source www.minblog.net
MySpace, a sinking ship?
07/05/2010 /
It could just be that the popular music and social networking MySpace is on its way out. Recent figures reveal bleak times over at the News Corp. owned company.
For the quarter ending March 31st, MySpace lost $150 million (€117 million) compared with an $88 million (€68 million) loss a year earlier. The Site which was bought out by News Corp. in 2005 for a paltry $580 million (€450 million), compares to Microsoft′s 1.6% stake for 300 million, which gave Facebook an immediate value of $15 Billion (€11.8 Billion).
MySpace launched in 2003 and on August 8, 2006, search engine Google signed a $900 million (€700 million) deal to provide a Google search facility and advertising on MySpace. In 2009, rumors started circulating about MySpace's demise as the company chose to lay off 30% of its workforce in June 2009.
MySpace have found it hard to stay relevant ever since Twitter and Facebook came into the foray. There is no question that MySpace have been losing ground. Have a look at the graph, which supports their dwindling numbers.
"Worldwide monthly page views for MySpace have declined from 47.4 billion a year ago to 38 billion today, a 20% drop. In that same period Facebook has grown from 44 billion to 87 billion", reported American tech blog TechCrunch.
Even though most musicians use MySpace as a base for their fans and career, overall MySpace as a social networking tool has become antiquated and outdated.
As music magazine Spacelab pointed out, "None of this addresses the bigger picture, which might explain a big part the MySpace dilemma. When News Corp. bought the site; it was already in decline as far as being a favored site. Page views can be misleading when you're getting traffic but nobody′s loving your site."
Only time will tell what's next for MySpace, with money falling through their hands, there are certain questions being raised about the longevity of the once influential music/networking company.
Ari Stein
source www.minblog.net
New music sites #25
06/05/2010 /
Quite an ingenious website. The site, which is still in its Beta phase launched on March 13th, 2009, it focuses on finding you the right concert via your specific emotional mood. It is still only available in the US.
”Turn2Live.com is the first online tool that enables users to discover shows using intuitive search terms. These terms exist outside of the traditional boundaries of genre, artist and venue and include creative, mood-oriented keywords such as ”sunny and ”sensual. Plus, with our search-by location feature, you′ll never have to travel far to find the music you love.
Founded by Nik Daftary who is the co-Founder and CEO and Zelal Gungordu who heads up the natural language and semantic part of the website.
A new networking social music site. Headliner .FM focuses on creating some kind of bartering network, where your ongoing promotion counts as currency.
They are called Band Bucks and you use them and earn them when you send out promotion to say Twitter, Facebook and MySpace. If your email, promotion or whatever you send out is officially accepted on the other bands site then you earn Band Bucks for them.
Band Bucks can then be used to buy promotions from other bands.
Headliner is a band and artist endorsed social media promotion exchange that connects bands and artists to new fans.
Our service enables authentic cross-promotion between bands and artists across the entire web. Headliner creates value for bands, artists, managers and labels by enabling them to leverage their existing social media fans and send highly targeted promotional messages to the music fans on the web who they want to reach.
Based in New York, the site was started by Mike More and Bill Cromie?.
Guvera is an innovative new website that uses advertisers finances to make your access to music free.
”Guvera has spent several years negotiating rights all around the world and designing this new system to make music free by having advertisers pay for our downloads. Essentially, we match brands to consumers and they pay for you to download music for free. Instead of brands spending their money advertising to you during your favourite TV show, brands are providing you with credit to download music for free
Guvera was launched on 30th March, 2010 by CEO Claes Loberg in Australia.
source www.electronicbeats.net
21 SAUCES OF INSPIRATION - Matthew Herbert
05/05/2010 / Ari Stein
English artist Matthew Herbert has never been one to shy away from taking risks. He (also known as Herbert, Doctor Rockit, Radio Boy, Mr. Vertigo, Transformer, Wishmountain) constantly leaps at the chance to create works of individuality and distinctiveness. His body of work borders on the absurd, which is why we find him so endearing.
Herbert chose the distinguished path of making some truly definable records early on, his record Bodily Functions in 2001 setting him far apart from the rest of electronic artists.
Having worked with such artists as Moloko, Bjork and even producing The Invisible’s debut album, this ain’t bad at all for a guy who started out in 1995 using a bag of crisps as an instrument.
The guy who is now 38 years old, is a pioneer in the micro-house movement but even more so possesses a serious political agenda. Lets not forget the huge controversy surrounding the One Pig record, which Herbert will release later this year.
Herbert has just released a new record titled One One, part of an ongoing trilogy, which will also include One Club consisting completely of club sounds.
Matthew Herbert's Big Band is making several appearances across Europe at the moment. You can find all dates here.
Take a peek at what baffles, perplexes and inspires Mr. Herbert.
1. What gets you going in the morning?
Small boys crying.
2. What five records would you take to a desert island?
Five copies of Keith Jarrett, The Melody at Night with You
3. What inspires you to create?
Mediocrity. Curiosity. Chomsky.
