-
Piracy Is A Bad Thing, Right?
April 16, 2010
Have an opinion? Add your comment below. -
"Most experts we spoke with and the literature we reviewed observed that despite significant efforts, it is difficult, if not impossible, to quantify the net effect of counterfeiting and piracy on the economy as a whole."
-- From the GAO (Government Accountability Office) report on 'INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY - Observations on Efforts to Quantify the Economic Effects of Counterfeit and Pirated Goods' released this past week (Full report here: http://tinyurl.com/y2zbr7d )There's little doubt that piracy and counterfeiting have had an adverse effect on many industries. Total revenue from U.S. music sales and licensing plunged to $6.3 billion in 2009, according to Forrester Research. In 1999, that revenue figure topped $14.6 billion.
While much of the loss can be blamed on piracy, illegal P2P sharing, counterfeiting, etc., there are a lot of other reasons for the decline in revenues as well. I went over some of the reasons why I believe other factors have contributed to the decrease in revenues back in February in my article "The State Of The (Music Industry) Union."
Now comes the GAO Report. This from CNET's Greg Sandoval: It was a year ago that Congress asked the GAO "to quantify the size and scope of piracy, including the impacts of Web piracy to the film and music industries. In a report issued Monday, the GAO said most of the published information, anecdotal evidence, and records show that piracy is a drag on the U.S. economy, tax revenue and in some cases potentially threatens national security and public health. But the problem is, according to the GAO, the data used to quantify piracy isn't reliable."
"Some experts we interviewed and literature we reviewed identified potential positive economic effects of counterfeiting and piracy," The GAO wrote. "Some consumers may knowingly purchase a counterfeit or pirated product because it is less expensive than the genuine good or because the genuine good is unavailable, and they may experience positive effects from such purchases. Consumers may use pirated goods to 'sample' music, movies, software, or electronic games before purchasing legitimate copies," the GAO continued. "(This) may lead to increased sales of legitimate goods."
To be sure, the GAO found evidence that piracy is large and harmful. But if leaders of the media world were hoping for a government document that proved their many claims that piracy and counterfeiting cost it billions every year and cost the U.S. economy jobs and revenue, then they will be disappointed because this report wasn't that document."
Read the rest here: http://tinyurl.com/y3mngmo
To see a graphic based on the IFPI Report 'The Music Industry And Online Piracy By The Numbers' click here: http://tinyurl.com/y3jlv22
-----------------------------
THE 'A-SIDE' - TRACK 2
TV WASTELAND, IT'S ONLY TV WASTELAND: CONAN GOES TO TBS
"In three months I've gone from network television to Twitter to performing live in theaters, and now I'm headed to basic cable. My plan is working perfectly.'" Conan O'Brien in a TBS statement announcing his new late-night show.
After weeks and weeks of speculation that Conan O'Brien was all but about to sign a deal with Fox for his late-night talk show, he announced this week he had made a deal instead with TBS.
While some may think the move is less than what Conan could have gotten elsewhere, his move to cable is indeed a smart one. For one thing, Conan doesn't have to deliver the kind of big network ratings he had to on NBC to be successful on TBS.
For even more insight on Conan's move, ready Jerry Del Colliano's post, "Conan On TBS -- Smart?" here: http://tinyurl.com/yclp659
-----------------------------
THE 'A-SIDE' - TRACK 3
THE NEXT MAJOR TECH SHIFT IS ALREADY UNDERWAY
From GigaOm
The modern world is presently experiencing it fifth major technology cycle of the past half a century, according to the latest "State of the Internet" report from Mary Meeker, Morgan Stanley's managing director and global technology research head. In what shouldn't come as a shock to ATN readers, the two key trends driving this latest shift are mobile and social networking.
