Radiohead angry over comScore report
p2pnet news | Music:- Radiohead is well and truly pissed by comScore’s report on how well the band’s In Rainbows did, or didn’t, do when fans were asked to pay what they thought the album was worth.
“In response to purely speculative figures announced in the press regarding the number of downloads and the price paid for the album, the group’s representatives would like to remind people that, as the album could only be downloaded from the band’s website, it is impossible for outside organisations to have accurate figures on sales,” they say, according to NME, which also quotes them as saying.
However, “they can confirm that the figures quoted by the company comScore Inc are wholly inaccurate and in no way reflect definitive market intelligence or, indeed, the true success of the project.’
Accurate or not, “In Radiohead’s case, as the first band to venture into this uncharted territory they had the benefit of a media firestorm to help promote the album,” said comScore’s Lipsman Andrew, adding:
“If other artists decide to jump on this bandwagon, will they receive the same benefit?”
Claire doesn’t think so.
“Let me preface the following post by saying that I’m in an indie band and I’m a partner in an indie label that we started in 2005 so I’m not a fan of the current state of the music business,” she says in a p2pnet Reader’s Write, going on:
I think the music industry is a good example of how the US government lets huge industry, including the big labels, retain a monopolistic stranglehold on the market which in turn squashes innovation.
However, one thing I think everyone forgets in this matter of Radiohead having ‘independent’ success is this: Radiohead benefits from years of promotion provided by their record companies. The millions spent on marketing and tour support is why they are able to get millions of people to visit their download site and buy their music.
It would take a miracle for a truly independent band who has never been on a label or has been on a small indie label to generate this kind of revenue!
Meanwhile, Radiohead, “recently signed a ‘conventional’ record deal with XL Recordings,” says NME, saying the album will now be released physically on December 31, with single ‘Jigsaw Falling Into Place’ following on January 14.
Also See:
comScore’s report – Hatch’s Kill P2P Bill is nigh, May 26, 2004
NME – Radiohead’s ‘In Rainbows’ to be released on CD this year, November 68 2007
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November 12th, 2007 at 6:46 pm
Re: “Readers Write” quote from story.
“Radiohead benefits from years of promotion provided by their record companies. The millions spent on marketing and tour support…”
Keep in mind, those millions spent on promotion were paid entirely by Radiohead. Bands pay those costs, not the labels. Labels will invest a relatively small amount for newly signed bands, and expect to be repaid in full regardless of the band’s success, failure or their ability to pay back the cash THE LABEL elected to spend. What the poster (poser?) says about Radiohead is true, the tone of it just seems to make it sound like the labels are all warm and fuzzy about spending THEIR money to promote bands. Nothing could be further from the truth.