4. What book or piece of literature are you reading at the moment?
The Man in the Dark by Paul Auster
5. Favorite piece of literature and why?
Silence by John Cage.
6. Favorite club?
7. Which historical figure inspires you or would you like to meet?
8. List five movies that you couldn’t live without?
I could happily live without movies.
9. Favorite director or actor?
At the moment: Paul Thomas Anderson
10. Favorite piece of architecture or building?
Kings Hospital in Dulwich, London for keeping my boy alive.
11. Favorite combination of food or recipe?
The butter chicken at Tratorria Sostanza in Florence.
12. Favorite musical genre in the last 100 years and what would you mix it with if you could?
The Blues.
13. Favorite Internet site?
www.seat61.com
Invaluable when you're trying to avoid flying
14. Who has had the biggest influence on you in your life?
Regrettably, George Bush.
15. What is one record you should never be seen dancing to in a club?
Music by Madonna
16. Favorite 5 music artists currently listening to?
Datsik. D Frost. Rowdy Superstar. Barbara Panther. James Holden
17. Favorite piece of art or artist and why?
I thought the recent Anish Kapoor exhibition at the RA had two incredible works in it.
18. Artist you’d most like to collaborate with?
Fred Astaire
19. One obscure band / artist you think should be more popular?
20. What’s your ringtone?
Tinkly
21. Do you have a favorite sauce?
The homemade piccalilli from the butcher at the Goods Shed in Canterbury.
source www.minblog.net
Heated discussion takes place at Tomorrow Never Knows
04/05/2010 /
Two opposing titans of the copyright industry BPI (British Recorded Music Industry) boss Geoff Taylor and Pirate Bay co-founder Peter Sunde Kolmisoppi recently clashed at the Tomorrow Never Knows: Music Consumption And Its Impacts debate in London.
The debate, which was organized, by the The British Music Experience and Music Week attracted several industry figures with different views on the future of the recorded music business.
Geoff Taylor expressed his satisfaction about the recent passing of the Digital Economy Bill, finding the bill ”very gradual and proportionate, especially within the context of CD sales being down 7% in the UK.
Mid-way through the night Taylor made his views vocal to Kolmisoppi saying that he was, ”morally opposed to what The Pirate Bay is doing attracting a big round of applause.
Kolmisoppi′s views throughout the night obviously attracted opposition but understandably so, making several questionable statements about the health of the music industry. Kolmisoppi going as far to say that (making money or career) ”Might not be good for people working in the record industry, but the music industry is better than ever. This came without any real supporting statements.
Another of the featured speakers Jeremy Silver of the Featured Artists Coalition responded to the heated situation remarking, ”Major labels are struggling to make the most of innovative new digital models due to their reliance on their legacy CD businesses.
Regardless of the opposing views held by Taylor and Kolmisoppi or even Silver for that matter, it′s still very important for ongoing discussions to be made like this one or even Day Of Digital Music. This will surely allow the industry to open up and find new and interesting ways of finding much-needed revenue.
Here is a minute account of the debate.
Sources:
http://musically.com/blog/2010/04/29/bpi-and-the-pirate-bay-clash-at-london-music-industry-debate/
Ari Stein
source www.minblog.net
Global music figures roll in for 2009: 7.2% drop overall
29/04/2010 /
A new report released by the global music watchdog IFPI says leading music markets US and Japan have both experienced dwindling record sales for 2009.
Some fascinating figures have emerged from different markets across the world, most absorbing is that global recorded music sales fell 7.2% in 2009.
The cumulative figure for all sold music in 2009 reached $17.0bn (£11.1bn)
As reported earlier digital sales have raised remarkably to 9.2% in 2009 to $4.3bn (£2.8bn) giving the industry a much-needed positive spin.
But every territory experienced its own ups and downs for 2009, have a look at this following chart, which elaborates:
Top four markets worldwide:
- US sales fell 10.7% to $4.6bnUSD
- Japan went down 10.8% to $4.0bnUSD
- U.K. up 1.9% to $1.57 bnUSD
- Germany down 3% to $1.53bnUSD (German full music retail market is worth $2.148 billionUSD)
Rest of the World:
- Australia (up 4.3%)
- Brazil (up 0.5%)
- South Korea (up 10.4%)
- Sweden (up 11.9%)
- India (up 2.0%)
- Mexico (up 0.2%)
These figures prove overall that right now things are holding on and showing small signs of encouragement.
If you were wondering which artist sold the most records globally for 2009, it was Scottish sensation Susan Boyle with her LP I Dreamed A Dream selling 8.3 million records.
Sweden's and South Korea's significant rise in music trade is backed by their stringent fight against piracy. These are stone cold reminders that fighting piracy actually works. Other countries like the UK, will employ the Digitial Economy Bill, so it will be very interesting to see the music trade figures for 2010.
Ari Stein