NOISE
News
The Wall Street Journal
WEB SITE FEATURES ENTIRE ALBUMS -- PRE-RELEASE
AOL Time Warner's Reprise Records is making British rock group New
Order's next CD available via streaming on its Spinner.com music site ahead of
the CD's Oct. 16 release.
The move signals the new trend among record companies to make an entire album available for preview, rather than just a few selected cuts. "Clearly, the best way to sell music is the music itself," says Ron Shapiro, executive VP of AOL TW's Atlantic Records. Still reeling from Napster's onslaught, record companies have decided to loosen the reins on online access to their products, albeit with a few more controls than the free-for-all file-sharing phenomenon. Songs available via streaming technology can be listened to only for a limited period of time.
"What made sense to me was that if the whole record is going to be on the Web anyway, we should be proactive," says Robin Bechtel, head of new media for EMI's Capitol Records. The real trick in all this will be to turn listeners into buyers -- Viacom's VH1.com site now allows users to stream albums online and preorder them before the CD is available. Such presales, along with subscription-based online music services, could signal the recording industry's gradual shift toward a phased release schedule similar to that of the movie industry. (Wall Street Journal 20 Aug 2001)
Order's next CD available via streaming on its Spinner.com music site ahead of
the CD's Oct. 16 release.
The move signals the new trend among record companies to make an entire album available for preview, rather than just a few selected cuts. "Clearly, the best way to sell music is the music itself," says Ron Shapiro, executive VP of AOL TW's Atlantic Records. Still reeling from Napster's onslaught, record companies have decided to loosen the reins on online access to their products, albeit with a few more controls than the free-for-all file-sharing phenomenon. Songs available via streaming technology can be listened to only for a limited period of time.
"What made sense to me was that if the whole record is going to be on the Web anyway, we should be proactive," says Robin Bechtel, head of new media for EMI's Capitol Records. The real trick in all this will be to turn listeners into buyers -- Viacom's VH1.com site now allows users to stream albums online and preorder them before the CD is available. Such presales, along with subscription-based online music services, could signal the recording industry's gradual shift toward a phased release schedule similar to that of the movie industry. (Wall Street Journal 20 Aug 2001)
Thanks to: Neil
