Comments on: I Got Your Long Tail Swinging! http://virtualturntable.fourstones.net/i-got-your-long-tail-swinging Tips, tricks, technology reviews, previews and musings on the current state of affairs in music and audio software for personal computers. Thu, 17 May 2012 14:39:04 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=1.5.2 Comment on I Got Your Long Tail Swinging! by: John Pazdan http://virtualturntable.fourstones.net/i-got-your-long-tail-swinging#comment-20711 Tue, 15 Jul 2008 13:06:25 +0000 http://virtualturntable.fourstones.net/i-got-your-long-tail-swinging#comment-20711 Agreed! Victor. For some reason, people outside of "the industry" frequently don't understand the biz for the wreck it is. And as you go up the food chain to the "other" industries, a lot of the same "wreckedness" applies as well. It is the profit motive to the detriment of all else in corporate culture that drives the bus. Agreed! Victor. For some reason, people outside of “the industry” frequently don’t understand the biz for the wreck it is. And as you go up the food chain to the “other” industries, a lot of the same “wreckedness” applies as well. It is the profit motive to the detriment of all else in corporate culture that drives the bus.

]]> Comment on I Got Your Long Tail Swinging! by: fourstones http://virtualturntable.fourstones.net/i-got-your-long-tail-swinging#comment-20663 Mon, 14 Jul 2008 17:40:41 +0000 http://virtualturntable.fourstones.net/i-got-your-long-tail-swinging#comment-20663 Glenn, if you could only be less reasonable it would easier to discuss these things... ;) Focusing on the "while you're at it" aspects of my response is just side stepping the larger point - that a tactical play, aimed at the online habits of 43 year olds, is in the larger context of the business practices of these companies a continuation of the provincial outlook that has put the industry in the hole that it is today. Besides, having a discussion of how lesser known artists sell into their markets can not be a vacuum considering how influential those (mal)practices have been on the market in the past. Coming from a world where radio airplay is jerry-rigged using illegal means, artists' only option was to play their game their way, retailers were kept under the thumb of draconian sell-back rules, charts were rigged at the cash register, and more recently their customers were assaulted by tens of thousands of lawsuits and root-kits it shouldn't come as all that much of a surprise that buying habits built up over the last 50 years continue as they were, at least for a while. Continuing to either fight or flee from the inherent networking nature of the Internet only makes sense if you expect the methods of the past to continue in the future and only if the model has worked financially up until this point. Not that I agree or even like the way they do business, the fact is Microsoft's resistance to more bleeding edge Web trends has paid off in the tunes of billions of dollars continuing to flow their way. They have managed to walk the line between participation in the 'net culture and an attenuation that proves there is strong strategic thinking going on. I know first hand this is rooted from a deep paranoia of being taken over by the "2 guys in a garage" phenomenon; the same one that allowed them to side-swipe IBM. The refusal of the record industry to take active participation in the 'net culture, especially where it comes to the relationship between artist and consumer, including "niche" artists is exactly why the star and celebrity culture continues to prevail in the buying habits of 43 year olds. But it's just another strategic miscalculation that leaves the door wide open for a completely different set of players to move in. Glenn, if you could only be less reasonable it would easier to discuss these things… ;)

Focusing on the “while you’re at it” aspects of my response is just side stepping the larger point - that a tactical play, aimed at the online habits of 43 year olds, is in the larger context of the business practices of these companies a continuation of the provincial outlook that has put the industry in the hole that it is today. Besides, having a discussion of how lesser known artists sell into their markets can not be a vacuum considering how influential those (mal)practices have been on the market in the past.

Coming from a world where radio airplay is jerry-rigged using illegal means, artists’ only option was to play their game their way, retailers were kept under the thumb of draconian sell-back rules, charts were rigged at the cash register, and more recently their customers were assaulted by tens of thousands of lawsuits and root-kits it shouldn’t come as all that much of a surprise that buying habits built up over the last 50 years continue as they were, at least for a while.

Continuing to either fight or flee from the inherent networking nature of the Internet only makes sense if you expect the methods of the past to continue in the future and only if the model has worked financially up until this point.

