pampelmoose Dave Allen of Gang of Four’s Music and Media Blog

It seems to me that the music industry and its advisors move at a glacial pace when it comes to embracing the internet and new business models. There have been remedies at hand for years now, I would say at least a decade, but no one in the music industry has made a serious attempt to apply new thinking to the old model. Meanwhile new companies, and sometimes re-tooled older research companies, have sprung up to offer their ‘advice’ and ‘research’ to an industry that doesn’t appear to be listening. Here’s an example of wrapping up old news and presenting it as new after running a “800-person UK study” - - “Researchers at The Leading Question and experts from Music Ally have determined that fewer people are regularly paying for downloads, while the percentage of the population that regularly downloads music from a P2P network is holding steady.” Well, well, well. I hope no one paid too much money for that research. In any event these fine groups have come up with a five-point plan to save the music industry, my comments are in italics below:

1. Music needs to be bundled with other products and entertainment packages: Value can be created from many other ways than consumers simply buying the occasional download. Music needs to move away from per unit sales and become more of a service than a product. It should be pre-loaded into devices, bundled with mobile tariffs, offered as part of TV/Entertainment/ISP packages.

Since I began this blog, in fact well before that when I was working at Intel, I often discussed the “feels free” model of bundling music into products and devices. Old news packaged as new.

2. Labels needs to experiment with new release schedules and formats: The old model of single and album releases has run its course. Labels needs to be more innovative if they are not to be freezed out altogether. Look at the likes of Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails and Prince and experiment with new and varied formats, new pricing models and release schedules, digital only releases and promotional partnerships with brands.

More old news presented as new. We all know by now that Prince, Madonna, Radiohead and NIN couldn’t be doing what they are now doing if they hadn’t had the major label system behind them as they built their careers. The major labels need to give away at least one mp3 for every album they release to help create demand through promotion and networking on the web.

3. Free doesn’t mean no money: The music industry should not fear free. It needs to embrace it. The culture of the net is free or at least feeling free. But money can still be made from other sources: everything from advertising supported services, to brands paying for an association with the artists to newspapers paying for giveaway CDs.

This is the same as point one in different words.

4. Change the charts: The Charts don’t make much sense anymore. Now that fewer and fewer people are buying music the charts need to reflect the other ways that people are consuming music.

This is almost new thinking. It has been well documented that “charts” or “award shows” have lost their luster. In an age where everyone has access 24/7 to our entertainers and stars going about their daily lives there is no longer a fascination with who will win a Grammy or an Oscar. The music charts such as Billboard are completely meaningless these days as any band that sells around 100k units can get to number one - about 6 years or so ago you needed upwards of 500k to achieve the same result.

5. Trust the DJ: Online means anyone can access or own John Peel’s entire record collection, but the instant and massive availability of music on demand means you need a trusted guide like John Peel more than ever. The new layers of value will come from the social connections that come about through music as much as from the music itself.

That’s why I run Pampelmoose, you’re welcome.

Meanwhile there’s this - Making money when CDs don’t sell.