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The new system needs to be adjusted. I'm not sure wha the answer is but artists seem to really dislike streaming models. Unless you're a new artists, Spotify services are probably awesome. If your established, like Taylor Swift, Spotift is your enemy.
 
Did they? I'd be quite surprised if that happened.

Personally, when a band announces their decision to try to pull me into the past, I inform them that I'm uninterested in their musical time machine and that I won't be listening to their album until they return to the present day (Spotify). There's hundreds of artists that I like, and most of them are on Spotify. I can live without Rammstein and the few other bands that insist on not being on Spotify. I figured other people felt similarly about the whiney bands that aren't content with getting paid for listens.

I don't know if "skyrocketed" is the right word, but it sold better than any other album this year.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/...becomes-the-first-platinum-album-of-the-year/

However, this is definitely something that only works for a massive artist with an extremely loyal fan base such as Swift's. Taylor is the exception to the music industry's decline. There is no real correlation with her pulling her music off Spotify and her album going platinum.
 
Speak for yourself. I'm very content in having a physical copy of music that is mine to own and one that nobody can take from me.

Yeah, that's fine if that's what you want. No one is saying that you don't have a right to own your music. But, that doesn't mean that streaming services are not popular and rising in utility. iTunes' declining sales is proof of that.

Music ownership doesn't have to die for streaming to be successful.
 
This whole thing has been a masterstroke by U2, and still is.

They have got more publicity than they could ever have hoped.

And have proven by their recent appearances promoting the album that they are still the greatest band in the world.

They are becoming more relevant by the day, even if they haven't been for a while.

The only people complaining are a few geeks on here, who for weeks now have been proving just how sad they really are. Some people just like to moan and need to get a real life.
 
Wouldn't it be cool if the artist could ditch labels and just release onto iTunes?

Systems like Bandcamp are already in place. The issue today for musicians is not distribution, it's notoriety. And this is something the Labels can exclusively provide. Unless of course, you are already a billionaire.
 
The Apple+U2 problems is just another sign of the outdated model. U2 hasn't been relevant since the 90's.

They would have been better off making a deal with a more modern group that represents the current music buying generation. Instead, off going with someone like Tame Impala, they went with U2.

Tim, Jimmy, and Bono are just your typical white male business men complaining they are not making as much money as they used to.
 
I really doubt all of these musicians "collaborating" with Apple are adding any value other than some questionable publicity.
 
U2 was very relevant to me growing up and in my early adult years. U2 lost me after 2004. I think even then I was sticking with their music for the sake of history. Regardless, they somehow find ways to put themselves back in the news and this effort, while pretty much last ditch if you ask me, has done just that.

I don't know about anyone else, but iTunes to me is just a place where my music library is stored and accessed. I didn't care about album extras or anything of the sort. I didn't question why I could not interact with the album art and iTunes was always just in the background. It remains that way for me unless something truly groundbreaking happens, like people pop out of the screen to chill with me while I listen to music.
 
Queue all the 14 year olds whining about U2s relevance. Settle down children, adults listen to music too. I'm sure Taylor Swift has something wonderful/relevant for you in the works.

As far as I'm concerned, relevance has to do with your impact on the world, and you'd be hard pressed to find another band that does as much. U2s has raised more money to fight Aids then most of you will ever have in your life time. Meanwhile your "relevant" band is angsting about their daddy again, quick go ask your daddy if he'll buy it for you!
 
Bono said he had wondered why the album covers displayed on iTunes weren't interactive or why they didn't display archival photos, lyrics, or 3-D versions of band members: anything that would make for a more engaging visual experience with fans to complement the music.

Jobs replied that the operating system and the technology didn't quite exist yet for such an experience.

"But it does now," Bono said.
Bono is a great entertainer. Every time i read an interview of this guy i can't stop laughing. I want to see a Bono 3D.
 
Bono is completely full of himself if he thinks I want a 3D version of himself, or anyone else from U2.

On a more serious note, this is dumb. I don't want a 3D version of anyone from any band, whether I like the band or not. If I like the band a lot I might want to go to the concert, but that's for the entire experience, not just so I can see the members of the band.

It is just an indication of how out of touch Apple is. It is drowning in corporate culture and especially corporate rock.
 
I think what could be interesting when you buy a digital album is to have some sort of a companion app that tells a story about the development of the album and songs. A very visual oriented piece where you could have videos, lyrics, informations, etc.
There are so many cool, well designed apps out there, if they take that into the albums it could make very interesting downloading digital music.
 
This is no different than the current conversation around Apple Pay and CurrentC.

Consumers are happy with streaming services and the benefits they offer. Then someone comes along, rips out their end of the system, and tells consumers that it is for their benefit.

If people were content buying CDs, they'd buy CDs. That hasn't been the case for the better part of a decade.

That’s not necessarily because they prefer streaming. I’m more of the opinion that it’s because it’s easier to get it froma friend on a USB stick. People are far happier getting stuff for free, (unless it’s U2s crappy albums).
 
I don't want to talk about Taylor Swift anymore than anyone else, but it is relevant to the discussion. The kinds of shenanigans that she pulled are exactly the kinds of things that a new music model will have to defend against/do away with. It is extremely difficult to sell consumers on the benefits of streaming services when major artists are yanking their entire libraries off whenever they feel like it.

These are problems that Apple needs to solve if they're going to survive and perhaps win in the new age of streaming music.

as an artist (and i use the term lightly here) she is free to explore whatever avenue she feels compensates her best for her efforts
 
Just as long as the don't remove the option for the iTunes "spreadsheet" view.
It's been around since the beginning and may not be cool anymore but it works best... for me, anyway.
 
Queue all the 14 year olds whining about U2s relevance. Settle down children, adults listen to music too. I'm sure Taylor Swift has something wonderful/relevant for you in the works.

As far as I'm concerned, relevance has to do with your impact on the world, and you'd be hard pressed to find another band that does as much. U2s has raised more money to fight Aids then most of you will ever have in your life time. Meanwhile your "relevant" band is angsting about their daddy again, quick go ask your daddy if he'll buy it for you!

bono/u2 relevance in music and politics are two very different things.

and money raised by u2, project red or whatever can not just be credited to the seller but to the consumer as well.

maybe they wouldnt need to raise all this money for people and causes if u2 and co paid their taxes.
 
as an artist (and i use the term lightly here) she is free to explore whatever avenue she feels compensates her best for her efforts

Totally agree. I'm just saying that it isn't great for consumers and that Apple needs to address it to bring stability and validity to whatever streaming product they're going to release.

"We're best friends with the artists, so you can be confident that all of your favorite music will be available in :apple:Music." is a great resolution to a current problem with other services and a wonderful marketing message.
 
This whole thing has been a masterstroke by U2, and still is.

They have got more publicity than they could ever have hoped.

And have proven by their recent appearances promoting the album that they are still the greatest band in the world.

They are becoming more relevant by the day, even if they haven't been for a while.

The only people complaining are a few geeks on here, who for weeks now have been proving just how sad they really are. Some people just like to moan and need to get a real life.
Where's a down vote button when you need one?
 
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