Within the next five years "more users will connect to the Internet over mobile devices than desktop PCs," according to Meeker. Also -- based on adoption rates of iPhone/iPod Touch compared to that of AOL and Netscape in the early 1990s -- Meeker says that mobile Internet usage is increasing substantially faster than desktop Internet usage did. Indeed, adoption of the Apple devices is taking place more than 11 times faster that of AOL, and several times as fast as that of Netscape. Supporting this trend is 3G technology, which Morgan Stanley says recently hit an "inflection point" by being available to more than 20% of the world's cellular users.
Read about it here: http://tinyurl.com/ybrgmgz
-----------------------------
THE 'A-SIDE' - TRACK 4
More Than 40% of iPad Users Own iPhone, Earn More Than $100,000
Apple announced last Thursday that 450,000 iPads had been sold since arriving in stores the prior Saturday. So who are these early adopters? Not surprisingly, they look a lot like iPhone owners. In fact, 43% already have iPhones and nearly half (48.7%) own iPod touch devices, according to a new iPad user survey from iPhone- and iPad-centric mobile ad network AdColony.
Among other findings, the firm found that 44.3% have a household income level of $100,000 or more and 58% have bachelor's or graduate or other professional degrees. More than two-thirds (65.5%) are male, and 34.5% are female.
Read the rest here: http://tinyurl.com/y5m87co
-----------------------------
The Music Industry Past, Present & Future, And The Internet
I answer questions on EconTalk
I recently did an interview about the industry and the Internet at EconTalk with host Russ Roberts. Russ is also a professor of economics at George Mason University, blogs at Cafe Hayek, and has written three novels that teach economics. He's also the co-creator of the Keynes-Hayek rap video. (And if your understanding of the economic meltdown needs some enlightened, this video will do it)
In the interview we talk about the evolution of the music industry, the impact of the digital revolution, and I give my reasons for believing in the virtues and potential of the Internet in enhancing the music industry. I point out, as I have many times here in the newsletter, that the internet allows numerous artists to make money from their music and it can enhance revenues from live performances by expanding an artist's base. We also discuss the challenges facing record companies and I suggest that the full potential of the Internet as a distribution channel has yet to be fully exploited. There's a lot of ground covered, but based on the comments already posted of those who have tuned in, they've enjoyed it.
You can listen to the interview (it runs a tad over an hour) or download it here: http://tinyurl.com/y9f3tld
And Now For Some News ...
Don't Quit Your Daydream
It Ain't Easy Out ThereThanks again to Portland, Oregon's well-known DJ, Clarence Duffy, for sending me the link to this great website about a documentary "about two dudes in a band (The Good Listeners) who once had a major label deal and now don't have health insurance but still want to make it as rockers somehow. Their idea -- and points for originality here -- is to rent an RV, bring their recording equipment with them, and drive across the country recording a song every other day with a different collaborator in a different location. And make a movie about it. If that sounds pretty cool, it's because it is pretty cool.
Anyway, you may or may not hope these guys figure out how to become rock stars, or at least subsistence rockers, but what does it take to put bread on the guitar case these days? Over at Information Is Beautiful, David McCandless tackles that very question by looking at the artist's share of various music sales outlets - self-pressed CDs, downloads, streaming media - and then figures out how much of each format you'd have to sell every month just to make the equivalent of minimum wage." (Source: http://tinyurl.com/y2jfpe3 )
The documentary looks not only entertaining, but informative about the harsh realities facing all indie musicians who follow their dreams. I can't wait to see the film.
Check out the trailer and music from The Good Listeners at their website at: http://tinyurl.com/y7ayp3w
And to see a graphic that answers the question how much money do musicians really get paid in this new digital marketplace?, Click for Information Is Beautiful : http://tinyurl.com/y99238f
Album Sales Decline, Digital Music Sales Down in Q1
Reuters/BillboardThe first quarter of 2010 brought a few surprising sales results to a battered music industry. On the plus side, a robust release schedule contributed to a sharply slower decline in U.S. album sales during the first quarter. Sales of hit albums by chart-toppers like Lady Antebellum, Sade and the Black Eyed Peas helped avoid the double-digit drops that had become so common in recent quarters.
