Comments on: Ben Taylor on Tour – Says Pay What You Want For My CDs, Sells More

By: LIVE@LEEDS

LIVE@LEEDS — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 02:57:38 +0000

[...] notion of making money from CD sales through record labels and concentrate on making money from the experiential awareness that surrounds their brand; a brand they own, no one else. The downside to this for musicians is that they need to get [...]

By: Betsy Grant

Betsy Grant — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 06:00:32 +0000

Sounds to me like people just like your music. Good for you!

The best to you.
Betsy Grant

By: Shafted ARTist -know your enemy » Blog Archive » Here’s an Idea… You tell me the price

Sat, 04 Apr 2009 04:57:49 +0000

[...] like this value proposition is starting to filter into the lower levels of bands. The question is… how long will this [...]

By: Michael

Michael — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 20:24:34 +0000

@joe

White Stripes already did it. They released USB drives that an artist friend of theirs created in each members’ likeness that had the full album, art, videos and extras for around $15 I believe. They only made so many and they sold out instantly from what I hear.

That’s where the innovation factor will play a key role in the future. And that’s why I don’t want to see CDs go away as many claim they will, including the big industry execs. It just doesn’t make sense. Baseball cards, die cast models, and all other kinds of collectibles aren’t disappearing, they just aren’t heard of much because of their staple significance in their respective area of interest.

When people who control content realize that it’s not the content that should be valued but those things that appear around the content pays homage or makes it easier to access, then we will see the true potential of not only art, but business as well.

By: Anna Schmitt

Anna Schmitt — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 16:19:05 +0000

hi ben taylor i have not seen you in like 4years
im 9 years old now and wanted to know
when your playing in CT mystic
i want to see you soon

By: Joe Wallace

Joe Wallace — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 16:17:29 +0000

I have to agree with Dave in a different way–if the CD price issue were as dire as Joe says, vinyl never would have suffered–fact is, the technology is becoming a moot point–if the consumers let it. MP3s are cheaper true–but also EASIER TO CONSUME. Not so five years ago, but today, yes. HOW people consume music is just as important as price point and that’s the real issue here, methinks.

If the shiny disc is to survive, it needs to offer something to music buyers that MP3s don’t–and one of those things would be “Set your own price”. Yes, you can also do that digitally, but you can’t put an MP3 in somebody’s hands at a show–and people LOVE nostalgia items. That’s why folks pay the markup for those expensive high-profile band shirts–not cuz they just loved Skinny Puppy or whoever.

Now the genius who starts selling jam-packed flash drives full of band videos, unreleased trax and video blog entries at their shows? THAT person is going to really up the ante.

By: Dave Allen

Dave Allen — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 18:02:34 +0000

@Joe, not sure I follow. The only data I've been interested in here *is* the price point. Of more interest to me is choice, giving the fans choice seems to create an opening for true fans to give more and for new or undecided tentative fans to give what they feel is appropriate. The data from the many artists who commented on the original post is that they sell more CDs and make more money. Something is working. I believe it has parallels to Lewis Hyde's - The Gift.

By: joe

joe — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 17:48:57 +0000

Youre taking the wrong message away from these statistics. That data shows that the price of CDs is way too expensive. 15 dollars for a CD, especially when they can be sold for much less at a profit as this data also shows. The name your own price data seems to show that prices are too high, not that people don’t want CDs.