Not that I agree or even like the way they do business, the fact is Microsoft’s resistance to more bleeding edge Web trends has paid off in the tunes of billions of dollars continuing to flow their way. They have managed to walk the line between participation in the ‘net culture and an attenuation that proves there is strong strategic thinking going on. I know first hand this is rooted from a deep paranoia of being taken over by the “2 guys in a garage” phenomenon; the same one that allowed them to side-swipe IBM.

The refusal of the record industry to take active participation in the ‘net culture, especially where it comes to the relationship between artist and consumer, including “niche” artists is exactly why the star and celebrity culture continues to prevail in the buying habits of 43 year olds. But it’s just another strategic miscalculation that leaves the door wide open for a completely different set of players to move in.

]]> Comment on I Got Your Long Tail Swinging! by: Glenn http://virtualturntable.fourstones.net/i-got-your-long-tail-swinging#comment-20660 Mon, 14 Jul 2008 16:56:22 +0000 http://virtualturntable.fourstones.net/i-got-your-long-tail-swinging#comment-20660 Thanks for the critique. Perhaps you took my post/paper too far. I have not encouraged music companies to *not* change how they do business, only to shy away from many of the themes and recommendations in the book. The HBR article is about hit and niche cultures. To discuss accounting methods and artist contracts would be to venture outside the scope of the discussion. Thanks for the critique.

Perhaps you took my post/paper too far. I have not encouraged music companies to *not* change how they do business, only to shy away from many of the themes and recommendations in the book. The HBR article is about hit and niche cultures. To discuss accounting methods and artist contracts would be to venture outside the scope of the discussion.

]]> Comment on I Got Your Long Tail Swinging! by: Mike Linksvayer http://virtualturntable.fourstones.net/i-got-your-long-tail-swinging#comment-20590 Sat, 12 Jul 2008 22:12:53 +0000 http://virtualturntable.fourstones.net/i-got-your-long-tail-swinging#comment-20590 Weren't you an A-list blogger when there were only 100 or something? You should write more. :) Weren’t you an A-list blogger when there were only 100 or something?

You should write more. :)

]]> Comment on I Got Your Long Tail Swinging! by: John Pazdan http://virtualturntable.fourstones.net/i-got-your-long-tail-swinging#comment-20584 Sat, 12 Jul 2008 14:41:45 +0000 http://virtualturntable.fourstones.net/i-got-your-long-tail-swinging#comment-20584 YO Stone, Don't get all snarky on the ol' skool "record companies". Without them, how would we ever be able to get the 492 "digitally remastered" Greatest Hitz packages of The (_______)..fill it in yourself, cowboy...complete with memorial booklet and sooooveneer concert ticket stubs (not included with all versions, some restrictions apply)? How would I ever be able to keep some asswipe lawyers kiddies in college tuition money when trying to run down "royalty statements" from (_______)..ditto... And Gebus! Just what would be my motivation for making muzak if there weren't no promise of a life of sex drugs and the BIG BUCK (S) etcetc at the dark end of the street? Git real here Bud..In our immensely successful, gebus given to us as the greatest gift, Free Market Economy (tm), it's the promise of REWARD that keeps us all striving ahead to the great, umm, I fergit... but that's 'cause I am sort of a ..maverick.. kind of guy. Your Friend, and (maybe?) the only person at ccM to have his own little mention in "Hit Men", j "what's it to you?" p YO Stone,
Don’t get all snarky on the ol’ skool “record companies”. Without them, how would we ever be able to get the 492 “digitally remastered” Greatest Hitz packages of The (_______)..fill it in yourself, cowboy…complete with memorial booklet and sooooveneer concert ticket stubs (not included with all versions, some restrictions apply)? How would I ever be able to keep some asswipe lawyers kiddies in college tuition money when trying to run down “royalty statements” from (_______)..ditto… And Gebus! Just what would be my motivation for making muzak if there weren’t no promise of a life of sex drugs and the BIG BUCK (S) etcetc at the dark end of the street? Git real here Bud..In our immensely successful, gebus given to us as the greatest gift, Free Market Economy ™, it’s the promise of REWARD that keeps us all striving ahead to the great, umm, I fergit… but that’s ’cause I am sort of a ..maverick.. kind of guy.

Your Friend, and (maybe?) the only person at ccM to have his own little mention in “Hit Men”,

j “what’s it to you?” p

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