Apple iTunes Sees Big Drop in Music Sales • Hacker News Board

Re: Apple iTunes Sees Big Drop in Music Sales

#21

Post by dreamfactory2 » Mon, Apr 06, 2015, 1:03 AM UTC

themoonbus wrote: post #18

joeblau wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the only people that are really angry about Spotify are the artists. It seems like the way their payments are calculated, they get the short end of the stick.

Not that this excuses Spotify, but artists got the short end of the stick in the traditional system too.

Much more so on spotify (and streaming generally). In the traditional system an artist might have got 10% of retail price. That equates to much more than 10% of profit (could be around 40% of profit in some cases). While record companies do have various ways of chipping away at that, the fundamentals of a traditional points deal aren't actually as bad as usually presented and way better than in other retail industries (e.g. clothing).

Re: Apple iTunes Sees Big Drop in Music Sales

#22

Post by dublinben » Mon, Apr 06, 2015, 1:03 AM UTC

zaidf wrote: post #11

I rarely ever purchased music. And yet, thanks to Spotify I've been paying ~$10/mo for the last 4 years. For all the hate it gets, its turned people who rarely ever paid for music into paying for it every month.

You might be interested to know that your $120/year is several times what the average consumer has ever spent on music per year.[0] It's quite likely that streaming services have already captured all the consumers willing to pay this much. The only growth will come from lowering prices.

[0]https://recode.net/2014/03/18/the-price-of-music/

Re: Apple iTunes Sees Big Drop in Music Sales

#23

Post by dreamfactory2 » Mon, Apr 06, 2015, 1:09 AM UTC

ams6110 wrote: post #19

Congratulations to the music publishing industry. After years of claiming that we didn't actually own the songs we purchased, we finally decided not to purchase songs anymore.

That applies to any copyright material - you license it for limited usage (e.g. you can't create copies and redistribute, which is what ownership implies)

Re: Apple iTunes Sees Big Drop in Music Sales

#24

Post by spiralpolitik » Mon, Apr 06, 2015, 1:13 AM UTC

steven2012 wrote: post #4

I'm curious what the net amount of money going to musicians are, as opposed to the amount of money going to record labels. That's much more important to me, because I don't care if the music labels starve, but if the musicians go broke, then there is no more content. And in this age, it seems strange that there isn't a good way for a musician to completely bypass labels altogether and just release music on their own,…

For 90% of artists the record labels are now redundant. They can do everything themselves. Yes its going to be hard work, yes you are going to end up playing the same small venues year after year as you build your audience, and yes won't be heard on the radio (outside of NPR maybe) or breaking any sales records.

You will get a lifetimes career out of it and in the end you'll probably make more money than 90%+ of label signed artists. The key thing is the choice is now yours.

Re: Apple iTunes Sees Big Drop in Music Sales

#25

Post by wvenable » Mon, Apr 06, 2015, 1:16 AM UTC

acheron wrote: post #12

alyx wrote: post #5

Personally, I have not bought music since streaming services started covering 90% of the music I listen to.

That's so bizarre to me. I'm pretty much with Penny Arcade on this: "it's basically infinity dollars." [1] I mean, the idea of "owning" a digital file is a bit nebulous, but streaming offers nothing to me. Though I'm completely the opposite when it comes to movies, where I'm perfectly happy with streaming. So who knows. [1] http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2009/05/15

It might be infinity dollars but it's also infinity music. As new music gets released you can listen to that too as well as a back catalog larger than you could conceivably own. The concept of renting something is neither new nor strange. Penny Arcade's example is the same for housing, gym memberships, etc.

Re: Apple iTunes Sees Big Drop in Music Sales

#26

Post by TheCondor » Mon, Apr 06, 2015, 1:17 AM UTC

acheron wrote: post #12

alyx wrote: post #5

Personally, I have not bought music since streaming services started covering 90% of the music I listen to.

