Chapter 1298 Exclusive Release
On February 29, 2004, a novel scene occurred on the North American continent——
In one room, the entire nation was focused on the Oscars ceremony, and the bustling and majestic sights gathered in all directions.
Because this is the first time in three years that the Oscars have been successfully held without interference from off-site factors, and it is also the first time that the Oscars have been held in advance to the end of February. Changes in the film market are coming.
There is no doubt that this is the center of attention, and whether "Lord of the Rings 3", which is leading the nomination stage, can break the curse of fantasy movies being ignored by the academy, is also a topic discussed on the streets.
No exceptions.
On the other hand, the music market is buzzing with heat and is gathering towards the band on August 31st.
Because of the special deluxe edition of "Midsummer Midnight"?
No, no, no, what people care about is not the album, but the first collaboration between the band and iTunes on August 31st, officially kicking off a new era.
Since the turn of the millennium, digital audio sources have been fully popularized and gradually evolved into a new way of listening to music, which has directly led to a decline in the sales of physical albums——
The special deluxe edition of "Midsummer Midnight" is naturally not as attractive to people as before. After all, this album has been released for more than a year and has even achieved an astonishing sales of five million. The market potential has been almost tapped. People really All I care about is "another light."
It is precisely because of this that "Another Light" completely grabbed the headlines.
In the past few years, more and more digital audio sources have been launched on different music platforms, including iTunes. Singers must also consider the issue of digital audio sources when releasing new music, because online piracy is infringing on their direct interests——
Either keep up with the times, or be eliminated by the times.
However, this is the first time that a singer/musician has exclusively cooperated with a platform to not only exclusively authorize the song, but also officially announce the release of a single as a digital sound source.
An unprecedented first.
Shock, astonishment, shock, all spread.
Have no other singers ever been like this before?
The answer is yes.
The fundamental reason lies in the environment of the times. At present, the ranking and scoring method of the Billboard singles chart still does not include the sales of digital music source downloads.
Of course, the bulletin board also has its own difficulties. There are too many digital audio source platforms, legal and illegal, and there are countless pirated downloads. They have no way to make official statistics. If there are no unified standards for digital audio sources, the bulletin board will not be able to collect these Data is taken into account.
To this end, Billboard has been looking for solutions. They cannot ignore the rise of digital music sources. In order to maintain the authority of Billboard, they must keep pace with the times; but so far they have no clue.
All in all, Billboard has not included digital music source downloads in the singles chart statistics for the time being, which also affects the choice of record companies.
Radio on-demand, physical sales and other data are still the main components of the Billboard singles chart rankings.
Therefore, both singers and record companies release digital music sources in order to adapt to the times and avoid piracy from eroding their own interests as much as possible. This is a defensive method; but their focus is still on physical albums. This is tradition. At the same time, It is also a reliable means of protecting rights and interests——
In addition, it is the right way to ensure that the single can achieve good chart results on the Billboard charts.
Until now, the band takes the stage on August 31st. This is a band that makes a difference from the moment the members meet, impresses every step of the way, and continues to surprise.
Everything was just as Apple expected. iTunes instantly stood under the spotlight and became the center of attention, attracting thousands of eyes.
So, what does this mean?
Has iTunes officially become the official platform for legal downloading of digital music sources? Among all digital music download platforms, does iTunes stand out?
At present, it is not yet known, and it is still too early to discuss these; but there is no doubt that it is 100% certain that thanks to the attention and discussion that "Another Light" received at the Grammy Awards, when August 31 When the Japanese band announced that the single's digital audio source would be released exclusively on iTunes, the shock to the entire market was clearly audible.
The reason is very simple——
Those listeners who complained about resisting or even boycotting the money-making attempt to release a special deluxe version of the album "Midsummer Midnight" may not be fans of the August 31st band at all, and they refuse to buy an album just for one song. Now finally found the solution.
Digital audio source, $0.99 per song.
Affordable, simple and straightforward.
If you like the song "Another Light", just download and listen to it alone.
This is equivalent to the band giving the general public a second choice on August 31st. "Smart people" have said that they will not buy the album foolishly. Isn't it nice to download a single for $0.99?
However, they are completely unaware that, just for a single, they may need to buy an iPod, install and download iTunes, and will be bundled with the iPod in the future. This is another consumption trap, which is more luxurious than buying an album. version is much more expensive.
In other words, they noticed it but didn't care. They used it as an excuse to change their equipment, lock their Walkman in a drawer, and embrace a new digital audio player.
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There was a lot of hustle and bustle, and heated discussions were in full swing.
Not only the general public, but also news media and music industry professionals are paying attention, curious about the development of the matter——
Currently, there are not even 100 but also 80 digital audio platforms on the market. They are a mixed bag of good and bad, and genuine and pirated products are intertwined. It is a complete mess. There has never been one platform that can stand out and bring order to the market.
Now, on August 31st, the band has chosen to cooperate exclusively with iTunes. So, how are the sales? Can they break down barriers and achieve great results, or will they be swept up in the turmoil of the era and disappear in the blink of an eye?
What if "another light" hits the street?
It’s not that we don’t have confidence in the August 31 band, but that the current chaos in the digital music platform makes us lack confidence. Standing in front of the tide of the times, personal power is insignificant. How many users are there on iTunes?
The number of users of a platform may only be one-tenth or one-twentieth of the entire market. "Another Light" is only released exclusively on iTunes. The number of digital music downloads may only be able to realize the market potential of the band on August 31. One out of ten, isn't it doomed to be beaten?
It is against this backdrop that the release of "Another Light" has generated much discussion, even in the majesty of the Oscars.
After all, it’s still early for the red carpet, so it won’t hurt to pay attention to the music release.
At 8 o'clock in the morning, the special deluxe version of the physical album "Midsummer Midnight" and the digital audio source download of "Another Light" were launched at the same time. The whole of North America was silent, and iTunes carried unprecedented attention and hope.
A download button is likely to become the focus of a turning point in the times.
Facts have proved that this may really happen——
Open the door to a whole new world.
(End of chapter)