I think the labels are "jacking the box"
Hi all, I'm new here but wanted to add my $.02...
This might be a bit of a conspiracy theory, but I think that the record labels are paying for a large portion of these downloads in order to validate a virtual distribution system.
Anyone remember The Box, the music/hiphop pay-per-view video channel? Record labels would order their own videos in order to create an illusion of popularity, thus creating a demand for their product. It was called "jacking the box". Sounds fishy, but it worked and actually made a lot of people a lot of money.
If one actually looks at the number of users capable of using the iTunes store versus the number of songs purchased, one comes to the conclusion that there is something seriously out of whack. Considering that record labels are rapidly losing any sort of purpose or usefulness with the advent of cheap home studios and virtual (and potentially free) distribution, $10 million dollars seems to be a small bet to hedge against the collapse of the industry.
I have to submit the disclaimer that I think record labels are a bunch of money grubbing evil bastards, so take my theory with a grain of salt. I do, however, think it is entirely likely and I haven't heard anyone talk about this yet so I figured I'd throw it out for your amusement.
Hi all, I'm new here but wanted to add my $.02...
This might be a bit of a conspiracy theory, but I think that the record labels are paying for a large portion of these downloads in order to validate a virtual distribution system.
Anyone remember The Box, the music/hiphop pay-per-view video channel? Record labels would order their own videos in order to create an illusion of popularity, thus creating a demand for their product. It was called "jacking the box". Sounds fishy, but it worked and actually made a lot of people a lot of money.
If one actually looks at the number of users capable of using the iTunes store versus the number of songs purchased, one comes to the conclusion that there is something seriously out of whack. Considering that record labels are rapidly losing any sort of purpose or usefulness with the advent of cheap home studios and virtual (and potentially free) distribution, $10 million dollars seems to be a small bet to hedge against the collapse of the industry.
I have to submit the disclaimer that I think record labels are a bunch of money grubbing evil bastards, so take my theory with a grain of salt. I do, however, think it is entirely likely and I haven't heard anyone talk about this yet so I figured I'd throw it out for your amusement.
