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NIN's Music Experiment Sells Big Numbers
An anonymous reader writes "It looks like Trent Reznor's new Nine Inch Nails album experiment is a success. Among the various options he gave fans, the most expensive was the $300 Limited Edition Ultra Deluxe Package. It took just over a day for that package to completely sell out, earning Reznor $750,000 in revenue from just that option alone."
NOBODY here is saying "musicians shouldn't be paid for their work". What "anti-copyright people" object to, though, is the fact that it's a profession in which you work hard ONCE and get paid for a lifetime, as opposed to "normal" professions where you get paid for the work you done, and that's it. I think most people would agree that copyright is good, as it keeps other people from making money out of the work you've done, but the way it is now, it is also keeping people from simply enjoying the work you've done for its own sake ... and if you're an artist, the thing you're supposed to care about is to make art, not how much more you can milk your product some more. That's the difference between an artist and a (for example, as this applies to all art-fields) "music producer". .. etc ...
Of course, you must make money to survive, and that's where Trent Reznor's latest album becomes significant : it shows how to make money from your art, without being detrimental to the people who are supposed to ENJOY it. Of course, he won't be able to live off this album for the rest of his life, but it will pay his rent for some time to come, time during which he'll be able to create something new, which he'll be able to sell again the same way
If it doesn't sound like a comfortable style of life, then I'll have to tell you a shocking truth : that's how it is for everybody who works independantly.
"DRM is like the Ford Pinto: it's a smooth ride, right up the point at which it explodes and ruins your day."-C.Doctorow
I think that the obvious overwhelming sentiment from the online community is that this is a very positive step in a good direction, however I wonder how many people are supporting this move simply to either spite the RIAA/Labels and/or support this new distribution method.
However, let's say that the RIAA goes away and that everyone distributes their music this way. Will the droves of people will continue to support this movement once the novelty wears off, or will we end up back at the starting line with people downloading things for free?