http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/8507885.stm



Seems to me there's a lot of historical data and research to suggest Joe Average won't touch paid-for streaming services, HENCE the rise of Spotify and the like where at least the industry sees some money they otherwise wouldn't



First of all, that's an unnecessary faff for both user AND the industry, just to begin with. By the time they got the deals and structures in place they'd need to be seriously helping out their partners just to get schemes like that remotely noticed.

Secondly, the "hundreds of millions if not billions of people, most of whom are not today either buyers or certainly heavy buyers of music" bit is obviously laughable, but taken at face value, if such people weren't willing to pay to OWN the music, they're hardly going to continually pay to stream it in an inevitably retarded way that suits the music industry



I agree with most of that except for the stealing part - even if it was true, the music industry is in the state it's in because it continues to treat the customer like something to be herded and told what to think. It can, and probably will, die on it's arse if that's the way they want it...

I find that I only buy music that I have heard before, such as being played on the radio. Otherwise I do not buy. Simple. Remove the option of hearing then I do not hear their artists so do not buy their music.

Yip, only yesterday I bought the last Bon Jovi album cos I was able to listen to it first on Spotify. Also, the album was at the right price in the first place

I was watching a TV show, and heard Norah Jones. I bought the album next day. The labels need to realise that free streaming is a way of getting your music heard, and possibly bought. It is a chicken and egg scenario. Warner are being stupid.

I think this shows the American attitudes in the company. Subscription services are popular in America, certainly much more popular than they are in Europe.

I think this is partly due to the American television system, where most people already pay out a hundred bucks or so a month for cable television...

I def. would pay to use spotify if i could afford the tenner a month. It is really really useful and you don't clutter your computer with a lot of files. Also if your computer crashes, you don't lose any music. I think it's a good move there, It's the only way i see music business surviving in the long term

Oh yeah? What about the number of potential users that'll laugh in your face while you flounder like a fish out of water?

I think what the music industry wants is massive immediate returns. Collectively it's not looking at the long term figures, in effect it's very much the same attitude that Jon Webster (in Amnesia's quote) says the consumer wants "things right here, right now", only the music industry wants it with money, not product.
Nobody's thinking about the long term.

Mark

Yes but what does Spotify offer over a radio? Nothing really apart from no inane DJ droning on about something.

Give me Spotify over the radio any day - that DJ you're talking about should have anti-tank weaponry fired at him, and don't underestimate being able to select your own songs over today's pop drivel