High5: In other news #9

YouTube confirms streaming service

 

Everybody loves a scandal, and everybody loves calling out the big corporates for poor decision-making and taking advantage of the little guy - in this case, it's the indies - artists and labels. YouTube's new streaming service has been a hot topic ever since rumours of its plans started drifting through the grapevine; now that it's finally been confirmed, the cries of 'bullying tactics' have been amplified. Will there be 'mass cullings'? How draconian is YouTube's proposed contracts for its streaming service? Why is the highest earning company offering the lowest royalty rate? Read "YouTube to launch paid music service" to find out what it had to say in its official statement. 

 

The downside to crowdfunding

 

Is crowdfunding really the god-send it's made out to be? Does it really serve the unknown musician, or do you have to be relatively well-known in order to reap its benefits. Is there still a place for major record labels as the tastemakers of popular culture in music? Read "Can fan campaigns reinvent the music industry?" and consider whether crowdfunding creates the perfect communal environment to support the music industry, as it is portrayed to do, by cutting out the middlemen. 

 

 

Music entrepreneurship

 

Chaos breeds order. While the music recording industry is in its current state of uncertainty, that uncertainty is opening up new job possibilities in the sector as a new outlook is required. Music entrepreneurship is thriving as we try and find solutions to the problems facing the industry in the digital age. Read "What does a new grad do in music today?" to find out how new careers in the field are being created.   

 

The end for Look & Listen?

 

Look & Listen has filed for business rescue. It's as if they didn't see it coming. Take a look at their website - no options for downloads. But that ship has sailed - it's all about streaming right now, and even that model is yet to prove profitable. Read "How digital killed Look & Listen" to find out what put the nail in the coffin for the retail giant.  

 

 

Avoid the hustle

 

The music industry has evolved vastly and is still undergoing this process in many respects. Traditional job titles and roles have either become obsolete or have taken on new meaning. To new artists, understanding this tangled industry can be daunting. Read "Managing management in the music industry" to get to grips with the difference between being hustled and finding success.