Pay what you want?

[Mr. Brian]

I am sure by now everyone is aware that Radiohead let its contract with EMI expire and self-released it's new album "In Rainbows" via download for whatever people want to pay. (Kind of like the lounge piano players who leave a tip jar out I guess). Then they will have a more elaborate physical media release later that will have a fixed price.

The logic here is that most of the money for a band is really made in publishing rights, tours and merchandise, so why not just let people decide what they want to pay?

Forget about the fact that EATB are signed to Warner now...It seems to me that the Bunnymen haven't really sold a significant amount of new material in a decade except to the truest of fans, so why not adopt this model? The truest of fans will pay and people that wouldn't have bought it anyway would at least get to hear it.

Or will this only work for bands that have a current HUGE following?

[moondance]

I think only bands that will make huge amounts of money from sales will do this.

[Frank The Bunny]

I think it would be a good business model for the Bunnymen.

Honestly, with recording & production costs, I don't know if they broke even with the Cooking Vinyl releases.

The deal with Warner is a double-edged sword:
They will have greater exposure and a better promotional budget behind them. However, it's my understanding that the Bunnymen still owe buckets of money to Warner from back in the '80s. So, this signing with the megalith label may be a sort of slavery, with the Bunnymen recording and releasing records to pay off their back debt.

Where the money is: touring & tour merchandise

[moses (2)]

I think it would be a good business model for the Bunnymen.

Honestly, with recording & production costs,

However, it's my understanding that the Bunnymen still owe buckets of money to Warner from back in the '80s. So, this signing with the megalith label may be a sort of slavery, with the Bunnymen recording and releasing records to pay off their back debt.

Where the money is: touring & tour merchandise

when I was in a band and dealing with a record label the contracts we saw where frightening particularly the clause that we llend you money (sorry I meant advance - you give us the rigts to your songs for that money - we then sell your songs making back what we leant you .. oh and by the way .. you still owe us the money we gave to you so that we could make money off you..

Now that I am in a different business I see this very much differently ...
the best model would be to lease your music to the record company -for a defined period and an upfront licensing fee (after all they are paying you for the privelege to sell your music)-- when that period expries say on the expiration of the contract then the record company no longer have the right to your music -- re-releases of course could then be renegotiated for a royalty payment etc or revisting the licenseing deal.

The best way to do it is to ensure you supply to the record company all the artwork, music etc and rent/lease that to them and you get a royalty payment for each album sold - i.e payed for the song and also the artwork, in some cases even use of the band name .. then you pay back the money leant .. you

This works in the pharmaceutical industry where most licensing delas are for 10 years




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[Red]

This works in the pharmaceutical industry where most licensing delas are for 10 years

you don't, by any chance, work for Elan, do you?

[moses (2)]

This works in the pharmaceutical industry where most licensing delas are for 10 years

you don't, by any chance, work for Elan, do you?

No not for Elan - although they have mastered this model

[Seven Seas]

If EATB does what Radiohead did with this idea, it looks like then, it'll be time for them to pack it in.

[Dave Smith]

Well I paid £o.oo to download the Radiohead album.I also paid £45 to see them live last year so I think they owe me one.

[JackT]

It turns out the majority of customers chose to pay NOTHING for the Radiohead album.

[black francis]

It turns out the majority of customers chose to pay NOTHING for the Radiohead album.

I couldn't be bothered to pay nothing for tuneless third rate avante garde crap. After OK Computer I think they believed their own press.

I thought I was pretentious.

[Lancashire Fusileer]

only rich and successful stars a la Radiohead and George Michael do this kind of stuff. Gettin back to your roots , communicating direct blah blah. radiohead are fucking irrelevant as a band tbh. Have been for years

Personally I'd LOVE to see EATB actually whipped into recording and creating new stuff by Warners, iron out the indulgences, forced to play new/different stuff in gigs, get them and their legacy back on track instead of it constantly being pawned off. [/s]

[Grumpy_Jimbo]

It turns out the majority of customers chose to pay NOTHING for the Radiohead album.

But it is estimated they made roughly £ 4.8 million from sales so far, and all this money goes direct to the band. They have now also signed a deal with XL .....

There was really good article which i'll have to look out from Roddy Womble of Idlewild regarding this, he more or less said that only well established and wealthy groups could do this..........

[JackT]

It turns out the majority of customers chose to pay NOTHING for the Radiohead album.

But it is estimated they made roughly £ 4.8 million from sales so far, and all this money goes direct to the band. They have now also signed a deal with XL .....

There was really good article which i'll have to look out from Roddy Womble of Idlewild regarding this, he more or less said that only well established and wealthy groups could do this..........

Interesting.

[Mr. Brian]

It turns out the majority of customers chose to pay NOTHING for the Radiohead album.

But it is estimated they made roughly £ 4.8 million from sales so far, and all this money goes direct to the band. They have now also signed a deal with XL .....

There was really good article which i'll have to look out from Roddy Womble of Idlewild regarding this, he more or less said that only well established and wealthy groups could do this..........

Interesting.

Yeah I heard 6-10 million dollars.

http://blog.wired.com/music/2007/10/estimates-radio.html

[JackT]

I wonder if this model would continue to work once the public became used to it.