On the downside, digital tracks recorded their first year-on-year quarterly sales decline, falling 0.9% to 312.4 million in the first quarter from 315.4 million in first-quarter 2009, when track sales climbed 13 percent year on year.
Read more about it by clicking here.
VeVo Grabbing Viewers
MediaPostVevo, the music video site launched by Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group and Abu Dhabi Media Company, pulled in 226 million video views in its first full month in January, according to new data from Brightcove and video analytics firm TubeMogul.
Read more about it by clicking here.
Profile: Chairman Emeritus And Great Record Man, Bruce Lundvall
Wall Street JournalOne of the industry's best A&R man, Bruce Lundvall, is profiled in the Wall Street Journal. If you know about Bruce, catch up with this article. If you don't know about him, check the article out. The industry needs more people like him.
Read more about it by clicking here.
Rounder Records Sold To Concord Music Group
Boston Globe, et alRounder Records, a 40-year-old independent music label based in Burlington, VT, has been sold to the Concord Music Group of Beverly Hills, CA, for an undisclosed price. Both parties say Rounder's identity, and its role as a source of American roots music, won't change.
Read more about it by clicking here.
Consumers Prefer Internet To TV...By A Slim Margin
Pittsuburgh Post-GazetteIf you had to choose between watching TV and surfing the Web, which would it be? For the first time, the Internet is the winner by a narrow margin: 49% said they would drop television, and 48% said they'd give up their Internet connection, according to Arbitron Inc. and Edison Media Research. The survey included 1,753 Americans aged 12 and older. The Internet led all media as the "most essential" of all media in the survey.
The shift is most evident among younger viewers between the ages of 12 and 44, people who are watching "House" and "Glee" and enough NCAA basketball to bring the Internet to its knees. Brad Adgate, senior vice president of research at Horizon Media, was not surprised by the results. "There's just more content, more components on the Web," he said. "I think that makes it a generational thing. Younger folks are light viewers of TV.
Read more about it by clicking here.
NetFlix Makes Deal With Studios
ReutersIf you haven't heard it yet, DVD sales are slumping. So naturally film studios are doing everything possible to ensure satisfactory sales levels are achieved.
DVD rental company Netflix has reached deals with movie studios Twentieth Century Fox and Universal Studios that will allow it to rent DVDs and Blu-ray discs 28 days after new releases go on sale in stores. The deal with Twentieth Century Fox also involves a first-time streaming license for Fox TV shows, the two companies said in a joint statement.
Under their deal, Netflix would get significantly more units and better in-stock levels from Universal after the four-week period and get access to more of the studio's movies for customers to stream. With the 28-day delay, Netflix will be able to rent James Cameron's worldwide blockbuster "Avatar" to its customers starting May 20, after its April 22 DVD/Blu-ray release date.
Read more about it by clicking here.
BECK STUFF:
Beck's Record Club has been slowly unveiling its covers of INXS' 1987 album "Kick." To find out how Liars, St. Vincent and Os Mutantes' Sergio Dias helped him reinterpret the hit "New Sensation," watch the clip on his official site.
BILLIE JOE WITH BILLY MAHER:
Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong stopped by HBO's Real Time With Bill Maher to talk the band's evolving sound, American Idiot on Broadway and eyeliner.
WATERS DOES THE WALL AGAIN:
Roger Waters will take The Wall on the road this autumn, 30 years after Pink Floyd first performed the classic double album onstage.
NEXT GRAMMY BROADCAST:
The 53rd Annual Grammys will air live on CBS from Los Angeles' Staples Center on February 13, 2011. Albums and songs released between September 1st, 2009 through September 30th, 2010 will be eligible for awards.
ALIMONY COURT:
A Los Angeles judge has ordered Nas to pay spousal support to ex-wife Kelis. TMZ reports the MC will pay Kelis $10,000 a month until he catches up on the $299,015.50 he owes her in back child and spousal support payments.
