As streaming becomes more and more popular, CD sales will hit pay dirt -- there is a need to revive album sales and one of the best ways to do that is to release albums as an all-in-one feature rich Interactive App that will include many features such as,
.. Album Playlist
.. Lyrics
.. Videos
.. Photo Album
.. Social Streams - fans will directly (in the app) be able to interact with other fans.
.. And other non-music? There is a rapidly growing interest to provide non-music content --- YouTube is the best platform for that.... wait, let me explain that more clearly for example;
.. Provide fans with upcoming release i.e. short-episodes (5 to ten minutes) behind the scenes (documentaries). Another example; Life on the road, aww heck the wheels fell off the old VW van, we barely made it on time for the show. These are just two examples in regards to the strategy being used by band's to keep their channels (YouTube) content frequently active and most importantly... interesting, and if done really well should definitely increase the band's fan based.
The key is (and dare I say it), 'Branding and Concept'. There, I said it, now I feel like a mass produce can of beans.
Seriously though, the most favorable route to success is to not only have great music but to also have a great concept and good business relations skills with important contacts. For starters, independent bands need to register their label and become
the business (brand). There is another side to art (music) and I guess a lot bands need to learn that business side of the equation. This does not mean a compromise in what you enjoy most; performing and creating music.
Should bands (and their indie label) be paid directly for this new feature rich Interactive App and will there be a small (percentage) retail fee? Yes to both questions, this is currently how retailers operate. Streaming audio is one thing whereas feature rich Interactive App (replacement for CD) is possibly the music business best route to recoup losses in Album CD sales (as explained above)!
Slightly OT -- Other matters in regards to changes: Licensing, merging of collection rights and fair-share (royalties payments) -- these changes are going through reforms, hopefully to ensure content creators earn what should be sustainable ((Livable Income)), this is one of the key issues of discussions due to massive down-turn of CD sales and woefully inadequate 'streaming' royalty rates. This news may be promising, a break-through especially for independent band's / labels. Sure, there is a concern with 'majors' heavy handed influence in regards to the senate and CRB determination. That said, without speculating either way, we'll have to wait and see what happens in the near future.
Wish you all the very best!
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