That's so bizarre to me. I'm pretty much with Penny Arcade on this: "it's basically infinity dollars." [1] I mean, the idea of "owning" a digital file is a bit nebulous, but streaming offers nothing to me. Though I'm completely the opposite when it comes to movies, where I'm perfectly happy with streaming. So who knows. [1] http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2009/05/15

How many movies do you rewatch? A really infectious song, you'll listen to it tens or even hundreds of times. It's a different kind of investment

Re: Apple iTunes Sees Big Drop in Music Sales

#27

Post by iamben » Mon, Apr 06, 2015, 1:18 AM UTC

You can't put the genie back in the bottle. The way we consume changed dramatically over the last 20 years, and with change, it means where, how and who profits changes.

I'm all for competition but I feel it's going to end up ruining it for those that consume, and ultimately those who create - in both music and movies.

Spotify is as close to 'perfect' as I think we've seen a streaming service so far. Most, if not all of the people I know who'd prolifically or casually pirated music (but rarely, if ever bought it), now pay for Spotify. Most, if not all those who bought music now pay for Spotify instead. Because it's easier. And it's all there - and it doesn't cost you to experiment and change your mind.

But when artists (Taylor Swift, etc) start leaving because it doesn't pay as much as the heydays, and start moving to services that promise more cash, everything becomes more fractured. The reason people pay is because it's easier that pirating. Napster was easy. Everything was there so you consumed. But no one wants to pay for 5 services / install 5 apps / whatever. So they'll just end up not bothering, and by that point they won't be buying either. And everyone will lose.

Re: Apple iTunes Sees Big Drop in Music Sales

#28

Post by freehunter » Mon, Apr 06, 2015, 1:19 AM UTC

click170 wrote: post #17

notnickwolf wrote: post #2

Try this if it asks you to sign in: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&c...

I still get asked to sign in when I view that link, but that's besides the point: I wish paywall'd articles weren't accepted here. Maybe there is a place for paywalls in this world, I just don't think we should be posting links to them here.

The trouble with paywalls is, am I going to pay for NYT, WSJ, Boston Globe, MoneyWeek, Newsday, The Onion, etc, all individually? No. I might subscribe to one paper, but that's not how the Internet works. Even then, I never subscribe to the paper. I get it free at work or at the library or in a hotel.

Re: Apple iTunes Sees Big Drop in Music Sales

#29

Post by diminoten » Mon, Apr 06, 2015, 1:19 AM UTC

iamben wrote: post #27

You can't put the genie back in the bottle. The way we consume changed dramatically over the last 20 years, and with change, it means where, how and who profits changes. I'm all for competition but I feel it's going to end up ruining it for those that consume, and ultimately those who create - in both music and movies. Spotify is as close to 'perfect' as I think we've seen a streaming service so far. Most, if not all…

Spotify is not as good as Google Music.

Why does everyone forget Google Music? And you can't leave Google Music to boot -- not without leaving YouTube too!

Re: Apple iTunes Sees Big Drop in Music Sales

#30

Post by freehunter » Mon, Apr 06, 2015, 1:22 AM UTC

diminoten wrote: post #29

iamben wrote: post #27

You can't put the genie back in the bottle. The way we consume changed dramatically over the last 20 years, and with change, it means where, how and who profits changes. I'm all for competition but I feel it's going to end up ruining it for those that consume, and ultimately those who create - in both music and movies. Spotify is as close to 'perfect' as I think we've seen a streaming service so far. Most, if not all…

Spotify is not as good as Google Music. Why does everyone forget Google Music? And you can't leave Google Music to boot -- not without leaving YouTube too!

People forget about Google Music because Google seems to have forgotten about Google Music. Same with Google Voice. They don't push it, no one will use it. Personally for me, I switched from Google Music to Spotify because Google boycotts Windows Phone. I don't have the patience to put something in my workflow that doesn't work on every platform I use.