrieve pictures of themselves in the crowd.
The Grateful Dead, among a few other bands, long ago realized that there was gold to be mined in live performances.
More than 20 volumes of the Dead's "Dick's Picks" series of live sets have been released in the past 10 years on the group's own label, typically on unedited, two-CD albums.
Some music industry observers wonder if there will be enough of a market on the Internet for concert music, especially from minor acts.
"Ninety percent of, say, Bruce Springsteen's shows are virtually the same," said Dave Marsh, publisher of Rock and Rap Confidential newsletter and a former editor at Rolling Stone magazine.
Ordering more than one or two of Springsteen's concerts on the Internet "could be a roll of the dice," Marsh said.
In the United States, sales of prerecorded music, primarily CDs, fell last year by 11 percent to $11.95 billion, according to David Barrington, a researcher at Music Week World.
U.S. sales are expected to drop 6.3 percent this year and 1.7 percent in 2004, Barrington said.
Most major record labels, including BMG Entertainment, EMI, Sony Music Entertainment, Universal MusicGroup and Warner Music Group, have initiated cyberspace ventures such as MusicNet, Pressplay and San Diego-based EMusic.
These fledgling subscription services which largely offer studio albums for downloading are expected to enjoy steady growth in the next five years, according to a recent study by the Internet research firm Jupiter Media Matrix.
Jupiter forecasts that digital music sales from Internet subscriptions and single-pay downloads will reach $1.6 billion in 2006.
Of that, $1 billion is expected to come from subscriptions alone.
Companies like HearItAgain.net are betting that fans once they have purchased their favorite acts' records on the Web also will want a big helping of concert sounds.
"There's a strong concert aftermarket that isn't being taken advantage of right now," said Mike Corso, president of Chappaqua, N.Y.-based HearItAgain.net. "We do not believe in selling one or two performances from a tour, but every performance."
Corso said the company will soon begin digitallyrecording all of the concerts by Frank Black, the former leader of the Pixies. HearItAgain.net also offers concert downloads from jazz musicians Benny Carter, Earl Hines and Poncho Sanchez.
Additionally, the company is in negotiations with six major rock bands to go on the road with them, with microphones in hand, Corso said.
Within two days after a concert, HearItAgain.net will master and encode files to the MP3 digital music format and store them at its Web site for downloading. The price per concert will be about $11.95.
Corso said the company will offer acts a 33 percent royalty on sales, and if the recordings do especially well, the cut could climb to 50 percent.
"That compares to record labels' royalties, which typically pay only 10 percent to 12 percent," Corso said.
Limited-edition CDs
New York City-based DiscLive said it likewise plans to send its engineers on tour with performers to record and produce limited-edition CDs that will be made available to concertgoers as they leave the show.
Fans will be able to order the CDs on the Internet before the show and at kiosks in the concert hall.
The company, which comprises several former Columbia and BMG record executives, said it also might enter into deals with some bands to archive their concerts on the Internet for later sale.
"Our business provides labels and artists with a risk-free opportunity to extend the investment on their brand," said Rich Isaacson, chief executive officer of DiscLive and former president of the hip-hop label Loud Records.
Isaacson said the price of DiscLive's CDs will depend on an artist's popularity.
The company expects to announce the signing of several major acts in the next several weeks.
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mereubu
= FB QuizMistress =
USA
2677 Posts |
Posted - 03/19/2003 : 08:19:44
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| Woo-hoo! Thanks! |
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the swimmer
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1602 Posts |
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big_galoof
= Cult of Ray =
USA
310 Posts |
Posted - 03/19/2003 : 09:27:09
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this is truly revolutionary... as a broadband user, i hope they encode these shows as SHNs in addition to MP3s. even so, nearly instant access to *every* live FB show (recorded through the soundboard, i assume) will be astonishing.
TBG
visit the big galoof's frank black trade list here:
http://www.mediablazedesign.com/tl/tradelist.htm |
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FranknWeezer
= Cult of Ray =
USA
356 Posts |
Posted - 03/19/2003 : 12:45:36
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"The trend to capture live music comes a few years after House of Blues, a nightclub chain, began a successful project offering concerts by B.B. King, Stone Temple Pilots and other stars recorded at many of its clubs for later viewing on the Internet at about $8 each.
Concertgoers who attended the House of Blues performances also can retrieve pictures of themselves in the crowd."
You know, FB just played House of Blues in New Orleans (see my review in the show reviews section), so I wonder if we can check that out online? I looked for the link on hob.com, but it doesn't seem to be an available option. Somebody help!
-FranknWeezer |
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Itchload
= Cult of Ray =
USA
891 Posts |
Posted - 03/19/2003 : 16:18:58
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| Sounds great, although 12 bucks sounds a little steep..for just MP3s. |
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Arm Arm Arm
* Dog in the Sand *
1036 Posts |
Posted - 03/20/2003 : 21:42:59
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I would love it if this happens; not only would it be great to get FB & the C's...but other bands as well.
cheers |
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theonecontender
= Cult of Ray =
Canada
565 Posts |
Posted - 03/21/2003 : 00:15:11
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I just thought of something.. This plan, as great as it is, might actually threaten this wicked ftp site that the crew's got going (wicked shit!) because then there would be loss to Frank's cash if it's distributed here for free. It's a possibility. Perhaps Frank got the idea to sell the sets from how popular his live mp3's are becoming.. Either way, it will lead to more live tunes, which is a great thing.
1c |
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El Barto
= Song DB Master =
USA
4020 Posts |
Posted - 03/21/2003 : 13:45:59
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| I'm sure if it came down to that, we would immedietely shut down the FTP. We'd prefer to keep this site legal and running. |
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Itchload
= Cult of Ray =
USA
891 Posts |
Posted - 03/21/2003 : 14:47:45
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| Frank seems pretty on top of things industry wise, he was the first artist to sell albums over internet in MP3 form and he's one of the first to do this live show thing. |
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