From Mark Kolmar Sent Sun, Apr 18th 1999, 21:34
From Mark Kolmar Sent Sun, Apr 18th 1999, 21:34
On Thu, 15 Apr 1999, Tom Millar wrote: > Carry this over into the music industry with MP3's and what you may very well > get is a marked increase in album prices; > So enjoy the free music distribution system while it lasts. Before too long we > may all be paying ridiculous prices for CDs because of it. Major players in the music industry have a remarkable knack for mixing up cause and effect, and for being unable to see the effects of their own short-sightedness. Why would you buy the full CD from The Verve Pipe for about $17 when you can download an MP3 of the one song the alternative station tries to cram down your throat? Except for dance-oriented songs, commercial singles from larger US labels are almost non-existent. Many dance-oriented CD-Maxis do not even contain original or radio versions of the song. The record company forces the casual consumer to choose between the full CD and nothing. Meanwhile, the largest retailers like Tower and Best Buy have increased their prices by a dollar or two across the board. Sales are down during the same period. Is there any link between a record company not selling singles, and consumers not buying them? Is there any link between an increase in price, and a decrease in sales? Of course not. You'd have to be a communist to suggest the basic rules of a market economy are in effect here. Would the unenthusiastic music-buyer pay a dollar for an MP3 of that song from the radio? The record companies seem to be afraid to find out. --Mark __ Burning Rome : SENSELESS CD on Mindfield Records MindCD03 Cathartium 14 > Distributed by Dutch East India Trading, Com Four, and Carrot Top < < http://www.xnet.com/~mkolmar/BurningRome > < MP3 & RealAudio tracks >