A PULITZER FOR HANK:
Hank Williams received a posthumous Pulitzer Prize yesterday for "his craftsmanship as a songwriter who expressed universal feelings with poignant simplicity," CNN reports.
SIMON AIN'T THE ONLY ONE LEAVING:
Rickey Minor, the musical director for American Idol, will fill the Tonight Show bandleader slot vacated by Kevin Eubanks starting June 7th. Idol's season ends May 26
SIRIUS GROWS:
Satellite radio company Sirius XM added 171,000 new listeners in the first quarter of 2010, according to the Hollywood Reporter, bringing its grand total to 18.9 million subscribers.
WILCO AND OTHERS SUPPORT RECORD STORE DAY:
Wilco, Hole, MGMT and Monsters of Folk are the latest artists to contribute exclusive releases for this year's Record Store Day, which will arrive at independent music shops this Saturday, April 17th. Wilco will offer up their live album "Kicking Television" as a deluxe vinyl box set complete with four LPs, eight extra tracks not on the original release and a bonus CD. Only 1,000 of the reissued "Kicking Television" will be made, so make sure to be first in line this Saturday if you want one of those.
Quotes of the week
"There are times I play mind tricks on myself, like that the french fries are poison."
-- Fergie, on how she fights off cravings, to Elle magazine"You got the e-mail, you got the web-browsing, music, video - you can shield your eyes from the sun, and just look how quickly it makes delicious salsa!"
-- Stephen Colbert, having a little fun with his new iPad, on his late show"There's a new story now - Cream is over,"
-- Jack Bruce on BBC 6Music, completely reversing his comments over a year ago about the possibility of a Cream reunion tour, effectively crushing any hope of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame trio reuniting once again to rock,
The B-Side - 'Blips'
THE ONION (www.theonion.com) STORY OF THE WEEK:
Sad Sack Purchases Screenwriting Software
AKRON, OH-Saying that he's had a few movie ideas kicking around for a while now, local resident and very depressing man Scott Norgren purchased screenwriting software Tuesday.
"I'm excited," said the 36-year-old sad sack, who bought the popular program Final Draft 8 at Best Buy during his work lunch break. "I figured that if I'm going to give screenwriting a try, I should have the right software."
"It's supposed to make the whole process easier," the poor sonofabitch added. "Like the outlining, for example." Norgren, who spent several weeks making careful notes on the screenwriting programs currently on the market, finally settled on Final Draft not just because of its formatting capabilities, but also because the software came highly recommended by some of Hollywood's top screenwriters
"The website says James Cameron uses Final Draft," Norgren said. "He wrote Avatar with this."
Read the rest here and laugh: http://tinyurl.com/y3xztee.
THE RADIO INTERVIEW on 'THE AMERICAN PERSPECTIVE' - From newsblaze.com
"Steve Meyer is on the front line of global music sales and distribution which he expects will soar to pocket-bursting levels. What's more, he shares his insight and ingenuity with us. Steve gives us both historical perspective and futuristic vision as he chats with Judy about the love of his work, trends of the business and his personal points of view about success, happiness and blending life with the lust for life. Steve joins Judy and helps us discover the thrill of having it all with a sense of balance and purpose. "
You can listen to an interview I did with Judy Piazza of 'The American Perspective' by clicking here: (It runs about 15 minutes)
http://www.thesop.org/index.php?id=10306.
The Blogs
Check out Jerry Del Colliano's (the founder of INSIDE RADIO) daily blog, by clicking here: http://www.insidemusicmedia.blogspot.comWebsite
Check out attorney Ray Beckerman's website at: http://recordingindustryvspeople.blogspot.com where he prints news about the RIAA's ongoing activities
TinyURL
Check out www.tinyurl.com where you can make a smaller URL that will work for any webpage you wish to link to or reference. (As you can see, I'm using it in my news stories above!)
-
-